Social inequality and discrimination in "Hidden Figures" (2016) (PDF)

Seminar paper from the year 2021 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Other, grade: 3,0, Ruhr-University of Bochum, language: English, abstract: This paper deals with the Americanness which is shown in the American film biography "Hidden Figures" which was produced by Theodore Melfi in 2016 and is based on a true story.

It presents the life of three Afro-American women in the 1950s who work at the NASA as computers and solve difficult math problems by hand. Racism, sexism, and racial segregation were a big problem at the time in the US, which is clearly portrayed in the film. It is the time before the Civil Rights Act of 1964, so it is a very difficult and oppressive time for Afro-American people.

Especially women in particular have hardly any rights, claims, or prospects. Katherine Johnson, the main character, is the only computer that would come into question to enable John Glenn's attempt to send a rocket into space before the Soviet Union manages it. From then on, the rights and views in the company begin to change. Mary Jackson, also one of the three main characters, begins to gain courage and wants to become an engineer, which she can only achieve if she takes an evening course, but only white people are allowed, so she goes to court and wins. She is the first black woman allowed to attend one of the evening courses in history.

In the following, the paper analyzes some scenes from the film that reflect racism, sexism, racial segregation, and discrimination to show that these issues played a major role in the 50s and 60s and to be able to give a better insight into these topics. Then it goes into more detail about the Civil Rights Act, how it was drafted, who signed it and how or if life has improved for people of color afterward.

After that, it defines what the American Dream and the Declaration of Indepence say and relate it to the film. Questions like:

1. How is the American Dream presented in "Hidden Figures"?
2. Does it also apply to people of color?
3. How do the colored experiences of success that have a positive effect on the future achieve?

are worked out and answered. In the end, the paper summarizes the work and examines whether the director manages to give a good insight into a realistic life of a woman of color through the film and whether he manages to portray Americanness in the film.