Confronting Race Head-on in 12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen, 2013): Redefining the Contours of the Classic Biopic?
In his successful 2013 cinematic release 12 Years a Slave, Steve McQueen circumvents the “great white narrative” by addressing race “head-on” instead of metaphorically, writing every character within their own racial background. As in Solomon Northup’s 1853 Twelve Years a Slave, black characters are...
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| Language: | English |
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Association Française d'Etudes Américaines
2019-09-01
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| Series: | Transatlantica |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/11593 |
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| author | Anne-Marie Paquet-Deyris |
| author_facet | Anne-Marie Paquet-Deyris |
| author_sort | Anne-Marie Paquet-Deyris |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In his successful 2013 cinematic release 12 Years a Slave, Steve McQueen circumvents the “great white narrative” by addressing race “head-on” instead of metaphorically, writing every character within their own racial background. As in Solomon Northup’s 1853 Twelve Years a Slave, black characters are not removed from their own histories; instead, they are shaped and defined by them. To what extent, then, does the film distinctly voice racial concerns and tensions, and provide representational spaces on screen in a nuanced and reflective manner? How does it—if indeed it does—subvert the standard black slave/character and white master/hero dynamic, and embrace a wide variety of black stories and perspectives? By reconsidering the classic biopic/historical film, this article examines how the movie relocates America’s problems with race at the very heart of the national debate and offers a “post-post-racial” screen model that directly confronts race history. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-0d9a667c3bae43f0af2547f57ca8e134 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1765-2766 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2019-09-01 |
| publisher | Association Française d'Etudes Américaines |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Transatlantica |
| spelling | doaj-art-0d9a667c3bae43f0af2547f57ca8e1342025-01-30T10:46:26ZengAssociation Française d'Etudes AméricainesTransatlantica1765-27662019-09-01110.4000/transatlantica.11593Confronting Race Head-on in 12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen, 2013): Redefining the Contours of the Classic Biopic?Anne-Marie Paquet-DeyrisIn his successful 2013 cinematic release 12 Years a Slave, Steve McQueen circumvents the “great white narrative” by addressing race “head-on” instead of metaphorically, writing every character within their own racial background. As in Solomon Northup’s 1853 Twelve Years a Slave, black characters are not removed from their own histories; instead, they are shaped and defined by them. To what extent, then, does the film distinctly voice racial concerns and tensions, and provide representational spaces on screen in a nuanced and reflective manner? How does it—if indeed it does—subvert the standard black slave/character and white master/hero dynamic, and embrace a wide variety of black stories and perspectives? By reconsidering the classic biopic/historical film, this article examines how the movie relocates America’s problems with race at the very heart of the national debate and offers a “post-post-racial” screen model that directly confronts race history.https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/11593slaveryraceslave narrative12 Years a SlaveSteve McQueen |
| spellingShingle | Anne-Marie Paquet-Deyris Confronting Race Head-on in 12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen, 2013): Redefining the Contours of the Classic Biopic? Transatlantica slavery race slave narrative 12 Years a Slave Steve McQueen |
| title | Confronting Race Head-on in 12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen, 2013): Redefining the Contours of the Classic Biopic? |
| title_full | Confronting Race Head-on in 12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen, 2013): Redefining the Contours of the Classic Biopic? |
| title_fullStr | Confronting Race Head-on in 12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen, 2013): Redefining the Contours of the Classic Biopic? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Confronting Race Head-on in 12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen, 2013): Redefining the Contours of the Classic Biopic? |
| title_short | Confronting Race Head-on in 12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen, 2013): Redefining the Contours of the Classic Biopic? |
| title_sort | confronting race head on in 12 years a slave steve mcqueen 2013 redefining the contours of the classic biopic |
| topic | slavery race slave narrative 12 Years a Slave Steve McQueen |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/11593 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT annemariepaquetdeyris confrontingraceheadonin12yearsaslavestevemcqueen2013redefiningthecontoursoftheclassicbiopic |