Date of Award
2005
Degree Name
Communication Studies
College
College of Liberal Arts
Type of Degree
M.A.
Document Type
Thesis
First Advisor
Bert Gross
Second Advisor
Camilla Brammer
Third Advisor
Edward Woods
Abstract
This study examines connections between accent, linguistic discrimination, and stereotyping in portrayals of West Virginia film characters. Ten films featuring West Virginia characters were examined for accent and stereotyping: The Right Stuff (Kaufman, 1983), Matewan (Sayles, 1987), Blaze (Shelton, 1989), The Silence of the Lambs (Demme, 1991), October Sky (Johnston, 1999), Hannibal (Scott, 2001), A Beautiful Mind (Howard, 2001), The Mothman Prophecies (Pellington, 2002), Wrong Turn (Schmidt, 2003), and Win a Date with Tad Hamilton! (Luketic, 2004). Coders were employed to score character accents. Stereotyping data was gathered by comparing portrayals with stereotypical traits associated with Appalachian and/or hillbilly characters. Thematic analysis provided further insight into stereotyping of both West Virginia and West Virginians across the sample. This study is modeled on and found support for Lippi-Green (1997). While West Virginia characters were the focus of this study, this type of research may be beneficial for any stereotyped accented group.
Subject(s)
West Virginia -- In motion pictures.
Stereotyping -- In motion pictures.
Recommended Citation
O’Cassidy, Teresa L., "Accent, Linguistic Discrimination, Stereotyping, and West Virginia in Film" (2005). Theses, Dissertations and Capstones. 737.
https://mds.marshall.edu/etd/737
Included in
American Film Studies Commons, Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Film and Media Studies Commons, Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication Commons, Speech and Rhetorical Studies Commons
