Article Title
Ritualized Myth: an Analysis of Biracial Male Buddy Films
Abstract
The contents of eleven films of the "biracial buddy" genre were analyzed to see how cinema portrays differences between the two main characters when one is Caucasian and one is African American. Especially considered was how aspects of cinema's "mythic structure"- including dramatic functions of the hero archetype and"the raising of the dramatic question"-played out each film. Attention was paid to which of the two characters most often appeared first, how they made their entrances, and which character experienced the most growth by the end of the film. The title of each film was taken into consideration as another indicator of which character the film centered on. The results indicate a definite difference. The white hero was the one who most often appeared first and experienced the most growth. Furthermore, the main dramatic questions, as well as the titles of the films, were more often linked to the white character than to the black.