Date of Award

2012

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

English

First Advisor

Meyerson, Gregory Dr.

Abstract

Using the film “Precious” as a lens, this paper investigates how Hollywood “culturalizes” poverty so that our ideological concerns (and thus our political priorities) focus on “seeing” the poor rather than eliminating poverty. Furthermore, this paper examines how the novel Push was sifted and culled of its subversive content—specifically Langston Hughes—to make “Precious.” While Hollywood’s hegemonic dictates excised Hughes on the one hand, the release of “Precious” paradoxically augmented Hughesian discussions on the other. This paper argues that this simultaneous suppression and invocation of Hughes results from his broad ideological arc- a trajectory that encompasses both nationalist and socialist constellations. This essay aims to relocate the significance and the inconsistencies of this trajectory within the current historical moment as it relates to the movie "Precious," specifically how it mystifies the systemic nature of poverty through its investments in identity politics.

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