Verified Document

Function Of Stereotypes In 50 Term Paper

The actor, Joe Nakashima, is simply listed in the credits of the film as "Old Hawaiian Man," and, like the Ula character, is simply used by the filmmakers as a tool for comic relief. This desultory treatment is nevertheless emblematic of how the vast majority of the native Island characters are depicted in the film. Unlike Henry, Lucy, and Lucy's family, we never get a real image of their intimate, emotional lives or the circumstances of their lives. They are simply there for the entertainment - and service - of the European-American characters, who are the real protagonists of the film.

This is easy to see when evaluating the occupational roles that the characters in the film fill. At the center of the movie, of course, is Henry Roth, who is a veterinarian - a white-collar profession that requires a high degree of education. The Islanders, on the other hand, are largely portrayed as servants. Chief among these is the restaurant staff, but also the police officer who appears near the end of the film to give Lucy a ticket for an expired license plate - an event that makes her realize that something in her life is amiss. Nick (Pomaikai Brown), the obese, greasy cook in the restaurant, is the prototypical emasculated male ethnic stereotype. Despite his weight and strength, he is controlled by Sue (Amy Hill), the stereotypical Island matron who runs the restaurant and serves the clients.

Finally, 50 First Dates makes use of gender stereotyping as a means of comic relief. This is most evident at Henry's work, where he is assisted by Alexa (Luisa Strus), a gender ambiguous individual from Austria. One day at work, when confiding her sexual frustration, Alexa offers herself sexually to Henry. Henry's response to her is that he is not into guys.

Later, when Henry is in a restaurant on a date, he decides that he is not interested in having sex with the horny tourist. He suggests that Alexa, who happens to be sitting at the bar, might be a better choice. "But isn't that a woman?" his date responds. Cue the...

Sadly, 50 First Dates seems to be emblematic of the Hollywood tendency to employ such stereotypes as grounds for laughter. There is nothing subversive about it, as these stereotypes only mean to reinforce ideas that are quite common in our society. What is more, in that they are presented as "harmless entertainment," they give people permission to laugh at stereotypes that would most likely hurt people's feelings in the real world, while clearly pandering to the white, European-American audience's perception of the Other. It justifies relaxing from the mores that the tenets of political correctness have attempted to enforce in the previous decades through such measures as affirmative action, and allows us to laugh at racist ideas without having to feel guilty. What is more, it reaffirms normative gender roles and effectively ostracizes all those who are unable to fit into such categories.
It is highly unlikely that gender ambiguous individuals and native Hawaiian islanders would find much of the so-called humor in 50 First Dates very appealing. But clearly, this film was not made for such individuals. It was made for the mainstream, and thus serves as a tool for reinforcing the status quo.

Ultimately, it is not the native Hawaiian Islanders or the gender-ambiguous individuals who matter much in the scheme of 50 First Dates. Take away the "exotic" locale and the individuals who come attached to it, and you have a typical Hollywood story about two "normal" (i.e. white, heterosexual) individuals and their romantic entanglement. This is quite stereotypical in itself, as an emblem of Hollywood's machinery, in that it refuses to deviate from such norms. Stereotypes in 50 First Dates thus serve a double purpose: to reinforce preconceived societal notions about ethnic and gender minorities, while asserting the supremacy of those who are "lucky" enough not to fit into such "restrictive" categories.

Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Gender Stereotypes and the Ontogenetically Adaptive Role of Feedback...
Words: 4385 Length: 15 Document Type: Term Paper

Gender Stereotypes and the Ontogenetically Adaptive Role of Feedback Preferences Introduction & Theory It is acknowledged that feedback is an integral part of the learning process and that different types of feedback are suited to different types of situations (e.g., Spector, 2000). The current research examines how gender stereotypes affect working adults' feedback preferences in the context of training. Based on Social Role theory (Eagly, 1987), this paper theorizes why these preferences

Minority Groups and Stereotypes Stereotyping
Words: 3032 Length: 11 Document Type: Term Paper

Stereotyping effects not only other people image of an ethnic group but it can also influence the self-image of that group. [Tatum, 1999] describes a discussion with her children while driving them to school. A drove past a Black teenager running down the street." Why is that boy running?" my son asked. "I don't know," I said absentmindedly. "Maybe he stole something." I nearly slammed on the brakes. "Why would you

Correspondence Bias and Why Might It Occur
Words: 2232 Length: 6 Document Type: Essay

correspondence bias and why might it occur? Are there cultural variations in the correspondence bias? In the practice of social psychology, correspondence bias or also known as the theory of fundamental attribution error will refer to the over-valuing of explanations that are based from personality perspective under circumstantial situations. This process can lead into misunderstanding between one or two parties that include communities, societies, and groups that are living within

Improving Diabetes Self-Care Among African-American
Words: 5589 Length: 18 Document Type: Thesis

Many of the same issues that arise in regards to diabetes, also apply to control of obesity as well (Tilghman, 2003). Conceptual Model The symptom-focused intervention model was developed by the University of California -- San Francisco Nursing Symptom Management Faculty Group (1994). It has been adapted for use in older African-American women that have been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in rural areas of the Southeastern United States. These findings

Managerial Assessments of the Applications of Regression
Words: 834 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Managerial Assessments of the Applications of Regression Management The commentary of the article begins with the subject of the research in the article: Organizational Politics within Academic Departments. This subject is valid of research as it is a factor of which many students are unaware, yet are apart of and by which they are affected. Uninformed views or stereotypes of academia may not include the order of politics evident among faculty and

Activities to Reduce Inappropriate Behaviors Displayed by
Words: 10021 Length: 25 Document Type: Term Paper

Activities to Reduce Inappropriate Behaviors Displayed by Children With Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities The purpose of this dissertation study is to test the effectiveness of an everyday activities-based protocol (Holm, Santangelo, Fromuth, Brown & Walter, 2000) for managing challenging and disruptive behaviors of 13- to 23-year-old residential students (male and female) with Autism who live at Melmark Homes, Inc., of southeastern Pennsylvania, and attend school or adult day programs.

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now