Abstract
This essay argues that the 2017 horror film, Get Out, portrays the chronic double consciousness of black Americans, especially women, amidst late capitalist liberalism. I focus specifically on a scene midway through the movie in which a black, hypnotized maid simultaneously laughs, smiles, and sheds a tear. This essay discusses double consciousness, body language, clothing and facial expressions in order to illustrate the ambivalent stance that Get Out takes toward black women as both empowered and disempowered, arguing against the laudatory critiques of mainstream film commentators who have focused on the emancipatory potential of Get Out’s narrative.
Recommended Citation
Buckingham, Erik
(2019)
"Black Women Be Knowing: Double Consciousness and the Maid’s Tear in Get Out,"
Proceedings of GREAT Day: Vol. 2018, Article 4.
Available at:
https://knightscholar.geneseo.edu/proceedings-of-great-day/vol2018/iss1/4