Graduation Year
2021
Date of Submission
5-2021
Document Type
Open Access Senior Thesis
Award
Best Senior Thesis in Religious Studies
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Religious Studies
Reader 1
Gaston Espinosa
Terms of Use & License Information
Abstract
Film is a medium that has, and continues to, immortalize some of the world’s greatest people. From political figures to artists to fictional characters, Hollywood’s representation of a human subject in a film has a lasting impact on the legacy of that person. For famous racial-ethnic minority religious activists, the manner in which they are represented varies greatly and this affects how their accomplishments and methods are interpreted. This thesis seeks to explain how famous racial-ethnic minority religious leaders are depicted in Hollywood films. Using the biographical films of Mahatma Gandhi, Cesar Chavez, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and Malcolm X as cases; this project will analyze how these biopics represent the religiosity of their subject. Additionally, this analysis will include a discussion of how racial-ethnic minorities are portrayed in each film and what kinds of religious stereotypes are affirmed and refuted by each filmmaker.
Recommended Citation
Henderson, Carter, "Screening Race and Religion in Hollywood: Gandhi, MLK, Chavez, and Malcolm X on Film" (2021). CMC Senior Theses. 2633.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses/2633
