White Hoods and Burning Crosses: The Portrayal of the Ku Klux Klan in American Film

Bc. Ondrej Golis

Bachelor's thesis

Abstract:

Práca sa zaoberá zobrazením Ku Klux Klanu v Americkej kinematografii z historického a kultúrneho hľadiska. Analyzovných je päť filmov: The Birth of a Nation (Zrodenie národa, D.W.Griffith, 1915), Gone with the Wind (Odviate Vetrom, Victor Flemming, 1939), Mississippi Burning (Horiace Mississippi, Alan Parker, 1988), Betrayed (Horiace Kríže, Costa Gavras, 1988) a A Time to Kill (Čas zabiť, Joel Schumacher, 1996). Každý z filmov ponúka odlišné zobrazenie Ku Klux Klanu a (s výnimkou prvých dvoch zaoberajúcich sa tou istou érou) historické obdobie v existencii tejto organizácie. Záver je zhrnutím rozdielnych zobrazení Klanu a v niektorých prípadoch aj ich porovnaním. Taktiež sa ukázalo, že filmová prezentácia je závislá nielen od obdobia, ktoré zobrazuje, ale takisto aj od obdobia, v ktorom konkrétny film vznikol.

Abstract:

This thesis deals with portrayal of the Ku Klux Klan in American film from the historical and cultural point of view. Five movies are analyzed: The Birth of a Nation (D.W. Griffith, 1915), Gone with the Wind (Victor Flemming, 1939), Mississippi Burning (Alan Parker, 1988), Betrayed (Costa Gavras, 1988), and A Time to Kill (Joel Schumacher, 1996). Each of the movies offers a different presentation of the Ku Klux Klan and, with the exception of the first two which deals with the same era, historical period in the history of this organization. Conclusion is drawn as to what are the differences in the representation of the Klan in the movies, and in some cases a comparison between them is drawn. It is also shown, that the film portrayal depends not only on the period depicted in the movie, but also on the period which a certain movie was created in.

Keywords

film, Ku Klux Klan, American, history, The Birth of a Nation, Gone with the Wind, Mississippi Burning, Betrayed, A Time to Kill

Language used: English

Date on which the thesis was submitted / produced: 26. 4. 2010

Thesis defence

• Date of defence: 7. 2. 2011
• Supervisor: doc. PhDr. Tomáš Pospíšil, Ph.D.

Masaryk University

Faculty of Arts

Bachelor programme / field:
Philology / English Language and Literature