Pauline Ndambuki. Racism in the Media: an examination of “Viver a Vida”

Pauline Ndambuki is a senior majoring in Public and International Affairs.  Other than issues of policy, she has been interested in how race affects how people perceive themselves, how they perceive others, and how it affects people’s social, economic, and political standing.  This paper is her first exploration of these issues in a Latin American context.

Racism in the Media: an examination of “Viver a Vida”

 

Even though giving Thais Araujo, a black actress, the protagonist role in the telenovela ““Viver a Vida”” (Living Life) (2009) ¹ was seen to be an undeniable turn towards breaking the cycle of racism in Brazilian entertainment, the telenovela cannot really be applauded for engaging a discussion, promoting appreciation for racial diversity, or sparking a systemic move towards adequate black representation in Brazilian media.  In this report, I will explore this key argument by drawing on Brazilian magazine interviews, popular telenovela blogs, images, and literature on beauty in Brazil.  A close examination of the television show ““Viver a Vida”” – a telenevola which has a black woman for a protagonist – will help begin to answer this paper’s concern on whether the Brazilian media’s latter approach to blurring the lines of racial privileges is a viable one.

Recent literature on the racial condition in Brazil has revealed that the characterization of Brazil as a “racial democracy” is more of a myth than a reality.  The disparities in education, income, and health – among other privileges – between the black and white populations; and, just as importantly, the popular reflections on what the person worthy of the mentioned privileges looks like have been key indicators of the intensity of racial privilege awarded to whites or “Euro-Brazilians” (Andrews 1996).   White has been considered right all along.

Aside from the political promises of citizenship mentioned above, the media has been a social and economic avenue that has also been very reflective of the extent of racism in Brazil.  Of all the types of media accessed in Brazil, soap operas are an integral part of Brazilian life.  Over 86.33% of Brazilians turn their televisions on everyday to catch up with at least one soap opera (UNESCO 2011).  Aside from the magnitude of telenovela followers, social psychology studies conducted on telenovelas’ social implications on everyday lives have revealed that the lines between fiction and reality have become quite blurred over the years, especially when it comes to issues of gender and identity.  The media’s influence on people’s lives today is highly extensive (Schneider et al. 2005; Yates 2006; Gauntlett 2002; Dill 2009).  Telenovelas themselves have even been described as “addictive” (Espejo & Guijarro 2007).  Consequently, the idea that soap operas/telenovelas can have an integral part in the creation and crystallization of social norms and perspectives on issues such race is not farfetched.   The depth with which the media is part of Brazilian life begs the question of whether the right steps have been taken in order to set the country on a path towards the appreciation of racial diversity.

It is undeniable that there have been some steps taken towards ensuring that the country’s racially diverse composition is represented in the media.  Among the approaches towards ensuring proportional representation in the media has been the quota system that was imposed by the Brazilian Congress in 2006.  The black-actor-quota system was supposed to guarantee that at least 20% of any cast was/is black (Santana 2011). ^{2  3}  Even though there has been a move towards the inclusion of more black actors in soap operas, black actors continue to be concentrated in peripheral and stereotypical roles such as maids and thugs (Rohter 2001; Dijk 2005).

Another recent move towards combating racism in the media has been Rede Globo’s ⁴ (see footnote 3 above) collaboration with UNESCO to ensure that media productions are sensitive to the maintenance of a better educated community, the enforcement of human rights, and the promotion of cultural diversity.   However, the most recent and most immediate demonstration of the move towards racial diversity within the media has been the injection of black actors into protagonist roles (UNESCO 2011).

While there have been genuine efforts towards advocating for racial diversity in Brazilian media, the bigger concern is whether these efforts have been substantial.  Manoel Carlos, the author and director of ““Viver a Vida”,” seems to think so.  Since the show aired in 2009, Manoel took part in interviews ⁵ in which he applauded ““Viver a Vida”” for being one of the first shows of its time to really promote a discussion of racism in the media.  In his opinion, the fact that he cast Thais Araujo, a black actress, as the protagonist was more than a bold statement of his belief that there was an issue of racism in the media, but, also, that he had the solution for this problem.  Furthermore, interviews ⁶ with Thais Araujo indicated that she herself believed that ““Viver a Vida”” was more than a show; it was an activist venture through which black people could begin to be recognized and given a fair stake in both the entertainment world and the real world.   Despite the beliefs of those like Carlos and Araujo there are other realities that indicate that “Viver a Vida” was far from a racial activism tool.  But how has the telenovela been sensitive to blackness?

Skin color ⁷ seems to be the definition of blackness when it is discussed in Brazilian media.   Yet, even on a superficial level, the women considered for the role of black Helena have very “white” features.  My definition of white features is based on Twine’s description and presentation of the desired “white” or “euro” body in Brazil.  In the pictures offered by Twine, those considered black or afro-Brazilian are substantially dark, have dark and curly hair, and possess features such as the “negro-nose,” which is usually more flat and round than the “white” nose (Twine 1998).  Tais Araujo (above), Camila Pitanga, Ilda Silva (below), the black actresses considered for the role of Helena, barely fall under these categories.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Additionally, a reflection on the suggested actresses’ bodies shows that they are all associated with white definition of beauty.  This seems to be the case when one examines their supermodel status (BlackWomeninBrazil.com 2012).  We can assume that to be an artist of that caliber one has to be nationally and even internationally accepted as such.  A look at Rogers’ (2003) discussion of Latin American pageants, which accommodate those equivalent to models, indicates that agents such as corporations, pageant judges and sponsors – who play a crucial role in determining who is beautiful enough to represent a country – are usually white.  Transitively, the idea of national beauty is very much white-charged.   As Rogers indicates, these “spectacular bodies” (see images above) that are accepted nationally as the emblems of beauty are themselves never significantly representative of the nation as a whole but a small number of white and upper class elite (Rogers 2003).  Consequently, it would not be improbable to categorize Tais, Camilla, and Ilda as white rather than black beauties.

