Magical Negro
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The "Magical Negro" (sometimes called the "Mystical Negro" or "Magic Negro"), according to some critics and commentators, is a stock character who appears in some films, books, and television programs. The term has been in use since at least the 1950s, but has since been popularized by Spike Lee, who dismissed the archetype of the "super-duper magical negro" while discussing his 2000 film, Bamboozled. The word "negro" in the phrase, despite being now considered offensive, is used intentionally for that very reason by many critics, to emphasize their belief that the archetype is a racist throwback to a less enlightened time.
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Description of the character
When he first encounters the (invariably white) protagonist, the Magical Negro often appears as someone uneducated and in a low station of life, such as a janitor or prisoner. The black character is depicted as wiser and spiritually deeper than the protagonist, and the purpose of the "Magical Negro" in the plot is often to help the protagonist get out of trouble, and to help the white character recognize his own faults and overcome them. The black character may literally have special powers, or he may be mysterious in a way that suggests otherworldliness.
Although it is usually a well-meaning attempt to portray a positive black character, critics like Lee, Ariel Dorfman, and Aaron McGruder believe that the use of this stock character is racist, because it perpetuates the idea that blacks should be subordinate to whites. The racial roles of the archetype are rarely reversed (lower-class white character helps a troubled black character).
The Magical Negro can be considered a form of the "noble savage" or "wise old man" archetype. Variants include the Native American who helps pragmatic whites discover their inner spirituality and brings them back in touch with nature, and the servant (of any non-white race) who sacrifices himself to save his master.
Examples
Alleged examples of "Magical Negroes" include:
- Alexander Levine in Bernard Malamud's short story The Angel Levine
- Noah Cullen (Sidney Poitier) in the film The Defiant Ones (1958)
- Dick Haloran (Scatman Crothers) in the Stephen King novel The Shining (1977), later a 1980 film
- Willie Brown (Joe Seneca) in the film Crossroads (1986)
- John Coffey (Michael Clarke Duncan) in the serialized Stephen King novel The Green Mile (1996), later a 1999 film
- Albert Lewis (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) in the film What Dreams May Come (1998)
- Cash (Don Cheadle) in the film The Family Man (2000)
- Bagger Vance (Will Smith) in the film The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000)
- God (Morgan Freeman) in the film Bruce Almighty (2003)
- The blind handcar-pumper (Lee Weaver) in the film O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)
- The old woman seer in the Stephen King novel The Stand
- The barkeeper Guinan in Star Trek: The Next Generation
- The Oracle in The Matrix Reloaded
- Gullah Joe in the Orson Scott Card novel Heartfire.
- Gabriel (voice of Delroy Lindo) in The Simpsons episode "Brawl in the Family" (DABF01, 2002)
Note that black characters with apparent supernatural powers who are portrayed as independent, have a power level roughly equal to that of the others and are not subservient to whites, such as Star Wars' Mace Windu, Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) in the film The Matrix (1999) and Storm in X-Men are not usually considered "Magical Negroes", nor are helpful non-white characters without some magical or fantastical element.
Reference
- "Too Too Divine; Movies' 'Magic Negro' Saves the Day, but at The Cost of His Soul", Washington Post, June 7, 2003
External links
- Exposing Hollywood's Fascination With The Magic Negro (http://www.fortheretarded.com/magicnegro.html) a commentary by Noel Wood
- The Numinous Negro - His importance in our lives; why he is fading (http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/is_16_53/ai_76915717) National Review, August 20, 2001