Friday, November 11, 2016

Thoughts on Consumption

In one of my previous posts, I mentioned how I struggled with binge watching La Esclava Blanca because of how heavy the telenovela is, so when I began researching for our consumption projects I was shocked to see so many people had done just that as soon as the telenovela hit Netflix. I still see people tweeting about the telenovela and the actors still respond to fans of the show and it seems to be that fans of the show are true fans of the plot and the characters/actors.

I was also shocked to see this controversial telenovela had received 4/5 stars. Though I have enjoyed the telenovela because of its rawness and incredible production, it is still a telenovela that touches on rape, race, and overall hatred and intolerance. I expected most people, especially white people, to feel extremely uncomfortable seeing slavery and white people's role in this part of our history. There have been several critiques of the portrayal of race in the telenovela, but I found it interesting that, though many people of color argue they are tired of seeing black people in limiting roles like house maids or slaves, they appreciated this new, more complex portrayal of slaves in Colombia.

Though people do post on social media about watching the telenovela, one of the major outlets for people to process this telenovela is through blogs. I discovered several blog posts about the telenovela with a simple google search and found varying degrees of depth and analysis about race, class, and gender roles.

Overall, most people suggest the telenovela portrays African heritage as something beautiful and inspiring and people really appreciated this new twist on the story of slaves. Though graphic and brutal, it also provides hope and representation and viewers responded to that well.

1 comment:

  1. As a Colombian, I can definitely speak on the fact that Colombian society is trying to give more recognition to communities that have been left out of the narrative for a long time. Before La Esclava Blanca, slavery was an issue that wasn't covered very often because it is an uncomfortable topic. However, in recent years, music (like the group Chocquibtown) and telenovelas have tried to give more attention to Afro-Colombians. African art, culture and heritage, as well as indigenous cultures have garnered more national attention in Colombian society. The mochila as well as other indigenous art forms have become very popular and are starting to gather traction in the fashion industry. I think it's great that although La Esclava Blanca portrays a difficult time in Colombian history, it gives recognition where it is long overdue.

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