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Marina Boatman

Mr. Phillips

CML Honors

18 May 2018

Analyzation on “Get Out” and African American Stereotypes

When the film “Get Out” released in 2017, it created a storm of critic approval as

director Jordan Peele showcased the intricacies of modern racism for African

Americans. While the film was dramatized for entertainment purposes, it still gives a

clear representation of struggles that minorities face on a daily basis. Peele describes

the film as the "monster of racism lurking in the manicured suburbs” (Peele). Therefore,

the film “Get Out” follows typical African American racial stereotypes in a satirical format

while also confronting other common stereotypes.

The film revolves around Peele’s representation of the "monster of racism lurking

in the manicured suburbs” (Yamato). Through this idea, Peele creates a lens “to make

viewers feel what daily life is like for real black men and women” (Romano). In order to

achieve this goal, Peele implements a variety of stereotypes scattered throughout,

some being very obvious, while others are more hidden and sinister. For example,

Georgina, a maid of the house showcases the ‘Mammy’ stereotype, which is something

typically seen in earlier American history. Through mise-en-scene, Georgina is depicted

physically as this particular stereotype as she is wearing a white apron. She also insists

multiple times throughout the film how she enjoys serving the family, which is a typical

trait found in a ‘Mammy’. Furthermore, Walter is also displayed as a popular stereotype

formally known as the ‘Uncle Tom’. He too, agrees that working under the white family
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is something he enjoys despite the poor way the family treats him and Georgina. As

expected, Walter is mostly outside doing the yard work while Georgina is found inside

doing common house chores. By the end of the film, it is revealed that the two servants

were actually the grandfather and grandmother of Rose, Chris’s girlfriend. What makes

this odd is that one wouldn’t expect the grandparents to be ‘slaves’ of the household.

This is just one way Peele has implemented common stereotypes into his work in order

to show “benevolent racism as what it actually is: a cover for a system of

dehumanization.” (Romana).

While the two instances above are more discrete examples of stereotypes, Peele

also incorporates many more that are more obvious to the viewer. For example, in on

scene, Chris is attending a garden party and endures countless racist comments based

off of perceived stereotypes. Peele described this scene to showcase that “this film...is

connected to the real, the deep horror of racism", specifically the stereotypes that

invoke racism (CBS News). In this particular scene, the actor who plays Chris stated

that "this film is how racism feels," which was the motivation for Peele as he created a

movie with intentions to express the effects of stereotyping and racism (Yamato). Peele

captures this by having many of the white actors ask Chris at this garden party how it

felt to be stronger and faster, etc. This represents the stereotype that African Americans

are more animalistic and brutish, and while Chris doesn’t quite represent the “Brute”

stereotype, Peele does tip his hat to the idea by basing the movie off of an interracial

relationship, which vaguely follows the “Brute” as this stereotype is believed to

represent how African American men only want to take white women and destroy

civilization. However, the main thing to note would be the lines spoken between Chris
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and the many white family members as many point out how he must be better physically

since he is of a different race. In a way, Peele places this dialogue strategically to show

how horrid the stereotyping is to the victim despite them being positive stereotypes.

Lastly, Chris himself is an example of a stereotype as “violence is used as a

means of resistance by minorities or the disenfranchised, culture and pop culture tend

to take a different view — it becomes something to be avoided at all costs” whereas

Chris both follows this code and defies it near the end of the movie (Romana). For

example, Chris spends the majority of the movie remaining complacent and passive

during the racial abuse, but by the end, he defends himself in a hero-esque way. While

“black resistance movements in the US have long been demonized and punished for

even the hint of potential violence”, Peele decides to have Chris fight back in order to

show the public, which follows the common misconception that African Americans are

more violent in nature and should be feared, however it also challenges this belief as

the audience realizes that Chris’s violence is used as self defense. Also, while “black

citizens are not allowed, within the cultural narrative, to be heroic through defiance”

Peele breaks this stereotype with Chris’s escape for the clutches of the Armitage family

(Romana). Also, with Chris’s complacency in the beginning of the movie, Peele

addresses the idea that “in real life, the dominant narrative about black struggles to

coexist within white society is that the black individual is the troublemaker, the source of

agitation, and the problem to be dealt with” whereas Chris seems to be deflecting the

attacks he is receiving from the Armitage family rather than standing up for himself and

being seen as a ‘trouble maker’ (Romana).

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Overall, director Jordan Peele managed to capture the essence of racism and

common stereotypes in a modern spin of the popular film, “Guess Who’s Coming to

Dinner”. Both movies have very similar ideas, except “Get Out” took a darker spin,

resulting in the breaking of racial code as Chris fights back and rescues himself. While

some stereotypes were from decades past, others were some that can still be found in

everyday society. All in all, the film “Get Out” follows many African American

stereotypes through mockery while also challenging frequent misconceptions created

through racism and stereotyping.

MLA Works Cited

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CBS News. “Jordan Peele on Exploring the ‘Deep Horror of Racism’ in ‘Get Out.’” CBS

News, CBS Interactive, 15 Nov. 2017, www.cbsnews.com/news/jordan-peele-

get-out-movie/.

Romano, Aja. “How Get Out Deconstructs Racism for White People.” Vox, Vox, 7 Mar.

2017, www.vox.com/culture/2017/3/7/14759756/get-out-benevolent-racism-

white-feminism.

Yamato, Jen. “Jordan Peele on 'Get Out,' the Horror Film about Racism That Obama

Would Love.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2017,

www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-get-out-jordan-peele-racism-horror-

america-20170224-story.html.