Who is the man that would risk his neck
for his brother man?
Shaft.
Who's the cat that won't cop out
when there's danger all about?
Shaft.
I think these lyrics really are dead on when you think about who Shaft is and what he stands for. A strong black man, looks out for his brotha’s, doesn’t back down from anyone, laughs in the face of danger and then gives it to the ladies and trust me, they can dig it. Shaft is the epitome of black masculinity. Everyone respects him and if you don’t you’ll either learn to very quickly or you’ll be in a lot of pain.
Shaft’s interactions with other characters showed that people did have respect for him. Ben, who was at one time Shaft’s friend, doesn’t want anything to do with him but once he sees Shaft is risking his neck for Ben and his men, he quickly realizes that Shaft is someone worth helping out. Ben may not like Shaft a whole lot, but knows that Shaft is loyal and honest to his fellow black men.
Shaft walks on a thin line. He’s got a manslaughter charge being dangled over his head for the incident in his office and he’s helping out a notorious gangster, Bumpy Jonas. These things still don’t seem to faze or slightly affect Shaft at all. Shaft is still calm, cool, and doesn’t miss a beat. His interaction with the other lieutenant shows that they have mutual respect for each other and even though their witty black and white humor might raise a little tension between the two, they still know they’re on the same side and share that bond. He knows even Shaft will risk his neck for him if need be.
Ironically Shaft who seems to have so much power and swagger can’t even hail a cab and you see racism and prejudice in action the late 60’s and early 70’s. Even Shaft isn’t immune to oppression and is considered by some as only a black man. As strong as he may be and the fact that he is a cop still doesn’t exclude him from hate or dislike from the still large group of white people who feel this way about African Americans.
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I completely agree with you on the whole idea of the lyrics perfectly matching up to the personality that is shaft. I would have to say that not only is it that lyrics match up but that whole f*** you emotion is defined by the whole opening sequence. he is just walking through traffic not caring if he is in the way of anyone else.
ReplyDeleteOn top of this i do like the fact tat in a way you point out that he is just a black man not able to even get a cab. i think it it shows to the audience that even though he is portrayed as a "super hero" he is still a man
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ReplyDeletei don't think it is correct that he is 100% the epitome of black masculinity. he appears to be a conglomerate of a black man and a white man which according to stereotypes and power structures of the time, would make him a super black man? I just see Ben as a powerful black man, and Vic's captain as a powerful white man, Shaft is the middle of the spectrum here and this allows him to accomplish what he needs to in order to keep the balance between the two.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your comments about the relationship between Shaft and Vic. I actually think it’s an incredibly positive portrayal of a relationship between a black man and a white man. Like you said, while they do joke around about each other’s race, they are both there for one another and are on the same side.
ReplyDeleteI’m not sure how I feel about whether Shaft is the epitome of black masculinity. Part of me thinks so and part of me thinks that there is more to it than that. However, while I do agree that Shaft acts a mediator between the black and white groups or “forces”, I don’t see anything about Shaft that is necessarily “white”. I think that his attitude and role of the film shows a great deal about his character’s beliefs but on the exterior he seems to be entirely a suave and powerful black man.
I think the argument over whether Shaft truly is the "epitome" of black masculinity, or rather a white version of black masculinity, is very intriguing. I feel like race in culture back then was so different than it is now-- sure, there are still racial tensions today, but it was a very pivotal time for African Americans in our country when this movie was made. In a way I think Shaft was a very cool, but also risky and controversial, character to be portrayed, and it's interesting how different audiences perceived and continue to perceive him.
ReplyDeleteShaft is very much a stereotype--a positive stereotype, and much more positive than many from that era or now, but still a stereotype. Women want him, men want to be him. He's respected by other black men but can still deal, if warily, with white men. He's definitely an interesting image of masculinity and there's a lot of fascinating stuff about race going on in this movie, as this discussion is pointing out. But it's also a fantasy, and a Hollywood fantasy at that.
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