Abstract

ABSTRACT This essay argues that Dave Chappelle’s 2019 Netflix comedy special Sticks & Stones is a staging of the Black Radical Tragic in which Chappelle performs without resolving the tension between Black revolutionary leadership and the mass-based concerns necessary for collective mobilization. Chappelle maintains the tragic dialectic through two modes of performance: the inscription of Black men and ethopoeia, or impersonation, reserved for the Others. However, that dialectic fails in key points as Chappelle’s Others, particularly Black women, are simultaneously inscribed and impersonated, revealing the impossibility of inscribing Black men against threats to liberation.

Full Text
Published version (Free)

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call