Jon Carey

Mass Media and Society 206-01

Media Analysis of American History X
April 28, 2014

American History X: Media Analysis of Racism and Sexism

My essay will be on American History X. I will discuss when the film was originally
released and what studio released it. For the film, I will go into detail on the director of the film
and how popular it was when it was released in theatres. After describing the release of the film,
I will provide a short summary of the film, describing the plot, characters, and where it takes
place. Once I provide an accurate summary, I will use one of the movie posters for American
History X and write a small caption about what the poster is depicting. In a paragraph or two, I
will explain my rationale for choosing American History X and my personal thoughts about the
film.
After my personal experience, I will analyze the media text using a semiotic analysis. I
will get into details about symbolic scenes that make up part of the whole theme of the film. For
the SEARCH analysis, I will the letters S, E, and R to analyze the film. The sex analysis will be
about Dereks relationship with his mother and sister. Environment will be about the films
setting in Venice Beach, California. Race will be the major part of the film, with the racial divide
of blacks and whites. Once my points are brought up, I will summarize my main points of the
paper for the conclusion.

Commercial History
American History X was released on October 30th, 1998 by New Line Cinema. The film
was directed by Tony Kayne, which was his directorial debut. After directing the film, Tony
Kayne went on to direct films such as Lake of Fire, Black Water Transit, and Detachment. The
films cast includes Edward Norton, Edward Furlong, Beverly DAngelo, Fairuza Banks, Avery
Brooks, Elliott Gould, and Stacy Keach. When the film hit the theatres, American History X was
popular around the country. Also, Edward Norton received an Oscar nomination for his role as
Derek Vinyard. New Lines cut of American History X eventually was released to generally
strong reviews, and Norton received a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his searing performance
in the film, now generally regarded as a cult classic (Stern, 3). With a project budget of $20
million, American History X grossed in worldwide at $23,875,127 in the box office. It earned
back just $6.7 million in North American ticket sales, but it earned another $17.2 million
overseas (Susman, 2). This film was geared toward teens and adults due to the dark nature of the
theme. Mostly, young adults and adults are the intended audience because of the complicated
issues of racism in the country.

Summary
In the opening scene, we see Danny Vinyard being sent into the principals office by his
history teacher Murray. Danny is a high school student and a racist skinhead residing in Venice
Beach, California. He was sent into the office for writing his history paper on Adolph Hitlers
Mein Kampf . After a talk with the history teacher, Principal Dr. Bob Sweeney refuses to expel
Danny for his controversial paper. Instead of expulsion, Danny would study history and current
events under Dr. Sweeney, naming the class as American History X. For his first assignment,
Danny is forced to write about his brother Derek, a neo-Nazi skinhead leader who served three
years in prison for voluntary manslaughter. If Danny did not complete the paper the next
morning, he would see himself expelled from high school.
Principal Dr. Bob Sweeney is called into the police station following Dereks release
from prison. He was sent in to review various neo-Nazi gangs that have popped up around
Venice Beach. Sweeney and other officers watch a TV interview Derek gave after his father was
murdered. Dennis Vinyard, Derek and Dannys father, was a former firefighter who was
murdered by black drug dealers while fighting a fire in a drug den. In the interview, Derek
claimed the murder was race-related, going into rants about AIDS, welfare, minority crime,
and other issues. His claim that the murder was about race was because it was committed by two
black crack addicts, whose house was caught in a fire.
Throughout the film, we see various flashbacks that tie into how Danny Vinyard ended up
serving three years in prison. The first flashback takes place at the basketball court in Venice
Beach. Derek goes into a three-on-three match against three black men in the court. For the
game, the winning prize was the control of the basketball court while the losers went off to find

another court to play. After a grueling match, the black men lost the game to Dereks team and
were forced to leave the court for good.
Later on that evening, Derek and Dannys mother, Doris, invites Murray home for dinner.
Doris was currently dating Murray after her former husband passed away. The familys dinner
conversation went into Rodney King and police brutality in Los Angeles. Derek and Murrays
discussion turned into a heated battle, forcing Derek to reveal his swastika tattoo and throwing
Murray out of the house. With nowhere else to turn, Doris goes to Murrays side and apologizes
for the turmoil.
Within that night, Danny hears three black men driving up to the house. Seeing that they
were attempting to steal Dereks truck, Danny alerts Derek quickly. Derek gets dressed, grabs
his gun, and bolts outside and attacks the intruders. He shot one thief to death and curb stomped
another. Moments later, police arrive to arrest Derek Vinyard for voluntary manslaughter.
Danny was too late to stop his brother and watched him be taken away by the police. Derek was
summoned to three years at the California Institution for Men in Chino.
While in prison, Derek is given a job at the prison laundry and is assigned to be partners
with Lamont. Lamont was serving six years in assault charges for stealing a television set from a
store and accidently breaking the officers foot when the TV dropped. Also in prison, Derek
joins the Aryan brotherhood. About a year, Derek becomes disillusioned with the groups
friendliness with a Mexican gang member and distant himself. In response to the criticisms they
have received, Aryan Brotherhood members brutally beat and raped Derek in the shower. After
much discussion with Sweeney about Dannys involvement with the Nazis, Derek isolates from

