美国国家公共电台 NPR Netflix's 'Iron Fist' Stumbles In Depiction Of Asian Culture

 

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

And then there were four. Netflix today debuts¹ its fourth superhero series with Marvel² Television. It's a show about a superhuman martial³ artist called "Iron Fist." NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says the new show has forced him to confront an uncomfortable truth about superhero stories and race.

ERIC DEGGANS, BYLINE⁴: My name is Eric, and I'm a superhero-aholic (ph). Yes, I actually paid to download the awful "Batman v Superman" movie, and I still watch "The Flash" and "Supergirl" on the CW Network. Don't judge. But nothing has made me more ashamed of my love for superhero TV shows and movies than "Iron Fist." Judging by the first six episodes made available to critics, Netflix's new series is a troubling translation in part because of how it minimizes Asian people and Asian culture.

(SOUNDBITE OF TREVOR MORRIS SONG, "IRON FIST MAIN TITLES")

DEGGANS: On the surface, Marvel's "Iron Fist" is a clunky story about a rich kid who goes missing when his plane crashes in Asia. He returns to New York as a martial arts master with the ability to summon great power through his hand, the iron fist. But first he's got to convince the receptionist at his dad's corporation that he's that long-lost kid.

(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "IRON FIST")

FINN JONES: (As Danny Rand) I'm Danny Rand, son of Wendell Rand. I've been away a long time.

MAAMEYAA BOAFO: (As receptionist) And you're here to see Harold Meachum.

JONES: (As Danny Rand) Yeah.

BOAFO: (As receptionist) One minute, please.

JONES: (As Danny Rand) I used to ride my skateboard around here.

DEGGANS: As bad as "Iron Fist" is in plot and pacing and acting⁵, star Finn Jones is seriously overmatched here. One of the most troubling things about "Iron Fist" is that Danny Rand is the classic white savior. These are white characters, usually male, often misfits who find their true calling by coming to an environment filled with people of color and leading them.

In "Iron Fist," Rand trained in a hidden city with Buddhist⁶ monks⁷ and becomes their greatest warrior⁸. While he saves the day with fighting styles birthed in Asian culture, Asian actors play as mentors¹⁰, a love interest, sidekicks and villains¹¹. And this isn't the only superhero story to make this misstep.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "GHOST IN THE SHELL")

SCARLETT JOHANSSON: (As Major) This is Major. I'm on site. I'm going in.

DEGGANS: Major is a part-human, part-android hero played by Scarlett Johansson in her upcoming film "Ghost In The Shell." But the character was originally Japanese, created in a Japanese comic. Some fans were so upset an Asian actor wasn't cast as Major they co-opted a recent social media campaign for the movie to complain in memes.

The problem isn't just that Asian actors already get so few roles; they don't need white actors taking more of them. Though that is certainly true. It's also because such casting allows films and TV shows to make Asian people background props¹² in their own stories, gilding¹³ productions with elements of Asian culture without giving any real agency to Asian people.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "DOCTOR STRANGE")

TILDA SWINTON: (As The Ancient One) Doctor Strange, you think you know how the world works.

DEGGANS: That's a white actress, Tilda Swinton, playing mystical mentor⁹ The Ancient One in Marvel's "Doctor Strange" movie. The character's from a city in the Himalayas in the comic books. And rather than cast a person of color in such a stereotypical¹⁴ role, they cast Swinton. But by trying to avoid stereotypes¹⁵, the film also disappears an Asian role from a film filled with Asian mysticism which takes place largely near Nepal. One more white savior is born.

Turning back to Netflix's take on "Iron Fist," it's worth noting the original comic book character is also white, so Marvel and Netflix may have been torn between presenting the character as fans know him or subverting¹⁶ the white-savior trope with different casting. But as a fan of superheroes who knows how racial issues affect media, I've realized I can't enjoy these new stories until they fully¹⁷ step away from old stereotypes. I'm Eric Deggans.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

1 debuts   

演员首次演出( debut的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He never really debuts the idea of taking money from his parents any longer. 他从此就再也没有认真起过向父母要钱的念头。
• This young soprano debuts next month at the metropolitan opera. 这位年轻的女高音歌唱家下个月将在纽约大都会歌剧院举行首演。

