During this week’s class, we discussed how most representations of homosexual males on film and television share the following characteristics. They are white and are either affluent and rational or middle class (not rich but not without financial support) and flamboyant. They also tend to live in more liberal minded cities such as New York or San Francisco. Lafayette, on the other hand, is African American, lives in Louisiana, has rippling muscles, wears a mish mosh of male and female clothing, is rational yet speaks his mind no matter how taboo his sentiments are thought to be. And I have yet to read a single review of the show in which the writer expresses dislike towards him. On the contrary, many writers cite Lafayette as one of the primary reason why they enjoy the show which brings me to my question of how Lafayette has managed to break through so much of the red tape that the media has constructed concerning homosexual and African American characters.
Let’s begin by examining Lafayette’s character within the context of “True Blood.” Though Lafayette is no manner shy about his sexuality, the small town of Bon Temp accepts him as one their own regardless of his social deviance. I believe this acceptance is due to several major points. One, although Lafayette is gay, he is very muscular and in addition to being a cook, he is the town’s main drug dealer and works on the road crew with the main character, Sookie Stackhouse’s, alpha make brother, Jason. These aspects of Lafayette are traditionally associated with hegemonic portrayals of masculinity. Furthermore, Jason is the embodiment of the hegemonic male who rarely spends a night sleeping alone, and his friendship with Lafayette may lend the man to be accepted by Bon Temp’s other overly macho citizens.
Secondly, Lafayette is one of the most intelligent people in Bon Temp. He judges people by their actions rather than by their looks or rumors surrounding them. When a wake is held for Sookie’s grandmother, Lafayette advises Tara, Sookie’s best friend, to throw out the majority of the food brought by the gossiping neighbors. He says that the casseroles are filled with “bad juju” and that you can “taste the suspicion and hatred” in every bite. Later, when Sookie allows her boyfriend Bill, who also happens to be a vampire, to bite her and drink from her for the first time, the crowd in Merlotte’s is shocked and judgmental of her actions. Lafayette simply tells her not to worry about them, and that “it’s not possible to live unless you’re crossin’ somebody’s line somewhere.”
Thirdly, Lafayette is neither physically nor emotionally weak. He is completely secure with who he is and his way of living. When a rude patron at Merlotte’s sends a burger back, claiming that it has AIDS, Lafayette—who is not HIV positive—calmly brings the plate back over to the table and asks, “Who ordered the burger with AIDS?” The redneck man answers that he ordered a burger deluxe but with no AIDS. Lafayette explains that at Merlotte’s every burger comes with fries, a bun, tomato, lettuce, mayo, and AIDS then shoves the platter in the guy’s face, decks the guy's other two redneck buddies, and declares that if this person is going to order from his kitchen he is going to eat the food as it is served. As one final dig, Lafayette reminds that man to tip his waitress. It is hard to imagining either Will or Jack from “Will & Grace” behaving in that sort of manner.
Lastly, aside from Lafayette’s personality and actions, what may cause him to be more accessible than the other characters on “True Blood” is that while he is what is commonly perceived as a social deviant, he inhabits a world filled with people that normalize him by comparison. Sookie, the pretty young waitress is a telepath. Sam Merlotte, the bar owner, is a shape-shifter. Vampires are now recognized members of society and synthetic blood is served up at bars and restaurants across the country. Other members of the town are shameless bigots. In a world swirling with the unusual and unexplainable, Lafayette serves as a voice of reason and his own unique attributes as a black, gay, semi-flamboyant male are diluted by comparison.
Now the question is can a character like Lafayette only exist in a world such as is constructed by HBO’s “True Blood” or can he carry over into the primetime comedies and dramas found on basic cable?
Link to the "AIDS Burger Scene": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=890ULiSXZSY
No comments:
Post a Comment