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[Wanda/Wander]

A common trope in 18th and 19th century adventure fiction, when Europeans were visiting and documenting vast swathes of the world for the first time, Mighty Whitey is usually a displaced white European, of noble descent, who ends up living with native tribespeople and not only learns their ways but also becomes their greatest warrior/leader/representative. Extra points if he woos The Chief's Daughter along the way; an unfortunately common variation that perpetuates into present-day media is that she will continue to love our hero even if he is directly responsible for the death of her husband, brother or even father. s Sometimes the foreign societies are shown to be realistic, three-dimensional and actually rather pleasant places to live. Indeed, sometimes the native peoples are shown to be better in some way than European society and the white man begins to despise his old home. All this is a setup for the white man to adapt to the Native's ways, thereby making him superior both to the natives and the Europeans back home. In modern-day fiction, sometimes the Mighty Whitey is there to lead or inspire the Hollywood Natives or bring some aspect of modern technology or knowledge to their aid, something they presumably could not do before he showed up. One particular version has it so that the sympathetic Author Avatar whitey is not only now the Great White Hope for the non-white Noble Savages, but is very often defending them from other evil whites.

In modern-day fiction — particularly in Hollywood movies — Mighty Whitey pops up as the result of creative types trying to appeal to as broad a cross-section of society as possible to get their cash back. And since the majority of major Hollywood stars are white Americans (despite the fact that only a small minority of their audiences are Americans at all, let alone white Americans), it's almost inevitable that the all-singing, all-dancing hero is also going to be registering low on the melanin count... which can become a self-perpetuating mess.

On a more subconscious cultural level, this trope often resolves (or attempts to resolve) two conflicting desires within Europeans and their descendants: both to still be relevant in a 21st-century world in which they are often outnumbered (increasingly even in their own countries) and to remake themselves as "foreign" and "exotic" rather than being merely boring and uncultured "civilized" people.

SOURCE

Just saw the new Dr. Strange movie. The effects were amazing, but the story suffered from being another "white savior" movie. It really really stretched the "Mighty Whitey" trope to it's breaking point. To give the writers credit they establish that Dr. Strange is very smart, but his master repeatedly tells Strange that conjuring magic isn't just about intelligence. So, there was no reason given to us the viewer as to why he able to excel past his peers in such a short amount of time.

Dr. Strange isn't the only story guilty of this. There are many stories built on this trope. I'm not saying those stories need to be erased. I just wish they would at the very least make an attempt to acknowledge and/or subvert this trope within the fiction of the story.

It's just disheartening that we're in 2016 and Hollywood is still clinging on to eugenics era myths and ideas.

What are your thoughts on this trope? What are some ways this trope can be subverted? Will Hollywood ever stop making Tarzan movies?

 

[Kinyou]

I think what helped with Dr. Strange is that it was generally a pretty diverse school. Strange wasn't the first white guy there, so it takes the focus off his race.

 

[Htown]

Will Hollywood ever stop making Tarzan movies?

Tarzan is in the public domain, and it's a name people know, so even if Mighty Whitey stopped being a thing in movies you'd still see those.

As far as whether Hollywood will ever stop making these kinds of movies, the answer is that Avatar is the highest grossing movie of all time.

 

[Mineshaft_Gap]

Big Trouble in Little China.

The hero of the movie is not Kurt Russel.

 

[Gordon Shumway]

So, Doctor Strange should have been made Asian or something? Not getting it..

 

[HStallion]

As much as I want a new big budget and well adapted Dune movie I realize its a pretty glaring white savior story even if its one of the essential scifi classics.

 

[Htown]

As much as I want a new big budget and well adapted Dune movie I realize its a pretty glaring white savior story even if its one of the essential scifi classics.

. . .

Damn, you're right. Never thought of it that way.

Though it's fairly obvious now that you point it out.

 

[xeroborn55]

movies are a business. there is little to no art left in major hollywood movies. expecting a 'tentpole' movie to be socially progressive in any way is a waste of time.

 

[Corronchilejano]

I hope they one day make a movie based on Shogun. It subverts the trope beautifully.

 

[NimbleNavigator]

The less of this trope, the better- just harkens back to the days of slavery imo.

 

[BronsonLee]

I agree with everything, -I- should've been Mr. Dr. Strange

 

[Bronx-Man]

The whole point of Dr. Strange is that he's an arrogant white dude that gets told "Sit down, shut the fuck up and listen" by almost every PoC in the movie.

 

[neorej]

As much as I want a new big budget and well adapted Dune movie I realize its a pretty glaring white savior story even if its one of the essential scifi classics.

Does House Artreides have to be white? I can't remember, honestly, been a while since I read the books.

 

[The Omega Man]

The Last Samurai is a weaboo's wet dream, they probably fap to that movie instead of porn.

