Surname 1

Student's Name

Professor's Name

Course

Date

Hidden Figures

Introduction

"Hidden Figures" is a biographical drama movie directed by Theodore Melfi, loosely based on

the book Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly. The film revolves around African American

women mathematicians and engineers who worked at the National Aeronautics and Space

Administration (NASA) in the 1960s during the space race. The movie stars Katherine Johnson,

played by Taraji P. Henson, who is a mathematician. She calculated flight trajectories for Project

Mercury. The film also stars Octavia Spenser as Dorothy Vaughan, a NASA supervisor for the

colored computers called, and Janelle Monae as Mary Jackson, a NASA engineer. The movie is

produced by Fox 2000 Pictures, Chernin Entertainment, and Levantine films.

By examining "Hidden Figures," we can see that the protagonist's interest inequality

among all workers irrespective of gender is clearly shown throughout the movie. It is essential as

it offers the viewers a glimpse of African women's struggle during the 1960s.

Racism

Racism among women of color is the main focus which is handled by both dialogue and visuals.

In the scene where Vaughan is working on the vehicle, a police officer approaches the three

friends and seeking to know why they are stranded. The policeman, who is white, is shocked to

learn that the women of colorwork at NASA. Vaughan is also denied the position of being a

supervisor. Mitchell tells her that they are "not assigning a permanent supervisor for a colored
 Surname 2

group" (Hidden Figures 00:12:19). It was even after the previous supervisor got sick one year

later. In another scene, Vaughan was also expected to work as a runner (Hidden Figures

00:41:48). She was also denied access to a public library section with a book she needed to

advance her career and other workers. A white woman tells her that "we don't want any trouble

here" (Hidden Figures 00:49:43) and ask her to go to the colored section. Jackson is assigned to

the space capsule section's heat shield team and is advised by the team leader to apply for an

engineer position. She is later denied this position as it requires an additional course. While

making an application for access to education legally in court, she is told, "colored seats are at

the back of the courtroom" (Hidden Figures 00:58:16). Jackson later uses a petition to attend an

all-white school winning over the judge by appealing to his sense of history. The judge allows

her to attend night classes (Hidden Figures 1:13:07). The historical context of the racism is also

portrayed in a scene of peaceful anti-segregation protest where they were chanting "segregation

must go!" (Hidden Figures 00:49:30). Also, in the scene where people make anti-segregation

chants, a "white only', 'black only' drinking point is shown. It portrays the extent to which racism

had grown during this time.

Katherine struggled also had struggles in her job, in which she was given an empty coffee

pot marked "colored." She also had to walk half a mile to use the nearest colored washroom as

the building she was in had none. She angrily explains this to Harrison, who later knocks down

all signs written "colored bathroom." During the introduction of astronauts to mathematicians

and engineers, colored computers stood in groups separate from white people so that they were

easily ignored (Hidden Figures 00:38:37). Vivian Mitchell (Kirsten Dunst), who did not allow

Vaughan to be promoted to supervisor because of her color, continuously referred to her as

Dorothy. It depicts the disrespect white people had towards black people. African -Americans
 Surname 3

worked in a segregated unit known as "colored computers." When Katherine entered the

mathematician's office, a Whiteman immediately places a basket full of trash on top of the

material she was carrying (Hidden Figures 00:16:52). The office was an all-white male. This

action indicated that skin color overrode dress. Women were also required to dress in skirts

below their knees which differentiated professional computers from people in service jobs who

were expected to wear uniforms. After Katherine's wedding, she is given a pearl necklace as a

gift by a white woman. Back then, colored computer's salary was not that much, and I could not

purchase such a chain.

Conclusion

Through the movie, challenges faced by African -American women of color are portrayed among

the three women. Focus is put on the main protagonist as she works with a white men

mathematician group. The three women bring out the challenges women underwent and their

struggles to be heard among white man-dominated areas. I strongly recommend this movie as a

must-watch as it makes one want to know more. It's an important movie that emphasizes the

negative impacts of bigotry and how it can hurt individuals. It also focuses on ways of

overcoming challenges, especially those involving gender and racism.

 Surname 4

Work Cited

Hidden Figures. Directed by Theodore Melfi, performances by Taraji P. Henson, Octavia

Spencer, Janelle Monae, Kevin Costner, Kristen Dunst, and Jim Parsons, Twentieth

Century Fox, 2016.