On a profound level, even if Tais Araujo was to be considered black because of her skin tone it remains that defining blackness based on skin color ignores the historical implications of being black.  Issues of poverty, illiteracy, crime, oppression, and under-privilege have and continue to haunt afro-Brazilians.  During the colonial era, the needs, interests, and rights of blacks Brazilians were largely ignored.  Today, systemic racism and oppression are manifested in examples such as the connection between slums – which have high concentration of black inhabitants – and the lack of adequate public education and health resources (Montero 2005).   On the contrary, a look at the actresses’ biographies indicates that they were all born into privileged classes, have had the opportunities to pursue private/higher education, and have spent most, if not all, of their professional and personal lives around privilege. ^{8 9} Their reality does not coincide with the reality of most of Afro-Brazilians who continue to be defined by social ills such as poverty and illiteracy (Gradín 2009). ¹⁰

The historical connotations associated with blackness are not just amiss in interviews conducted with the black actresses mentioned above but also in ““Viver a Vida”’s” plot.  A close examination of the novel on which the soap opera is based on highlights several troubling circumstances.  The first is that the novel itself is a mere adaptation of work Manoel Carlos has produced before where his “Helenas” were all white (Santana 2011).   Second, the portrayal of black history, the road to “democracy,” and their effects on the contemporary expectation and standing of Afro-Brazilians is barely seen in the role Tails Araujo plays.  For example, from the get go, we know that Helena has, for the most part, lived a life of privilege (see footnote 1).  Additionally, there is very little sense of agency from Araujo as would be expected of a positive black figure.  Given all the trials and tribulations Helena goes through, she is usually filled with sadness, guilt and cannot seem to overcome the problems she faces with Teresa, Luciana, or even Marcos (see footnote 1).  Overall, in an attempt to fit into her new life she has to be submissive and miserable.  This is not to say that this cannot be typical of a black OR white character.   However, if the soap opera was about really portraying blackness and surmounting the social issues such as racism, Manoel Carlos should have tried to give the audience a character that faces real problems associated with race while at the same time giving her the opportunity to take charge of her situation.    With the invisibility of the plight of the black community, it is plausible to declare that “Viver a Vida” continues to uphold the racist notions of white privilege and power.  ““Viver a Vida”” is not a black novel.

One of the most pivotal scenes in “Viver a Vida” is when Helena kneels in front of Theresa to ask for forgiveness but is repaid with a slap. ¹¹ This scene was meant to be a revision of the “slave” condition, and in turn, a reflection of the contemporary black plight of racism from a white establishment.   However, the scene did not receive the response that Carlos expected.  It got a lot of negative attention especially from the black awareness movement that felt that the scene was enforcing rather than condemning racism.  The portrayal of Helena as a submissive woman who does not champion mistreatment but allows herself to be belittled did not sit well with the black awareness movement, which felt that the direction of a depressed black people is to be agents over their harsh circumstances rather than complacent characters that help enforce racism.  (Helena’s kneeling can be seen as a representation of conformity to the brutality of a white system) (Santana 2011).  Manoel Carlos’s evocation and glorification of this scene above all the others not only indicated how little the novel had to do with black plight, but also presented how little Manoel Carlos and Rede Globo understood what racial diversity meant/means for afro-Brazilians.

Ratings are a critical part in determining the life span of television shows all over the world (Billboard 1997).  One of the reasons that “Viver a Vida” lasted just a little over two years was due to the audience’s negative reaction.  Rede Globo was not able to extend the life of Manoel Carlos’ work especially given the fact that “Viver a Vida” consistently scored the lowest audience ratings during the past decade (Prado 2010).   A look at several blogs gave insight into some of the negative reactions that led to the telenovela’s unpopularity.  One of the most prominent reactions in blogs was to the interracial relationship between Marcos and Tais was “unnatural”. ¹²  Suggestions of other actresses who could have played Helena pointed out the racial tensions that surround ideas of love and romance.  For the most part those suggested were white actresses.  Alinne Moraes, who is white and who played Luciana, was constantly suggested to be better suited for the role of Helena (App 6.1).  It seemed that the audience might also not have been ready for the “radical” idea of a black and white romance.

Aside from her relationship, most of the audience did not think that Helena embodied a black identity.  As a famous Brazilian poll indicated – IBOPE (see footnote 12 above), about a third of the audience did not feel that the “Viver a Vida” script was any different from Carlos’ previous scripts that had white Helenas as the main protagonists.  There was a common feeling that this new Helena was not contributing anything that had not been seen before.  Even of those who had positive things to say about the show did not focus on Carlos’ objective of racial diversity.  Of all the blogs referred to in this paper, none of them indicated that there was an appreciation of ““Viver a Vida”” as an activist feature (see footnote 12 above).

Manoel Carlos’ portrayal of the black plight in Brazil; and the general audience reaction to ““Viver a Vida”” makes it clear that the approach that Carlos took in order to make this telenovela a medium for combating racism was not progressive enough nor did it set a solid foundation upon which racial diversity/democracy in the media can begin to be attained.

References

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Footnotes