Dark is Evil

 Makayla Malveaux 

Professor Harris 

English 2017 

30th April 2023

 Dark is Evil 

This class is based on the idea of black gothic. So you might ask, what is black gothic? Well, black Gothic is basically your atoning for the dead or the living. I would like to stem the idea of why black characters are portrayed as evil, which roots in colorism. As you may know, many characters that are portrayed as bad tend to have a darker skin tint. Most will even include very stereotypical features that are placed upon black people. I would like to highlight this stigma placed upon black people and where this idea originated from. There are many networks that showcase these stigmas against black people, but I would like to build my argument based on the Disney channel. Unfortunately, Disney is known for many racist remarks and discrimination. They use these biased images that is characterized by black people form the past history of southern states. Now the bias image that I speak of is how the connotation of evil characters will have overly distinguished black features. Why is it that these unfair prejudices are condemned as evil? Simply put, they want darker skin to perceive as scary, tainted, and evil. There are numerous charters inside Disney world which I can use as an example. For example, Dr. Facilifer from Princess and the Frog is what you know as your typical African American man. He is drawn with an overly exaggerated-sized lip and nose. He even is portrayed as a person who knows Voodoo and deceives people. Voodoo is also traditionally known for coming from the roots of black people. Since they are coming from the roots of Africans, it's a tradition that is described as evil. This shows that dark and fear correlate with each other. Since he is of a darker skin tone, he automatically looked evil. Why is it that his skin happens to be darker than his brother's? Mufasa symbolizes righteousness while his brother is the complete opposite. One has a lighter skin complexion, while the one that is looked at as evil has a darker skin tint. His skin in the show symbolizes evil, deceitfulness, and cunning. In the show the three hyenas come from the core of stereotypically black personalities. They are considered loud-mannered and also live in the inferior parts of the Pride Lands in Africa. This all comes back from the ideal that black is deemed as pernicious. How does this impact this interpretation of black people has on younger kids? While growing up this could imprint on them and give them the ideas of black is evil. This could possibly also lead back to where these stereotypical ideas come from and why they are still around till this day. How can you not have stereotypes when it's been burnt uncounsically in your mind since a little child. Therefore, even the dark wouldn't be the reason why someone or something is evil, it ultimately becomes the deciding factor