Understanding social inequality is important since it is the root of major social problems such as unemployment, substance abuse, and criminality. Social inequality in the U.S. has marginalized some communities, especially black Americans and people of color, leading to a wide range of health and social problems. Regions and communities that are most impacted by social inequality suffer poor education attainment, increased levels of violence and crime, reduced life expectancy, and a high prevalence of mental illnesses. There are various avenues of challenging social inequality, such as art in the form of songs, poetry, and film. The poem ‘I Dream a World’, the song ‘Fight the Power’ and the film ‘BlacKkKlansman’ are typical examples of art used to unmask and protest social inequality in the U.S.
The poem ‘I Dream a World’ by Langston Hughes depicts how inequality has impacted society negatively. Aside from being a poet, Hughes was a novelist, columnist, playwright, and socialist of African-American descent. He was an ardent supporter and advocate of the Harlem Renaissance, a cultural movement by the African-American communities. In the poem, Hughes imagines a world where everyone would share the earth’s bounties with equal freedom. ‘I Dream a World’ was created in 1941 to support his other art on the integration of blacks into the American culture. The theme of the poem is the equality of all races by insisting on love, peace, freedom, and joy while discrediting discrimination, greed, and avarice.
Anaphora is utilized in the poem by repeating the phrase ‘I Dream a World’ at the beginning of each stanza. The thematic repetition also creates a pattern through rhythm to set the stage for the central argument. Personification is used in the poem to give insights into the adverse effects of social inequality. The poem portrays joy and wretchedness, depicting how the latter has no place in society while the former breeds peace and happiness. In the fourth stanza, Hughes notes, “Where wretchedness will hang its head. And joy, like a pearl, attends the needs of all mankind” (Amnesty 1). Anaphora and personification are the rhetorical devices used in the poem ‘I Dream a World.’
The poem contributed to Hughes’s efforts in the fight for the freedom of the minority in the U.S. Hughes demonstrates how the world is imperfect due to racism and lack of equal freedoms. He envisions equality, and hence the poem empowers the struggle for equality. The poem grants a voice to anyone who has experienced racial prejudice and inequality. All people of African descent united across the globe, inspired by Hughes’s poetry in Harlem Resistance, to champion racial consciousness. Hughes being a celebrated champion of African American rights and a prominent writer in poetry, I conclude that the poem ‘I Dream a World’ created hope for a utopian society.
The song ‘Fight the Power’ was created by Public Enemy and released in 1988 to inspire black Americans affected by social inequality. Although using a different genre, ‘Fight the Power’ was inspired by the Isley Brothers’ song with a similar title. The song leverages tone to evoke emotions, illustrate the artist’s attitude toward the subject, and create a mood. The song’s first two lines have a strong, confident tone, and it gradually increases in intensity to proud and hyped (Public Enemy 0:52). The tone deescalates sharply in the last line to serious as it addresses a social challenge. ‘Fight the Power’ epitomizes the struggle of the black and uses tone shifts to take the audience through a wide range of emotions.
When the song was released, it was a crucial time in America’s struggle with racial inequality and featured the psychological and social conflicts in the U.S. The song signified how hip hop could be essential in revolutionary efforts and impart social consciousness. There was a dramatic energy surge after the black community song epitomized the freedom struggle. Since its release, the song has been thematically used in protest rallies, and most rappers use it as a template.
The ‘BlacKkKlansman’ film by Spike Lee had significant aspects of institutional racism and hate groups that advocate for inequality. Although dramatized, the film is based on a true story. Lee intercuts between the scenes and uses jump cuts to eliminate irrelevant content that was critical for the pacing of the movie. Cinematic techniques in ‘BlacKkKlansman’ include jump-cutting and entwining scenes to save time.
‘BlacKkKlansman’ is critical to social stratification since it creates a perfect reflection of how racism widens inequality and marginalization in society. Systematic racism depicted by the officers reflects a real social challenge in the U.S. that limits black Americans’ rights and encourages the development of white supremacist groups (Almeida 9). ‘BlacKkKlansman’ explores the U.S. history regarding race by depicting how much has been achieved and what is left to be done. The film exposed the Ku Klux Klan’s atrocities and hated to positively impact inequality. The movie had a massive influence and won the BET Award for Best Movie.
Works Cited
Almeida, Joana Araci Rodrigues. The Universal Language of Pop Culture, Spike Lee’s films as narratives of counter-memory. Diss. Universidade de Coimbra, 2021. Web.
Amnesty. Poem: I Dream a World. 2019. Web.
“Public Enemy. Fight the Power (Official Music Video)” YouTube, Uploaded by Public Enemy, 2020.
BlacKkKlansman. Directed by Spike Lee, Focus Features, 2018.