Abstract
This paper provides an overview of the movie "Boyz N the Hood" and analyzes it in terms of three social and delinquency theories. These include social bonding theory, principle of mind theory and family delinquency theory. The theories are explained and applied to the characters in the movie.

From the Paper
"The movie 'Boyz N the Hood' provides an interesting study on social and delinquency theory and its ability to explain how boys living in the same inner city neighborhood can be close friends yet end up with very different outcomes. This paper will include an overview of the film, an explanation of three social and delinquency theories: family delinquency theory, psychology of mind theory and social bonding theory and relate them to the situation of the characters in the movie. "

Tags:Boyz N the Hood, family delinquency theory, principle of mind theory, social bonding theory, violence, delinquency, movie, black, ghetto

Abstract
This paper provides a review of the John Singleton film, "Boyz N the Hood," asserting that it was one of the most distributing American films in the last quarter century. The paper describes three social delinquency theories that explain why things went as they did in the neighborhood of Tre Styles and his tragically doomed friends. The paper also offers what Singleton thinks is the chief reason for neighborhoods like those found in South LA and what this writer considers the most important of the three theories.

From the Paper
"John Singleton's "Boyz N the Hood" is one of the most disturbing American films of the last quarter-century. In it, Singleton discusses the lives of "Tre" and his friends as they try to survive in LA's South Central district. Specifically, the film begins with a scene in which it is noted that one in twenty-one African-American males will be murdered in the United States - at least, that was the figure in the early 1990s. The second scene then announces that most of these murder victims will be killed by other African-American males. Following these two disclosures, the film then shows a stop sign - an image that scarcely needs any ..."

Tags:film, violence, African, American, black-on-black

Abstract
This paper analyzes the portrayal of female characters in the film "Boyz N the Hood", showing how they are represented in three different ways. According to the paper, there are commonly accepted delineations in the Hip-Hop community about women, these being referred to as (1) "baby mamas", (2) "chicken heads", and (3) professional women. The characteristics are described and the paper further notes that since 1991, relatively little has changed in so far as the degree to which those same characterizations still apply in the Hip Hop community. Additionally,the paper notes how gender relations are represented in the film. The paper also explores how in many respects these relations are merely symptoms of a much more general problem of misogyny and the general lack of mutual respect for females in many areas of American social culture, especially in the Hip-Hop community. The paper concludes by stating that the images and characterizations about women presented in the filmdo represent values, beliefs and attitudes of males in the Hip-Hop community.

Outline:

Introduction - Types of Female Characteriz
Gender Relations in the Movie
Symptoms of a Much Larger Social Issue

From the Paper
"In many respects, the gender relations illustrated in Boyz 'N the Hood are merely symptoms of a much more general problem of misogyny and the general lack of mutual respect for females in many areas of American social culture, especially in the Hip-Hop community. Both Tre's early relationship with Brandi and Rickie's relationship with the mother of his baby illustrate the psychological distance that males maintain between themselves and their female partners, even within romantic and domestic relationships respectively. Neither woman is involved in her partner's life in the same way as the male friends. Instead, they remain within a highly compartmentalized role and kept almost completely separate without significant integration into their lives.
"If anything, that dynamic is only a relatively mild version of the prevailing general lack of respect for all women within the Hip-Hop community. Within the film, Doughboy's comments during his "Welcome Home" barbeque that "Ho's gotta' eat too" directed at all the female attendants rather than just to any who happen to fit that specific pejorative characterization. This, in fact, is a concept that is epidemic both within the Hip-Hop community and also in many other segments of American society..."

Tags:hip-hop culture, misogyny, gender relations

Abstract
This paper describes John Singleton's film, "Boyz in the Hood" as one of the most disturbing American films of the last quarter-century. It discusses the plot of the film and the loose sexual mores and gang life of the neighborhood portrayed in the film. The paper then analyzes several social and delinquency theories that can be advanced to explain the actions of the main characters in the film.

From the Paper
"In the end, there is little question that several delinquency and/or social theories can explain why the 'hood is such an awful place for its inhabitants - and such a hard place from which to escape. In this writer's view, the social strain theory precipitates the other two theories insofar as a lack of opportunity and the desperate struggle to survive in harsh conditions inevitably compels people to do whatever they have to do to survive. At the same time, Singleton places a lot of emphasis upon fathers and suggests that Tre learned to stay out of trouble because of his father's stern guidance. In the end, it is hard to conclude that any one of the theories is the sole reason for neighborhoods like those found in South LA; after a careful review, all three have complementary dimensions as well as over-lapping ones. In any event, the film is a troubling look at what can happen when communities collapse as a result of social pathologies."

Tags:criminal, violence, gang, media

Abstract
This paper discusses how "Boyz N the Hood" (1991) is a film that attempts to speak truth to power, and counteract some of the negative stereotypes of young black men in Hollywood films. It looks at how, instead of ignoring the plague of violence and hopelessness in the inner cities of America, the film takes these stereotypes on and attempts to render the difficulties and challenges of the African-American experience with dignity and hope.

