We are the Other- 38th Street & Nicollet Avenue, Minneapolis, MN. (2012)
http://know.wingyounghuie.com/page/2 (round bout 4th one from the top)
Little picture: A seemingly abandoned storefront facade. A stoplight pole in the foreground on the far right. A blue trash can and parking regulation sign in the foreground on the left side. A grinning, bucktoothed, squinty eyed, paddy hat-wearing asian caricature advertising "the original chicken wings" in the background, slightly above, and to the right of the parking regulation sign. A text block advertising "Wings and Ribs(?)" to the right of the grinning, bucktoothed, squinty eyed, paddy hat-wearing asian caricature. Graffiti on the window beneath Bucky McSmiles. A string of buildings in the background, with furniture in front of them on the street. A black woman in a pink shirt, with a red bag, standing near the corner of the street, right hand placed atop head.
Big picture: The first thing that I notice is the usage of a comically racist asian caricature to sell a food item typically associated with the African American race: Chicken. Upon first looking at this image, the racist in all of us would automatically assume that the store is in a predominantly black neighborhood. This is most likely because of the faint graffiti on the window below Bucky McSmiles would typically be associated with minority behavior, such as that of African Americans or Hispanics. The racist portrayal of an Asian also seems to be something that would be considered offensive today, but obviously in the time when the sign was displayed, it would not have caused much consternation.
Wing Young Huie presents othering in this image through the presentation of the stereotypical image of Bucky McSmiles. The stereotype presented to us is supposed to show the casual racism of the past. In the case of this image, the act of othering is explicit, and is not meant to be subtle or refined. The caricature presents asians as being inherently different, and this is expressed through comical garb, slanted eyes, and buck teeth. Huie also presents a contrast between the caricature and the local community by photographing an African American woman to the right of Bucky McSmiles, contributing to the othering and drawing a strict division between the races.
In the Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood also presents explicit othering through the division of society into different groups. By having each individual group wear different "uniforms" such as Red for Handmaids, Black for Commanders, Green for Marthas, and Red, Blue and Green for Econowives, Atwood is emphasizing the difference and division of society in Gilead. The use of biblical, and religiously tinged names to denote and characterize each group, is also another example of how othering is used to divide the society. Names like "Commanders of the Faithful", or "Angels" denote power and purity, and sound more superior to the other classes. Names such as "Marthas"," Econowives" and more informally, "Jezebels", denote lower societal echelons, with "Martha" alluding to the Biblical servant who worked while Jesus jabbered, "Econowives" denoting a cheaper, lower level wife, and "Jezebels", the Biblical wife of Ahab, used to refer to the lewd, lascivious members of the state-sanctioned brothels. By using the connotation of these names, Gileadean society is able to present a divisive look at class through the usage of a single word. Both Atwood and Wing Young Huie present the act of othering through a visual (or descriptive) way, with Huie presenting othering through racial caricature, and Atwood presenting othering through clothing. However, Atwood differs from Huie by applying othering through the usage of word and title, to signify division and echelon.
I think that this is a very interesting picture because of the target audience. Racism doesn't really bother us unless it’s against us. If an authentic Chinese restaurant that targets Chinese immigrants used the same ad, that would be destructive towards their business. Since this restaurant seems to be in an African American neighborhood and targeting people that aren’t Asian, they are able to use this ad and get a positive response. This isn’t offensive to me, it’s a little bit funny which really shows how perspective and back ground can have a huge impact on interpretation.
ReplyDeleteI think that this is a very interesting picture because of the target audience. Racism doesn't really bother us unless it’s against us. If an authentic Chinese restaurant that targets Chinese immigrants used the same ad, that would be destructive towards their business. Since this restaurant seems to be in an African American neighborhood and targeting people that aren’t Asian, they are able to use this ad and get a positive response. This isn’t offensive to me, it’s a little bit funny which really shows how perspective and back ground can have a huge impact on interpretation.
ReplyDeleteLove that you looked at the surface element and then considered possible implications. Push yourself a bit more to strengthen your analysis!
ReplyDelete