 

[Slayven]

How is Strange a mighty whitey when he is set up to be Socer Supreme of the entire universe not an ethnic tribe or something?

That logic Superman, Green lantern, and Quasar are mighty whitees

 

[Henkka]

The whole point of Dr. Strange is that he's an arrogant white dude that gets told "Shit down, shut the fuck up and listen" by almost every PoC in the movie.

Or maybe it's just a fun story about a guy becoming a wizard.

 

[Kthulhu]

The less of this trope, the better- just harkens back to the days of slavery imo.

How does slavery have anything to do with this?

 

[Lunar15]

Thanks, Edgar Rice Burroughs.

 

[Memento Mori]

Dr Strange's progression reminded me of Dark Souls in that leveling up matters less than obtaining new gear.

 

[finowns]

The less of this trope, the better- just harkens back to the days of slavery imo.

Jesus..

 

[Kalentan]

How is Strange a mighty whitey when he is set up to be Socer Supreme of the entire universe not an ethnic tribe or something?

That logic Superman, Green lantern, and Quasar are mighty whitees

We all know Superman is a mighty alien... Damn aliens! Taking our tropes!

 

[border]

The whole point of Dr. Strange is that he's an arrogant white dude that gets told "Shit down, shut the fuck up and listen" by almost every PoC in the movie.

Except that Strange's viewpoint is ultimately validated, and the PoCs end up looking like uptight sticks in the mud.

 

[exmachina64]

How is Strange a mighty whitey when he is set up to be Socer Supreme of the entire universe not an ethnic tribe or something?

That logic Superman, Green lantern, and Quasar are mighty whitees

They kind of are.

 

[HStallion]

How is Strange a mighty whitey when he is set up to be Socer Supreme of the entire universe not an ethnic tribe or something?

That logic Superman, Green lantern, and Quasar are mighty whitees

Soccer Supreme would have made for a very entertaining movie.

 

[Amikami]

The whole point of Dr. Strange is that he's an arrogant white dude that gets told "Shit down, shut the fuck up and listen" by almost every PoC in the movie.

The point though is he still becomes the genius white savior.

 

[Captin Quacker]

Except that Strange's viewpoint is ultimately validated, and the PoCs end up looking like uptight sticks in the mud.

But Wong laughed tho

 

[Moff]

I just watched lawrence of arabia yesterday which didn't just have this trope but also several actors in blackface

 

[neorej]

Except that Strange's viewpoint is ultimately validated, and the PoCs end up looking like uptight sticks in the mud.

Maybe you haven't paid attention, because

Spoiler

The Ancient One tells Strange that sometimes a society needs to live by the rules, validating Mordo's and Wong's position, and sometimes you need someone who sees what needs to be done and does it, validating Strange. There's a yin-yang type of balance there, one that Strange and Wong see, but Mordo refutes

 

[dancingphlower]

I'm pretty sick of the trope, though I think Strange handled it better than most films. I think the Great Wall is a more obvious example of a white savior.

 

[Slayven]

They kind of are.

How so?

The white GL's are by far the worse.

Hal= Arrogant Pedophile
Guy= Stubborn asshole
Alan Scott= Father of the year

 

[BronsonLee]

Big fan of everyone straight up chuckin spoilers in this thread tbh

Just burn it down

 

[Cyrano]

What are your thoughts on this trope? What are some ways this trope can be subverted? Will Hollywood ever stop making Tarzan movies?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/post...a-white-actor-played-someone-who-wasnt-white/

I mean, the easiest way to subvert this horribleness is to stop hiring white actors for every role. It's particularly bad when it BECOMES a mighty whitey story in spite of the fact that it was originally not about white people at all.

 

[Lunar15]

I just watched lawrence of arabia yesterday which didn't just have this trope but also several actors in blackface

I love this movie to death, but it basically propelled the mighty whitey trope to be a staple of oscar picks.

See also: Dances with Wolves.

 

[Croatoan]

The less of this trope, the better- just harkens back to the days of slavery imo.

The fuck?

I love this movie to death, but it basically propelled the mighty whitey trope to be a staple of oscar picks.

See also: Dances with Wolves.

Lawrence of Arabia is based on a true story?

 

[Toxi]

As much as I want a new big budget and well adapted Dune movie I realize its a pretty glaring white savior story even if its one of the essential scifi classics.

...Huh. You're right.

 

[Bronx-Man]

Big fan of everyone straight up chuckin spoilers in this thread tbh

Just burn it down

Snape kills Dumbledore

 

[Captin Quacker]

Big fan of everyone straight up chuckin spoilers in this thread tbh

Just burn it down

But

Spoiler

Wong laughed tho

 

[Viewt]

I think it's still okay to do "stranger in a strange land stories" that feature white protagonists, provided people of color and their cultures are treated with respect and not only used to convey exoticism.

