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The Magical Negro is a trope in American cinema, television, and literature. In the cinema of the United States, the Magical Negro is a supporting stock character who comes to the aid of the (usually white) protagonists in a film.[1] Magical Negro characters, often possessing special insight or mystical powers, have long been a tradition in American fiction.[2] The old-fashioned word "Negro" is used to imply that a "magical black character" who devotes himself to selflessly helping whites is a throwback to racist stereotypes such as the "Sambo" or "noble savage".[2]
The term was popularized in 2001 by film director Spike Lee during a lecture tour of college campuses, in which he expressed his dismay that Hollywood continued to employ this premise. He specially noted the films The Green Mile and The Legend of Bagger Vance, which featured "super-duper magical Negro" characters.[3][4][5][6]
- ^ Farley, Christopher John (May 27, 2000). "That Old Black Magic". Time. Archived from the original on November 4, 2007. Retrieved February 3, 2007.
- ^ a b Jones, D. Marvin (2005). Race, Sex, and Suspicion: The Myth of the Black Male. Westport, Conn.: Praeger Publishers. p. 35. ISBN 0-275-97462-6. OCLC 56095393.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
salonwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Gonzalez, Susan (March 2, 2001). "Director Spike Lee slams 'same old' black stereotypes in today's films". Yale Bulletin & Calendar. Yale University. Archived from the original on January 21, 2009.
- ^ Kempley, Rita (June 7, 2003). "Too Too Divine: Movies' 'Magic Negro' Saves the Day – but at the Cost of His Soul". Retrieved March 17, 2012.
- ^ Okorafor, Nnedi (October 25, 2004). "Stephen King's Super-Duper Magical Negroes". Strange Horizons. Archived from the original on November 14, 2006. Retrieved December 3, 2006.