Chapter 5: What Happens When Classical Hollywood Narrative and American Mythos Converge?

The complex intersection of classical Hollywood cinema, American identity politics, and American national mythos converge every day in our lives. The confluence of these dynamic ideological spheres constructs a reality for some people and as a result, creates the perfect storm for a great deal of chaos and pain in inclusive organizational and workplace environments, especially when left unchecked. The crux of this text explores the ideological reservoir that resides in all of us and the cinematic lore we carry into every space we enter. Cinematic arts are—arguably—the most popular art form in the last 100 years because it touches a deep part of the human psyche and emotional state of being. Movies reflect aspects of American culture/society, but also embodies a determining refracting power. Our shared assumptions about our reality, and the people in it, are passed down from generation to generation and classical Hollywood narrative helps concretize these controlling social narratives. I will begin with the theoretical import of this journey toward examining how the cinematic apparatus functions through encounter with the spectator and then explore the classical Hollywood narrative and its ideological framing. I will engage hermeneutical scholar, Hans-Georg Gadamer and Nobel laureate, Toni Morrison to help elucidate my claim.