Representations can be produced in different forms such as; images, words, music or written text. Representations allow individuals to make sense of the world, influencing how society, identity and space are valued, as media are capable of influencing people's minds (Crang, 1999). Discourses are, however, a way of processing the representations produced. “The way we act on the basis of this reflection (Rose, 2016: 190)”. In other words, multiple representations of the same context can be constructed to create a discourse. This essay will discuss how discourses and representations legitimize, reproduce or challenge relationships of power and domination in society. This will be illustrated through a cinematic case study entitled “The Blind Side”. The essay aims to explain how the blind side negatively reproduces stereotypes about African Americans and space, while idolizing white Americans. Portraying how you can only succeed with the help of white people and through white practices as they are considered “normal”. This film is therefore linked to racial and class identities. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay “The Blind Side” is a 2009 film produced and directed in Atlanta, United States. The film's director was John Lee, a white American who grew up in a small town in Texas. His social profile is very different from Michael Other's main character who is a lower class African American, which could mean that he does not have much knowledge about African American culture and therefore his portrayals could address to other groups. John Lee is best known for directing sports drama films such as “The Rookie” and “Saving MR Banks” (Burris, 2014). The Bind Side is a sports drama genre based on a true story of Michael Other, a lower-class black American boy traumatized by his childhood in an urban area. This urban area is populated by African-Americans, represented as a dangerous “neighborhood” populated by gangs. Michael has no idea who his father is and has a drug addict mother, which leaves him homeless. Life then changes for Michael when a wealthy, upper-class white family welcomes him, far from the urban area and its practices. He changes schools, now has a loving family, gets a car, studies and has a successful career in American football. The film is described as a boy who went “from rags to riches (Pimentel, Santillanes, 2014: 126)”. The Blind Side was also produced the same year the first African American, Baraka Obama, became president. Potentially influencing the making of the film, showing how everyone can succeed, creating a discourse about equality. Throughout the film, white Americans are portrayed as well-off, normal, hard-working, generous, and friendly people. While black African Americans are the opposite: lazy, reckless, uneducated, and criminals living in urban neighborhoods. At the beginning of the film Michael Other, the main character was depicted as a childish and uneducated character, who has no life plan and follows the path of his drug addict mother. While towards the end of the film, he has transformed into a successful, loving, inspiring and caring boy; with the help of white society which distances him from urban space and practices. Lianne Tuohy, another main character, is a strong, independent and self-sufficient woman who took Michael under her arms and led him to thesuccess. She is described as the “hero” of the film who takes on a maternal role with Michael. The cost of the film was 29 million Euros and ended up being an Oscar-winning Hollywood film that grossed 309 million Euros in ticket sales and an additional 102 million Euros in DVD sales (Pimentel and Santillanes, 2014) . Revealing the success of the film and its popularity. The production of the film was intended to inspire others with the true story of Michael Other, however, some people felt that the film was racist and misrepresented African Americans. At first glance, Blind Side could potentially represent the "American Dream", which is a national philosophy of the United States that all should have equal opportunities to participate. be able to succeed regardless of social differences. In which Blind Side describes how an African-American boy from a low-income neighborhood becomes very successful. However, this representation of the American dream is represented in a questionable way, due to the fact that Michael Other can only succeed in life by being welcomed by a white family, being introduced to their space and learning their practices. This suggests that inequality exists to the extent that lower-class African Americans cannot achieve the American dream without upper-class white Americans. So this leads to the master code that can be seen throughout the blind side of white superiority. A subcode of the blind side is the “white hero.” One scene that depicts this is when Lianne Tuohy sees Michael wondering alone at night with nowhere to go, so lets him stay at her house for a night. Showing how Michaels community has neglected him and how he has been abandoned by the state as he is homeless. This is where Lianne’s “white hero” comes into play. Welcoming a poor homeless boy away from the urban ghetto and into an affluent rural neighborhood shows how Lianne can overcome problems that society cannot, by providing Michael with a place to sleep. The overnight stay then resulted in Michael's adoption by the Tuohy family. Michael therefore begins to learn the "norms" and practices of white Americans, such as how to dress and the importance of education, which allows Michael to succeed in a football career. This may be related to the theory of social constructionism, which states that identities are not fixed but can change depending on the social constructs around them (Horton and Kraftl, 2014). Once Michael left the ghetto, he began to be influenced by the white community, which allowed him to be successful because he was not stuck in the ghetto with the practices of the ghetto that held him back, such as violence and the crime. This shows that the essentialist view of how identities are fixed is challenged, as it shows how Michaels' class changed from a lower class boy to a middle class boy, a deepening social constructionism. This depiction of how Lianne's family had to help Michael "escape" the ghetto in order to succeed could convey a message that one cannot succeed while living in the ghetto. Because of the way urban practices hold them back, such as: gangs, violence and crime. This can be seen as no other African Americans living in the ghetto were portrayed as successful. The message that the blind side conveys can also be seen in a film called Coach Carter, which is also about lower-class black Americans who are distanced from ghetto practices. Once they turn their backs on that life, they become successful in basketball. This can potentially help build aspeech about how you cannot succeed if you are involved in ghetto life. It is said that the more control someone has, the more the audience will be influenced, making the discourse more powerful, especially with two films depicting the same knowledge. This film therefore reproduces the relations of power and domination in society. Indeed, marginalized groups such as African Americans might perceive the depiction of white superiority negatively, making them feel powerless. This portrayal may therefore lead them to believe this to be true, leading to self-hatred towards themselves, creating a mindset where they believe they are not good enough and must rely on white Americans of the upper class to achieve the American dream. (Benshoff and Griffin, 2009). Allowing the dominant group of white Americans to remain dominant because they are empowered by their representation that they are of a higher position in society. However, this representation does not help society solve social problems of inequality, because although the story shows how inequality can be corrected, it is only on a very small scale. By removing just one lower class person from the ghetto, the inequalities between the classes will not change, because there are still inequalities between everyone who remains in the ghetto. The blind side represents how dangerous urban places and identities are, with individuals who are in gangs and have no reason to succeed in life. This is about space, place, and identities, as the film essentialized all African Americans in lower-class urban ghettos while all white Americans are fixed in upper-class, rural neighborhoods, bound to the master code of white superiority and how once again white Americans are considered class superior. Most scenes in urban areas used dark lighting, as shown in the figure…. Which created an atmosphere of danger and negativity. The contrasts between the classes are further highlighted by the change of scenes between the two locations, making the inequality between the classes even more obvious to the audience. It explains how African Americans and their spaces are most often represented as "a wild urban kingdom, scene of serial tragedies, composed of drug dealers and inner-city gangsters." This representation of African Americans and their space can also be seen in In the Blind Side. For example, the urban dangerous can be understood in the scene where Michael and Lianne take a trip to the ghetto to buy Michael new clothes. Lianne clings tightly to Michael's arm while declaring, "I've been in Memphis my whole life and I've never been anywhere near here, you're going to take care of me, right?" ". This shows how Lianne describes the urban ghetto as a dangerous place. , because she feels that she must be protected by Michael. Therefore, replicating the idea that African Americans are seen as a “savage kingdom” filled with “gangsters,” these characteristics are considered dangerous. This could also suggest that she feels like she doesn't fit in with the identities around her because she feels indisputable. Being uncomfortable in an environment can be because that feeling of safety is not there, being able to identify and feel belonging to the same identities. Another scene that depicts African Americans having no motive and how they are steered into gangs is when Lianne drives to the ghetto with Michael. Here they are confronted by a gang who try to intimidate Lianne using sexual comments.