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  • Essay / Critical Analysis of the Film Remember The Titans

    This film takes place in the early 1970s, a time when school had just been integrated so that white and black students attended school together. Racism was especially prevalent in the 1970s. Denzel Washington is one of the main characters in the film. He plays the role of Herman Boone, who is hired as the football coach of TC Williams High instead of a white coach in Alexandria, Virginia. Tensions are at an all-time high and the team must come together and find a way to succeed. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay When it comes to sociological concepts, the theme of this film is mainly about racial prejudice, racism, stereotyping, and discrimination. The way racial prejudice operates and is depicted in Remember the Titans reflects what happened and was happening during that time in American history. For example, in the movie, when Coach Boone is named head coach instead of Coach Yoast, the white players are very angry and then become prejudiced against Coach Boone because he is black. The white players are also afraid that the black players will get more playing time than them because Coach Boone is the head coach. During this time, of course, segregation had ended and white and black students were allowed to go to school together, but racial prejudice had not diminished at all. This period was one of the greatest turning points in American history. In the film Remember the Titans, discrimination is also a major theme that accompanies sociological concepts. For example, Coach Boone is threatened with being fired if he loses a game. Another example is when Gerry's girlfriend Emma hesitates and does not shake Julius's hand at first. The third and final example I will use is when people wouldn't let certain characters into the restaurant because they were either black or white but hung out and were friends with black people. There are stereotypical comments throughout the film, such as that black people are often called animals and that "all the head coaches are white". Acts of prejudice and discrimination are reduced throughout the film, however. There are many examples of reducing both. First, Coach Boone assured his entire team that playing time would be given to people who deserve it, regardless of race. Another example, which is also rather humorous, is when the team boards the bus and Coach Boone tells all the kids on the team that he is now their dad and their brothers are their teammates. This teaches the team to view each other equally. Continuing this example, towards the end of the film, when Julius goes to visit the hospital and see Gerry, the nurse says "no one but family is allowed" and he says: "but he's my brother ". This was one of my favorite scenes and lines in the entire movie. Throughout the film, there were key moments that seemed to play an important role in reducing prejudice and discrimination. For the first example, when Rev and Louie both shared an interest in music, which led to them singing in the lunchroom and on the bus. Eventually, the entire team takes to the field singing and dancing. The second example is when Emma shakes Julius' hand after she initially refuses to shake it. Another example of reducing prejudice and discrimination is when Gerry insists on playing basketball with Julius even after Gerry's mother says no. The last example that.