Villainification and Evil in Social Studies Education

Kessel, Cathryn van; Crowley, Ryan M.

doi:10.1080/00933104.2017.1285734

Cited by 29 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…For example, during our walk through the second floor exhibit "The American Civil Rights Movement," Author #1 noticed the seemingly outsized attention given to The Segregationists [1] particularly Bull Connor. That author saw, among other things, "villainification" (van Kessel and Crowley, 2017) and "martyrdom" (Woodson, 2016) in these exhibits. Meanwhile, Author #2, using an AsianCrit lens (Chang, 1993;Museus, 2014), noticed the White/Black binary racial framework throughout which resulted in the sheer absence of civil rights struggles of non-White, non-Black, racial ethnic groups.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Thinking with theory in a civil rights center

Adams

2020

SSRP

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PurposeThe purpose of this theoretical paper is to propose that museums can be useful sites in intervening the theory–practice divide in teacher education. The authors draw from their visit to the Center for Civil and Human Rights (CCHR or Center hereafter) to explore the potential of a local museum as a powerful intervention in the preservice teacher education theory/practice divide.Design/methodology/approachThe authors’ theoretical framework draws off of “thinking with theory,” a method of using concepts to make sense of data by “plugging” a concept “into” data (Jackson and Mazzei, 2011). The authors believe that everyone, even their preservice teachers think with theories in an attempt to make sense of information and events. In their social studies methods courses, the authors offer readings, texts, videos and experiences that present ideas and concepts that are new to their preservice teachers in order to expose underlying theories that frame worldviews.FindingsThe authors provide four “snapshots” or findings. These include: heroification and villainification, White–Black binary and messianic meta-narratives, empathy and simulation and critical Black patriotism. Each of these snapshots is grounded in theories from scholars in the field of social studies, demonstrating one way to put theory to work.Originality/valueAs the aforementioned snapshots show, the authors found a place like CCHR that can serve as important space to think with theory and deconstruct presented narratives. The authors “plugged” concepts from social studies scholarship “into” the narratives presented at the CCHR. Specifically, the authors used villainification (van Kessel and Crowley, 2017), AsianCrit (Chang, 1993), Black Patriotism (Busey and Walker, 2017) and messianic narratives and martyrdom (Alridge, 2006).

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Thinking with theory in a civil rights center

Adams

2020

SSRP

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“…In social studies education, textbooks often reflect grand narratives (Schick & St. Denis, 2005;Stanley, 2006), mythistories (Letourneau, 2006), heroification of prominent political or historical figures (Loewen, 1995), or the villainification of single actors (van Kessel & Crowley, 2017;van Kessel & Plots, 2019). These ideological filters influence the portrayal of historical events, such as the Holocaust (e.g.…”

Section: Social Studies Textbooksmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of Orientalist Discourse in an Alberta Social Studies Text Resource

Edmondson

2021

CSS

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The aim of this paper is to explore how the Alberta Social Studies 30-1 textbook, Perspectives on Ideology (Fielding et al., 2009) can contribute to orientalist discourse in its presentation of Islam, especially with respect to terrorism, extremism, and illiberalism—three concepts that appear in the Alberta Social Studies Program of Study. Using a content and discourse analysis, the study found three central findings that contributed to an orientalist framing of Islam: a lack of nuanced discussion of Islam; positioning Islam as a source of terrorism; and a lack of acknowledgement of wrongdoing following injustices perpetrated towards Muslims in Canada. This study concludes by offering ways in which social studies curricular support materials may interrogate to disrupt orientalist discourse, and challenges social studies educators to critically examine the limitations of some of the most common resource materials at their disposal.

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“…Mental illness cannot be used as an excuse to justify violent behavior, but it should be used to highlight that violence, in part, stems from structural factors: Culpability for violence often cannot be attributed soley to the intent of an individual. Such sympathy for the devil is, however, awkward at the best of times and is often confused with victim-blaming, and is one reason Hannah Arendt was critiqued so harshly for her observations about the banality of evil (van Kessel & Crowley, 2017). Yet, it is nonetheless important to recognize that broader factors shape one's life.…”

Section: All I Have Are Negative Thoughtsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Book review: Joker

Varga

Kessel

2020

The Journal of Social Studies Research

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Few comic villains have the rich history that the Joker does. From comic books and cartoon television shows to blockbuster Hollywood films, the Joker has already had a long history, replete with multiple interpretations. Despite these myriad of portrayalsdsome memorable for a variety of reasons, like Heath Ledger's brooding depiction in The Dark Knight (Nolan, 2008) or Jack Nicholson's sardonic portrayal in Batman (Burton, 1989)dactors, writers, and directors can (apparently) still find new ways to trouble audiences with the Joker's bleak (and yet strangely gripping) outlook on society that reverberates on a variety of personal and societal levels. All I have are negative thoughtsIn Joker (Phillips, 2019), Joaquin Phoenix takes a turn interpreting the (in)famous character. Like Ledger's depiction, audiences are invited to "reflect on ideas of values that we take for granted" (Forbes, 2011, p. 25). Phoenix, however, takes the complex, and somewhat empathetic, evil of the Joker to a new level. Early in the film, the audience learns that Phoenix's character is named Arthur Fleck and that he is the antithesis of the hyper-masculine ideals of American societydhe is desperate, disheveled, scrawny, timid, and is frequently the target of verbal and physical attacks by others. Arthur (barely) holds a job as a clown-for-hire for the company Ha-Ha's and is the sole provider for his mother, Penny Fleck. Additionally, Arthur suffers from (at a minimum) depression and a neurological condition that triggers fits of uncontrollable laughter when he is faced with distressing situations. Considering the aggregate of these conditions, Arthur Fleck quickly becomes a character who might elicit empathy from the audience. He is not an all-powerful villain whom the audience hopes will be brutally defeateddwe likely feel sorry for him.Although some students struggle to conceptualize evil as being complex (van Kessel, 2017), Joker provides an important lesson about just how ordinary, relatable, and complicated evil can be. Although earlier portrayals of the Joker have attempted to convey the point that anyone could be one bad day away from becoming like him, Phoenix's portrayal is the first attempt at using the popularity of the Joker to explore the complex range of factors that contribute to violent behavior. According to Dr. Adam Raine, a neuro-criminologist, Arthur's path to event was shaped by a nexus of "genetics, childhood trauma, untreated mental illness, and societal provocation" (Miller, 2019, para. 2). Having spent over 40 years studying the brains of behavior of violent criminals to understand the causes of violence, Raine was taken aback by the (unexpected) nuanced and accurate portrayal of reactive aggression in Joker. So much so, that in fact he plans to use clips with his students at the University of Pennsylvania (Miller, 2019).Dr. Imani Walker, a psychiatrist, was similarly impressed by Phoenix's Joker. She was moved emotionally by the script and Phoenix's performance: What also broke my heart was when he was writing in hi...

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Villainification and Evil in Social Studies Education

Cited by 29 publications

References 34 publications

Thinking with theory in a civil rights center

Thinking with theory in a civil rights center

Analysis of Orientalist Discourse in an Alberta Social Studies Text Resource

Book review: Joker

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