Essay Questions

What's the significance of Delacroix calling the Mantan show a satire?

Delacroix created the Mantan show as a pitch for Dunwitty in order to get fired from his job so that he doesn't have to work for CNS any longer. Ironically, Dunwitty loves the show which is racist and degrading to black people, and instead of rejecting the show from going on air, Delacroix agrees to carry on with it and the show becomes a hit. Thus when Delacroix calls his show a satire he is blatantly carrying on the destruction of black people to the general public. He is consciously becoming part of a system that is breaking down the progress that was built by the generations that came before him in order to give rights and freedom to black people.

What does Delacroix wearing blackface while he's dying mean?

Delacroix has created a show that has become a hit. But, his Mantan show features black performers in blackface. He's created a television program that supposedly justifies racism by allowing the general public to deface black people because it is being done in front of a national audience, and Delacroix knows this is what he's doing. In the end, Delacroix lays dying in blackface. What it represents is that he is a man who knows that what he has chosen to do has diminished the identity of black. Thus, him wearing the blackface is showing his claiming responsibility for the reality of what the show has done. He has defaced who he is and covered what he was fighting for for fame, money and a little taste of power.

What's the point of Dunwitty's character?

Dunwitty is a white executive at CNS. He believes he is more black that Delacroix because he is married to a black woman and has two mixed race kids. He represents white people who use any justification available to make their racism and insensitivity to black people appear to be reasonable. The reality is that Dunwitty represents a segment of culture that believes racial relations move forward by forgetting everything that has occurred in history. The bubble they live in is maintained by ensuring they can act as they please, but when challenged they reject the reality that they are in fact being insensitive and racist.