From the Paper
"The title frame statistic also politicizes the representations of the characters in the film. These characters are not simply individuals enduring their own psychological turmoil rather the struggles the characters face are endemic to a larger social condition in America. It is often considered dismissive to say that someone is merely a statistic. But these young men are potentially statistics, the film suggests, and that is not a reduction of their plight, rather it is a claim for the film's relevance beyond its duration on a screen. The film is a call to action. Whether the characters go to college, care for their children, or end up in the gutter is not merely 'their' business, or an interesting plot twist, their lives and by extension black lives in the hood are something that is vitally important for all Americans, particularly black Americans to care about and change. "

Tags:violence, stereotypes, ghetto

Abstract
The writer analyzes the film and the methods used by the filmmaker to subtly introduce ideology into the plot and character development. The paper claims that although the work is strong in its message, the viewer is still left to make up his or her mind about what has been seen. The paper gives examples from the plot that illustrate this claim.

From the Paper
"The 'hood of the title is the neighborhood in which young Tre Styles grows up, a neighborhood in South-Central Los Angeles. The script covers about seven years in the boy's life, beginning in the mid-1980s. The problems of urban crime in black neighborhoods is evoked in the title cards at the beginning emphasizing how many young black males are murdered and the fact that most are murdered by other young black males. Tre is the central character, and also important are his two friends, the brothers Ricky and Doughboy. Tre is 10 years old when his mother decides that he needs a man's influence, so she hands him over to her ex-husband, Furious Styles. She hopes that the father will be able to teach the boy what he needs to know to be a man and to resist the forces in the neighborhood which push boys the wrong way. Furious does try to be a good father, and he plays ball with the boy, takes him on long walks, talks to him, and offers him lessons in life. The father is somewhat stern, but he is also loving and reasonable."

Tags:racism, ideology, black, youth, violence, harrassment

Abstract
This paper reviews, compares and contrasts the 1991 film "Boyz N the Hood", directed by John Singleton and the 1995 Nick Gomez film, "New Jersey Drive". The paper begins by summarizing the themes of "Boyz": the often unspoken battles between Afro-Centrism and assimilation; between action and resignation; between scholars and gangsters. According to the paper, Singleton's formula was so successful that it spawned dozens of similar films, including Gomez's "New Jersey Drive." The paper compares and contrasts each movie's treatment of racism and the struggle for the black characters in -- and against -- a white-dominated society. The paper also explores how each film treats the issues of urbanization and gang affiliation.

From the Paper
"New Jersey Drive" is far less subtle in its definitions of "oppressor" and "other." Nearly all the police officers in the film are white, and many display overtly violent and racist tactics toward the black youths on which the film focuses, One exception is a black officer who, when asked if he knows a young prisoner's identity, ironically replies with a staple racist remark; "Who knows... I can't tell them apart." Clearly, in the ghetto Nick Gomez paints, racism and white supremacy are the root causes of tension. In "Boyz N the Hood," the tension (while still palatable) is less racial, and more ideological. Returning to the classroom scene, one young, black student responds to Tre's Afrocentric lesson on the origins of Man by quipping, "I ain't from Africa, I'm from Crenshaw Mafia." This simple statement sets up one of the films most prevalent themes; the tension, the direct opposition between racial identity (Afrocentrism), and loss of that identity (gang affiliation) (Boyd, 347)."

Tags:gangs, black, African, American, police, cops, gangsters, afrocentrism

Abstract
This essay is a discussion of three films: Slacker, Boyz N The Hood and Clueless as a genre of youth films. It considers their similarities and differences, how the form of each film influences its meaning, and what these films attempt to say about social relations (e.g. class, race, gender) in the U.S. in the 1990s.

From the Paper
"The image of California as a paradise is rightly questioned by Julian Marais. California seems to many outsiders to be a paradise in terms of personal freedom, labor opportunities, and climate. This is an image of California often found in films which present a constantly warm and sunny climate, and beaches populated by healthy, carefree young people. However, there are movies which present a darker and more realistic side of California, which portray problems from crime and social unrest to natural disasters.

Those who believe in the paradise-like image of California flock to the state seeking the "absence of limitation" they see on behavior and opportunity, and the supposed "lack of difficulty" inherent in California living. Yet clearly Californians face many of the same problems found in other parts of the ..."

Abstract
This paper explores Elijah Anderson's book "Code of the Street" which details the manner in which popular culture glamorizes gangster life while the news media depicts urban slums as being overrun with violent criminals. In his book Anderson explains that there is in fact an intricate culture to life in poor minority communities. The author contends that this "code," or way of life, encompasses ideas regarding the manner in which families interact among themselves. This "code" is the result of the structural circumstances and cultural adaptations made by the people who live in these violent communities. In the context of Anderson's book, these structural circumstances are the situations individuals become involved in due to their place in society. This paper also discusses the film "Boyz N the Hood" which exemplifies and provides support for Anderson's theories. The film, designed to create awareness about life in violent communities, offers several significant scenes which are analyzed in this paper.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
Significant Events in "Boyz N the Hood"
The Film's Events as They Apply to Anderson's Book
Conclusion

From the Paper
"The "code" is the result of the structural circumstances and cultural adaptations made by the people who live in these violent communities. In the context of Anderson's book, structural circumstances are the situations individuals become involved in due to their place in society. An example of a structural circumstance would be the life of a decent single mother. Without the structure of a nuclear family, who become role models in the community the single mother "must work even harder to neutralize the draw of the street, and she does so mainly be being strict and by instilling decent values in her children. Cultural adaptations are the way they alter their behavior in order to survive in particular situations or environments. For example, decent families will often have to "code-switch" which means they may have to behave in a violent or vulgar street manner instead of the decent, respectful manner in which they have been taught in order to survive a situation."

Tags:film, minority, culture, society, violence, media