Jhally's essay on The Cosby Show was eye-opening, but I found it to be confusing on how we should think about television in America. I am personally a big fan of The Cosby Show. My friends and I in high school had a weird obsession with it, and one of my friends owned the seasons on DVD. After reading Jhally's essay, it made me think if we wereguilty of giving into the normalcy of the show, and possibly even giving into enlightened racism? It got me thinking.
I like this show because it is funny, it's as pure and simple as that. I think Bill Cosby is a great comedian and this show's reruns always played on Nick at Night when I was growing up. Yes, they were a black family and different from me, but I think because I started watching it as a child I did not think of it the way that Jhally discussed in the article. Many white Americans thought the show to be unrealistic, but all normal because the Huxtable's race wasn't noticeable and they were "just like them". Both of these views are problematic. It shows how black representation on TV is very limited, and that people do not want to see variety away from the middle or upper middle class family setting. It also brought new forms of racism, like enlightened racism, to the table because people commented on how "there race wasn't even noticeable," which is a ridiculous statement in and of itself. It also was bothersome that people didn't like shows like The Jeffersons because they were seen as "too black" or discussed to many racial issues. We need more shows with diversity that show all different walks of life in order to help get rid of stereotypes. The media has the power to change this, and they simply refuse not to.
You have some very interesting ideas about how viewers did not differentiate this show from other shows such as “The Jeffersons”. I don’t think we should feel guilty about it, first because as viewers we are only enjoying the show. The bigger problem that comes to mind is when we try to comprehend and look at the bigger picture. Usually behind good entertainment, there are many possibilities of analyzing what the content represents, and the message that it is trying to get across to the audience. As we try to understand concepts, and theories and learn more about media, it is important to understand how these problems can become controversial. It is good to question why the cosby show is more successful than other shows, because it helps us become more critical and aware of the information that is being presented to us. The fact that their race was not noticed in the show is ridiculous because it shows how willing we are to ignore certain things about others because of the circumstances being presented. I linked this idea to their social class. The idea that they are well off and not “too black” makes the audience believe that they are an exception and like other black people. I also believe that sometimes our attitudes are not always consistent with our actions. It is easy to say something or believe something because of the influence around us, however if we did not have a strong negative impact on ourselves because of someone else race, it gives more of a likeable chance to ignore that as a factor. I also believe that when we see people as a group, it is more easy for us to categorize them. However, if we meet people on an individual daily basis and actually get to know them our perception about their race and culture might change or we might not take it into consideration.
ReplyDelete