Americanization In The Jazz Singer
Essay Preview: Americanization In The Jazz Singer
Report this essay
In the film, The Jazz Singer, the protagonist, Jakie Rabinowitz, goes through a major character change in becoming Americanized. That is, in leaving his familys Jewish faith, he adopts the attitude and culture of the American way of life. However, there are many phases and steps he takes in doing this along the way. The first signs are the feud between Jakie and his father and goes as far as his name changing and meeting with a Gentile. Because of these changes he chooses to make, his Jewish way of life becomes Anglocized and eventually this Americanization overtakes his character causing him great issues with his true identity. He is forced to come to terms with who he is, and who he wishes to be.
Jakies family has a very strong Jewish faith and throughout the formative years of his life this was all he knew. His father deeply wanted him to continue with the tradition in the family and become a Cantor and their synagogue. However, Jakie wishes otherwise and chooses to try his hand in show business. This is his first step in his Americanization as his father has strict rules and ideas for him which he blatantly disregards. Once he begins to sing Jazz music, Moisha Yudelson hears his talent and goes to tell Jakies father who, naturally, is furious at the thought and whips Jakie, who then proceeds to run away from home. At this point we see that Jakie is struggling heavily with his identity. As much as he wants to be independent of his fathers wishes and culture, it is clear that he still deeply cares for his mother as he waits until his parents are at the synagogue to sneak back into the house to take her photograph. This demonstrates the point at which he feels torn between his desires and his family ties as his character is slowly becoming emersed in American culture and ideals. For a person in a family of such strong faith, it takes a major influence to so unabashedly rage against what has been so naturally engrained in ones head and moral values.
About a decade later, Jakie Rabinowitz has become Jack Robin. This, alone, displays a significant change in his character. The name Jakie Rabinowitz is one of strong Jewish heritage and culture and is a symbol of where he came from. In disbanding his name it seems to show his disregard for where he came from and who he is. Jack Robin proudly shows his acceptance and conformity to American and Anglicized culture, as well as the rejection of his Jewish faith. At this point Jack is singing his Jazz music in nightclubs to large audiences. A young woman he meets, Mary Dale, tells him she hears much more emotion in his voice than that of other Jazz singers. We can tell from this that he has come to be a part of the American culture as he is singing American tunes and is still able to pull emotion from these songs. The music, itself, has also allowed his merge into the American way of life as it gives him an American identity to the people in his audiences. From an audience perspective, when one sees a singer performing a particular type of music, as in Jazz music, it gives the impression that the theme of the music coinsides with the identity of the performer. Thus, without knowing Jack Robin was once Jakie Rabinowitz, the audience is led to believe this man of Jewish faith is, in actuality, an American man with an American name