Still never at the top: representation of Asian and Black characters in Sony/Marvel Studios’ Spider-Man trilogy

IF 1.1 2区文学 Q3 COMMUNICATION

Critical Studies in Media Communication Pub Date : 2023-07-28 DOI:10.1080/15295036.2023.2238803

Jolie C. Matthews, Dustin Tran

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Abstract

ABSTRACT This article examines the portrayal of Asian and Black characters in Sony/Marvel Studios’ Spider-Man trilogy. We analyze Ned Leeds, Brad Davis, Liz Allan, and M.J. “Michelle Jones-Watson,” as well as minor characters, through the lens of racial triangulation (Kim, 1999). We focus not only on traditional white/Asian/Black comparisons across racial groups, but also on sub-triangulations within groups, such as positioning Black women in comparison to other Black women or Black men, or Asian men to other Asian men or Asian women, along with comparisons to white representations. Despite the trilogy’s diverse cast, Ned, Brad, Liz, and M.J. remain separated from and in opposition to one another, with their existence and purpose constructed around their relationship and/or relevance to Peter Parker (Spider-Man), the white main character. The trilogy furthermore employs long-standing stereotypes about people of Asian and Black descent to help maintain whiteness at the top of all triangulations. We argue for a greater need to push beyond surface representations of “diversity” to consider how media actually represent different groups.

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但从未名列前茅:索尼/漫威工作室的《蜘蛛侠》三部曲中，亚洲和黑人角色的代表

本文探讨了索尼/漫威工作室的《蜘蛛侠》三部曲中亚洲和黑人角色的塑造。我们分析内德·利兹、布拉德·戴维斯、莉兹·艾伦和M.J.“米歇尔·琼斯-沃森”，以及次要人物，通过种族三角视角(Kim, 1999)。我们不仅关注种族群体之间传统的白人/亚洲人/黑人比较，还关注群体内部的子三角关系，例如将黑人女性与其他黑人女性或黑人男性进行比较，或将亚洲男性与其他亚洲男性或亚洲女性进行比较，以及与白人代表的比较。尽管《蜘蛛侠》三部曲的演员阵容多样化，内德、布拉德、莉兹和M.J.仍然彼此分离，彼此对立，他们的存在和目的都是围绕着他们与白人主角彼得·帕克(蜘蛛侠)的关系和/或相关性而构建的。此外，三部曲还采用了长期以来对亚洲人和黑人后裔的刻板印象，以帮助维持白人在所有三角关系中的最高地位。我们认为更有必要超越“多样性”的表面表现，考虑媒体实际上如何代表不同的群体。

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来源期刊

Critical Studies in Media Communication COMMUNICATION-

CiteScore

2.10

自引率

0.00%

发文量

期刊介绍： Critical Studies in Media Communication (CSMC) is a peer-reviewed publication of the National Communication Association. CSMC publishes original scholarship in mediated and mass communication from a cultural studies and/or critical perspective. It particularly welcomes submissions that enrich debates among various critical traditions, methodological and analytical approaches, and theoretical standpoints. CSMC takes an inclusive view of media and welcomes scholarship on topics such as • media audiences • representations • institutions • digital technologies • social media • gaming • professional practices and ethics • production studies • media history • political economy. CSMC publishes scholarship about media audiences, representations, institutions, technologies, and professional practices. It includes work in history, political economy, critical philosophy, race and feminist theorizing, rhetorical and media criticism, and literary theory. It takes an inclusive view of media, including newspapers, magazines and other forms of print, cable, radio, television, film, and new media technologies such as the Internet.