the group and changes his outlook on life. Derek left prison a changed man, aimed to change his
brothers involvement with the neo-Nazis.
After the flashbacks, Danny and Derek tear apart the neo-Nazi posters from the wall to
shed away the grueling past. On the following morning, Danny finishes his paper and heads off
to school with his brother. Upon going into the mens room, Danny confronts a young black
student named Little Henry. Henry pulls out a gun, shooting Danny in the chest and leaving him
dead. Derek rushes into the bathroom and cradles his dead brother in his arms.

American History X Movie Poster

Source: http://www.impawards.com/1998/american_history_x.html
Site Name: Imp Awards

This was one of the official movie posters for American History X. What is depicted is
Edward Nortons character clasping his right hand over his swastika symbol. His swastika tattoo
is designed on his heart, symbolizing his loyalty and dedication for the neo-Nazis.

Rationale: Why this text?

I watched the film American History X. Hearing many praises about it from friends, I
decided to check out the movie while it was On Demand. What I watched was a mind-blowing
film about racism and power within a small community in Venice Beach. I choose to analyze the
film on a semiotics analysis because of the symbolic racist scenes throughout the film. Within
each flashback, there are symbolic scenes of racism and power in a multi-cultured community of
Venice Beach. From the basketball game to the convenience store robbery, many of the
flashbacks provide themes of racism.
As dark as the story gets, Derek turns his life around at the California Institution for Men.
Until viewing the film, I never had sympathy for a neo-Nazi character showing so much hatred
and disgust towards minorities. For the SEARCH analysis, I chose the letters S, E, and R for the
movie. I focused the race aspect because the film was about neo-Nazis taking a stand on the
issues of diversity. Upon reading through Purchasing Power, I learned of the ongoing between
white and black citizens. Colored people have become the victims everyone points their fingers
at in a majority of controversial topics, including the war on drugs. Other than racism, there
were male-dominant characters throughout the film. For the sex analysis, I looked at the
womens role in the male-dominant household. Doris and Devina were powerless against Derek,
the man of the household. Dereks girlfriend was the only strong female role within the film.
Women were oppressed by the neo-Nazi characters in the film, including the minority employee
being robbed at the convenient store. I chose to analyze this film because of the ongoing racism
in the country, as well as the subdominant roles women faced in the film.

Analysis of Media Text

The film American History X provided symbolic images that pointed audiences into one
of the main themes of the film. One symbol is Dereks swastika tattoo on his left side of his
chest. Throughout the film, we see Derek taking his shirt off during events that take place. For
example, Derek reveals his swastika tattoo when he joins his team during the basketball game.
Before the game started, the three black men knew they were messing with the wrong crowd
when Derek showed his tattoo. That swastika tattoo on Dereks chest causes people to cower in
fear of him. Ironically, the tattoo is designed into Dereks heart. Placing the tattoo on his heart
symbolizes what Derek held dear to his heart. Tattooing the swastika onto his hear showed
loyalty and dedication to his former group in Venice Beach, California. Another instance of the
tattoo was Dereks argument with Murray in the flashback. During one of the flashback events,
Derek removes his shirt and points Murray to his chest. Seeing the swastika tattoo put Murray
into his place, knowing he was not welcome within the household. There was something
haunting about Derek revealing his tattoo to people he comes in conflict with. Showing off his
tattoo meant Derek has power over everybody else. Derek was powerful in a sense that people
retreated from him after seeing the anti-Semite symbol.
In terms of power, Derek and Danny had power over their own household. After their
dad was murdered, Derek became the man of the house. Ruling over the whole family, Dereks
mother and Devina were subordinate to the male figures. One particular instance was the
flashback of Derek and Murrays argument about Rodney King. After fighting with her oldest