2 marvel   

vi.(at)惊叹vt.感到惊异；n.令人惊异的事

参考例句：

• The robot is a marvel of modern engineering.机器人是现代工程技术的奇迹。
• The operation was a marvel of medical skill.这次手术是医术上的一个奇迹。

3 martial   

adj.战争的，军事的，尚武的，威武的

参考例句：

• The sound of martial music is always inspiring.军乐声总是鼓舞人心的。
• The officer was convicted of desertion at a court martial.这名军官在军事法庭上被判犯了擅离职守罪。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

6 Buddhist   

adj./n.佛教的，佛教徒

参考例句：

• The old lady fell down in adoration before Buddhist images.那老太太在佛像面前顶礼膜拜。
• In the eye of the Buddhist,every worldly affair is vain.在佛教徒的眼里，人世上一切事情都是空的。

7 monks   

n.修道士，僧侣( monk的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The monks lived a very ascetic life. 僧侣过着很清苦的生活。
• He had been trained rigorously by the monks. 他接受过修道士的严格训练。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 warrior   

n.勇士，武士，斗士

参考例句：

• The young man is a bold warrior.这个年轻人是个很英勇的武士。
• A true warrior values glory and honor above life.一个真正的勇士珍视荣誉胜过生命。

9 mentor   

n.指导者，良师益友；v.指导

参考例句：

• He fed on the great ideas of his mentor.他以他导师的伟大思想为支撑。
• He had mentored scores of younger doctors.他指导过许多更年轻的医生。

10 mentors   

n.（无经验之人的）有经验可信赖的顾问( mentor的名词复数 )v.（无经验之人的）有经验可信赖的顾问( mentor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Beacham and McNamara, my two mentors, had both warned me. 我的两位忠实朋友，比彻姆和麦克纳马拉都曾经警告过我。 来自辞典例句
• These are the kinds of contacts that could evolve into mentors. 这些人是可能会成为你导师。 来自互联网

11 villains   

n.恶棍( villain的名词复数 )；罪犯；（小说、戏剧等中的）反面人物；淘气鬼

参考例句：

• The impression of villains was inescapable. 留下恶棍的印象是不可避免的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Some villains robbed the widow of the savings. 有几个歹徒将寡妇的积蓄劫走了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

12 props   

小道具； 支柱( prop的名词复数 )； 支持者； 道具； （橄榄球中的）支柱前锋

参考例句：

• Rescuers used props to stop the roof of the tunnel collapsing. 救援人员用支柱防止隧道顶塌陷。
• The government props up the prices of farm products to support farmers' incomes. 政府保持农产品价格不变以保障农民们的收入。

13 gilding   

n.贴金箔，镀金

参考例句：

• The dress is perfect. Don't add anything to it at all. It would just be gilding the lily. 这条裙子已经很完美了，别再作任何修饰了，那只会画蛇添足。
• The gilding is extremely lavish. 这层镀金极为奢华。

14 stereotypical   

n.常规

参考例句：

• Personas should be typical and believable, but not stereotypical. 人物角色应该是典型和可信赖的，但不是一成不变的。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Anything could be stereotypical, so I guess it could be criticism. 任何东西都可以变的老套，所以我猜那就是一种批评。 来自互联网

15 stereotypes   

n.老套，模式化的见解，有老一套固定想法的人( stereotype的名词复数 )v.把…模式化，使成陈规( stereotype的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Such jokes tend to reinforce racial stereotypes. 这样的笑话容易渲染种族偏见。
• It makes me sick to read over such stereotypes devoid of content. 这种空洞无物的八股调，我看了就讨厌。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

16 subverting   

v.颠覆，破坏（政治制度、宗教信仰等）( subvert的现在分词 )；使（某人）道德败坏或不忠

参考例句：

• This viewpoint sees the Multinational Corporation as capable of circumventing or subverting national objectives and policies. 这种观点认为，跨国公司能够遏制和破坏国家的目标和政策。 来自辞典例句
• By simply subverting an expectation, a novelist can undermine a prejudice. 藉由完全推翻期待，一个小说家可以逐渐破坏一种歧视。 来自互联网

17 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。