"Breaking the Chains: Fanon’s Theory of Violence as Liberation in Cinematic Portrayals of 'Django Unchained'"
Abstract
This assignment examines the role of violence as a means of liberation in films about slavery, using Frantz Fanon’s theory from “The Wretched of the Earth” as a framework. Fanon argues that violence is necessary for the oppressed to reclaim their humanity, a concept explored in films like “Django Unchained” (2012). Through a Fanonian lens, this study analyzes how these films portray violence as both a path to freedom and a source of trauma, highlighting the complex relationship between oppression, resistance, and liberation.
Introduction
"no gentleness can efface the marks of violence; only violence itself can destroy them."
Throughout his life, Fanon aimed to free Black people from colonial oppression, not just in his homeland of Martinique and in South Africa, but for Black identity worldwide. His book “The Wretched of the Earth”(1961), originally written in French and later translated into English, discusses the role of violence in the decolonization process. Fanon argues that colonial rule is violent, extreme, and racist, leaving no room for communication or negotiation between the colonizers and the oppressed. He believes that because colonialism is built on violence, the oppressed must use violence to free themselves from their white oppressors.
Violence in the colonies is not only used to control the enslaved people but also to take away their sense of humanity, making them feel inferior. The colonizers aim to erase the natives' traditions, replace their language with that of their white masters, and destroy their culture. According to Sartre, at first, the natives don’t fully realize the extent of the violence they are deeply frightened by it. However, the impact of this violence remains in their subconscious, and eventually, they turn that violence back against their oppressors.
“to destroy the colonial world means nothing less than demolishing the colonist's sector, burying it deep within the earth or banishing it from the territory.”
Fanon believes that to truly free ourselves from the chains of colonialism, we must destroy the symbols of oppression like violence, racism, and mental suffering and bury them deep within the earth. He argues that violent resistance, while difficult, can have positive effects. It can strengthen the minds of those fighting for freedom and pave the way for a new, just society. If we don't fight back violently, we risk falling victim to a new form of colonialism, where a different group of powerful people continues to oppress us.
The use of counter violence is suggested by Fanon, and this paper tries to examine Django Unchained which is more or less connects with this theme of counter violence as liberation force as propounded by Frantz Fanon.
Django Unchained and Slavery
“Django Unchained”, directed by Quentin Tarantino, is a 2012 film that blends elements of the spaghetti western with a revenge narrative set against the backdrop of American slavery in 1858, just before the Civil War. The movie follows Django (Jamie Foxx), a slave turned bounty hunter, as he embarks on a violent quest to free his wife, Broomhilda (Kerry Washington), from the clutches of Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio), a brutal plantation owner. Accompanied by Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz), a German dentist-turned-bounty hunter, Django takes a mythic, blood-soaked journey through the horrors of slavery to gain his freedom and reunite with his wife.
The film’s portrayal of slavery is raw, violent, and deep. It depicts the brutality of the institution through scenes of whipping, torture, and the degradation of Black people, while also weaving in Tarantino’s signature style of exaggerated violence. Slavery is not merely a historical backdrop but a key element driving the film's action and character motivations. The movie showcases how violence is intrinsic to the system of slavery which Fanon has advocated in his work long before, where individuals like Django are dehumanized and controlled, but also how violence becomes a tool of liberation as Django seeks revenge and freedom.
Tarantino's film touches upon several aspects of slavery, including the use of derogatory language and the ‘N’ word, the psychological and physical abuse of slaves, and the commodification of Black bodies through practices like Mandingo fighting, where slaves are forced to fight to the death for their masters' entertainment. “Django Unchained” plays on the grotesque nature of the system and uses its extreme depiction of violence to underline the inhumanity of slavery.
Violence and Django
In Django Unchained, the theme of revenge and personal liberation is a central narrative force, which is similar to Fanon's idea of reclaiming humanity through violence, particularly as it relates to the struggles of colonized people. Fanon, in The Wretched of the Earth, argues that violence is a necessary means for the oppressed to reclaim their humanity and to assert their agency, as colonial violence strips away the subjectivity and dignity of the oppressed. Same in Django Unchained, where the protagonist, Django, seeks not just personal vengeance but also a form of self-assertion and freedom from the system that oppresses him.
Reclaiming Humanity Through Vengence
Django’s journey is one of liberation from the dehumanizing forces of slavery, which reduce him to a mere commodity of ownership and exploitation. In Fanon’s view, the process of liberation for the colonized involves the rejection of the imposed identity and the violent reclamation of self-worth and agency. For Django, violence becomes a tool through which he reasserts his identity. Each violent act he commits against his oppressors can be seen as an act of reclaiming his humanity. Just as Fanon sees the colonized person’s violence as a necessary purge of the internalized oppression, Django's violence against his masters, whether through gunfights or retribution serves as a cathartic release from the centuries of racialized violence and subjugation.
Critique and Problems of Violence
However, Fanon also acknowledges the complexity and potential destructiveness of violence in the liberation struggle. While violence is necessary for liberation, it does not guarantee the construction of a just or humane post-colonial order. In Django Unchained, while the violence provides immediate satisfaction and retribution, it does not directly lead to a new, liberated society. The film’s ending, which focuses on Django's violent triumph, does not offer a clear resolution for the broader structural inequalities of the system he has dismantled, much like Fanon’s caution that violent liberation does not necessarily resolve the deeper social and political crises that the oppressed face.
Moreover, the film’s portrayal of violence often teeters between serious narrative and farce, presenting the violence of liberation as almost a spectacle. This exaggeration of violence could be interpreted as problematic, as it risks reducing the seriousness of the emotional and moral struggles inherent in the Fanonian view of violent liberation.
Conclusion
To conclude we can say that, through Tarantino's lens, Django Unchained becomes a cinematic embodiment of Fanon's philosophy. The film's graphic violence serves as a cathartic release, mirroring Fanon's assertion of violence as a necessary tool for liberation. Django's journey from enslaved to vengeful warrior resonates with Fanon's emphasis on the transformative power of violence in forging a new identity and reclaiming agency. However, the film's stylized violence and Tarantino's signature dark humor raise questions about the ethical and problematic implications of such a violent portrayal of liberation.
Wordcount: 1186
Images used: 4
Video: 1
References
Allen, Candace. “Django Unchained: is its portrayal of slavery too flippant?” The Guardian, 10 January 2013, https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/jan/10/django-unchained-portrayal-slavery-flippant. Accessed 15 November 2024.
Denby, David. ““Django Unchained”: Put-On, Revenge, and the Aesthetics of Trash.” The New Yorker, 22 January 2013, https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/django-unchained-put-on-revenge-and-the-aesthetics-of-trash. Accessed 15 November 2024.
Fanon, Frantz. The wretched of the earth. Grove Press, 1963
Jack, Ian. “All that bloody mayhem and we're still supposed to take Django Unchained seriously? | Ian Jack.” The Guardian, 25 January 2013, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/jan/25/bloody-mayhem-tarantino-django-seriously. Accessed 15 November 2024.
Tarantino, Quentin, dir. Django Unchained. The Weinstein Company, 2012
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