Really, the core issue here isn't that white people get to be the foreign savior in movies - it's that people of color are almost never the savior. If we had a bunch of movies with asian actors going to medieval Europe to save kings and sleep with princesses, or latin actors playing sheriffs in poor white towns riddled with crime, then it wouldn't be as much of an issue, I think. But then, I'm white, so maybe I'm missing part of the picture.

 

[neorej]

Snape kills Dumbledore

Yer the Sorcerer Supreme, Harry.

 

[Mr. Poolman]

When I think of Mighty Whitey, Avatar or the Last Samurai come to my mind, not Dr. Strange.

I think they even say the Ancient One is a celt.

 

[jph139]

So, Doctor Strange should have been made Asian or something? Not getting it..

Strange is a character that's pretty entrenched in Mighty Whiteness. The only way to subvert it is to make him a non-white outsider (doable but unlikely), make him not the Sorceror Supreme (not really possible), or just ignore his backstory and start in media res (which would be a shame, because it's a great backstory, even if it's mostly just "Magic Tony Stark").

Honestly I think Marvel did a pretty good job with what they had. Making the whole magical society more multinational and multiethnic helps.

 

[Snagret]

As much as I want a new big budget and well adapted Dune movie I realize its a pretty glaring white savior story even if its one of the essential scifi classics.

I feel exactly the same way. The books are some of my favorite science fiction stories ever written, but unfortunately you can't really untangle the plot from this trope without morphing it into something else completely. I think that's one of the reasons I found Jodorowsky's version was so compelling, he seemed to take a lot of creative liberty with the story with an emphasis on the psychedelic/spiritual aspects. I think those parts are a lot more interesting than the White Savior narrative.

 

[Lunar15]

Based on a true story?

Yes, it was, but I'm just saying it made the trope extremely lucrative and attractive to filmmakers, in the same way Tarzan and John Carter of Mars did for a lot of writers.

 

[Gentleman Jack]

I agree with everything, -I- should've been Mr. Dr. Strange

They should have cast you to be a competing love interest for Rachel McAdams so her character would actually achieve a modicum of depth by having to make a choice for herself once in a while.

 

[Slayven]

I think it's still okay to do "stranger in a strange land stories" that feature white protagonists, provided people of color and their cultures are treated with respect and not only used to convey exoticism.

Really, the core issue here isn't that white people get to be the foreign savior in movies - it's that people of color are almost never the savior. If we had a bunch of movies with asian actors going to medieval Europe to save kings and sleep with princesses, or latin actors playing sheriffs in poor white towns riddled with crime, then it wouldn't be as much of an issue, I think. But then, I'm white, so maybe I'm missing part of the picture.

 

[pirateluigi]

How does slavery have anything to do with this?

It's has a lot to do with it actually. I was just discussing this in another thread, but humans haven't been shown to be historically racist. Modern colorism or racism is largely a product of European colonialism and the slave trade. Racism came about as a way to justify the inhuman treatment of slaves.
Another common narrative became that of the white savior. The idea that the white man was actually helping these "savages". Again, it's a pretty modern idea. When Europeans first started colonizing the Americas, the American Indians weren't viewed as savages. That kind of rewriting of history and racism came later.
The mighty whitey trope is merely a continuation of this racist tradition... the idea that it was okay to abuse and enslave Africans and Indians because they weren't advanced or cultured or educated enough.
It actually subsided a bit during Reconstruction but in the post Reconstruction era it came roaring back. Southern whites needed to justify their violence against the newly successful freed men. Once again came the narrative that whites were a superior race, that's continued to this day. Even after the Civil Rights movement, it's a common line of thought (you see it a lot with anti welfare or anti affirmative action arguments that blacks simply aren't capable of succeeding) that let's people conveniently ignore the systemic injustices that led to our current situation.

 

[neorej]

Remember when T'Challa saved Bucky, offered him shelter, protected him from the outside forces that would hunt and kill him?


Why can't Marvel do that?




I wish Marvel was more like Warner Bros and just have an almost all-white magicians cast, except for the token black woman, covering both gender and race diversity in ONE ROLE!

 

[BronsonLee]

They should have cast you to be a competing love interest for Rachel McAdams so her character would actually achieve a modicum of depth by having to make a choice for herself once in a while.

You know...this isn't a -terrible- idea

 

[Grizzlyjin]

I suspect that this trope, or at least studio acknowledgement of it, was the reason that George Washington Williams was a character in the new Tarzan movie. Which maybe makes the situation even worse because now you're taking an actual person and making them the "Black sidekick" in a Tarzan film.

 

[Viewt]

I love Kirby as much as the next guy, but whenever I see his T'Challa, I'm always distracted by that massive forehead.