son, Doris fled outside to escape the madness. Ashamed about what her first-born son became,
she ran outside from her family. She wanted to be outside with Murray, free from the neo-Nazi
dominate male figures in the house. Doris was held captive from dating the man she loved. She
dated Murray to move on from her former husband, but was heavily criticized by her son
because Murray was a Jew. Devina was seen trying to attack Derek with a bat, but Derek
remarked that he would never hurt his family. When the film was in the present time, Doris was
seen sick in bed and had no way of looking after the children. Bed-ridden and sick, Doris
seemed like she lost control of her own family. All she did in the house was smoke cigarettes
and drank water. Women in the Vinyard household were subordinate to the orders of the neoNazi male dominant figures.
Another dominant-subordinate symbolism occurred in the convenient store robbery. In
one flashback scene, Derek and a group of skinheads vandalize a local convenient store. At one
point, some of the men hold down a Hispanic woman at the cash register. When she is held
down, the men pour drinks into her face while she is restrained. Before the men leave, they pour
milk onto her face, remarking that she can now work a white womans job. Tied down and
helpless, the cashier struggled for her safety. Not only is this a clear symbol of sadomasochists,
but a symbol of power. She was victimized as a women as well as a Hispanic. A group of white
supremacists holding down an innocent Hispanic cashier was a symbolic scene of power in
which they showed her the neo-Nazis were in control of the community. All that vandalism and
rape were about showing them whos the boss in the changing demographic of California.
There is a correlation to the films environment Derek and Danny grew up in and the real
situations occurring in California. During one flashback scene, Derek rallies a group of Nazis in
a parking lot. Derek remarks his complaints of the increase of immigration occurring in his

hometown. At one point of the speech, he complains of the 40 border-jumpers that entered the
country and took over the jobs. California was dealing with an influx of immigrants coming into
the country. During the 1990s, immigration increased significantly in the state of California.
By the mid-1990s, California's eight million immigrants represented one in four state residents
and fully one-third of all immigrants in the United States (Camarota, 1). Due to the large
population size, California made up the majority of immigrant population in the country. Many
immigrants, mainly Hispanics, have fled Mexico or Central America for a better chance at life in
America. Most of these immigrants came with little to no educational background when coming
to California. This high concentration of low-education immigrants in the state has supplied
California's businesses with a large pool of unskilled labor (Camarota, 2). Immigrants fleeing to
California took over many low-skilled jobs with the state. If that wasnt enough, many of the
people came to California were an undocumented citizen of America. Mid-1990s election was
important for California, in terms of illegal immigration issues. One controversial bill that was
shot down was proposition 187 in 1994. Proposition 187 was a bill proposed to banned most
public services to illegal immigrants. Proponents of the "Save Our State" petitionProposition
187blamed illegal immigrants for the poor economy and crime, for draining state and federal
tax dollars and services, and for committing injustices against citizens (Martinez, 2). Before the
films release in October 1998, California wrestled with the arrival of undocumented immigrants
coming into the state. Proposition 187 was a proposed bill aimed to curb illegal immigrants of
any public services. Like the immigration issues Derek and Danny faced during the film,
California was fighting a complicated issue pertaining to undocumented immigrants arriving in
the state.

Conclusion
American History X was a powerful film pertaining to power, racism, and maledominance society. Stemming from his fathers brutal murder at a crack den, Derek took it upon
himself to make his life better. All the hatred he spewed only bought him more confusion and a
loss from society. Going from a neo-Nazi robbing convenient stores, Derek changed his ways
after a few years in prison for voluntary manslaughter. Even after being released, Derek kept
symbolic swastika tattoo as a horrific sign of where he came from. A small symbol conveniently
located at his heart told a lot about what this film was about. He sought control not only from his
own household, but his own changing neighborhood. As society slowly changed, Derek looked
to bring light into his horrific news of his father. What is important to take from the media text is
that hatred does not solve any problems. Hatred only made situations worse for Derek, not
better. Having hatred towards a group is one of the many steps in taking control of people.
Adolf Hitler despised Jews during the Great Depression and carried out the Holocaust during the
1940s. Within that time period, six million Jews were exterminated from the face of the earth.
All events triggered by ones hatred of an innocent group of people during the Great Depression.
In the end of American History X, Dannys final lines of his paper were, hate is baggage. Lifes
too short to be pissed off all the time. Its just not worth it.

Work Cited

Camarota, Steven A. "The Impact of Immigration on California." Center for

Immigration Studies. N.p., July 1998. Web. 16 Apr. 2014.

Lee, Chris. "Hollywood's Craziest Director Tony Kayne, Seeks Redemption, With
'Detachment'" The Daily Beast. Newsweek/Daily Beast, 14 Mar. 2012. Web. 16

Apr. 2014.
Martinez, Gebe. "Learning from Proposition 187." Name. N.p., 5 May 2010. Web.

16 Apr. 2014.
O'Shaughnessy, Michael. Media & Society: An Introduction. 5th ed. Oxford:

Oxford UP, 1999. Print.

Susman, Gary. "'American History X': 25 Things You Didn't Know About the
Controversial Edward Norton Movie." AOL Moviefone. N.p., 29 Oct. 2013. Web.
16 Apr. 2014.