Skip to main content
Log in

Problems of portrayal: Hidden Figures in the development of science educators

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Cultural Studies of Science Education Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The framing of characters by mainstream films can affect viewers’ perceptions of social groups, their histories, and their contributions. Using critical media analysis, I explore the film Hidden Figures and its portrayal of Katherine Goble Johnson, an African American mathematician employed at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) during the United States’ Civil Rights Movement. First, I rely on womanist methodology to examine the film’s portrayal of Katherine’s professional experiences and then Black Feminist Thought (BFT) to interpret the film in relationship to the book from which it was adapted, Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race. The themes in Hidden Figures’ portrayal of Katherine were as follows: (1) compliance with the sexist and racist norms of the organization (NASA), (2) reliance on narratives of exceptionalism and omission. These themes constitute the major finding, which was that whiteness was expressed through Katherine’s academic and innovative, perfection as an ethical and disciplined (work/er), and belonging and leading. Additionally, through omission, the film is a cultural product that reflects whiteness as a cultural norm. Implications of these findings are discussed in connection to the use of critical media analysis to build critical media literacy in the preparation of African American women dis/interested in fields such as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alvermann, D. E., & Hagood, M. C. (2000). Critical media literacy: Research, theory, and practice in “New Times.” The Journal of Educational Research, 93(3), 193–205.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beauboeuf-Lafontant, T. (2002). A womanist experience of caring: Understanding the pedagogy of exemplary black women teachers. The Urban Review, 34(1), 71–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bell, D. A., Jr. (1980). Brown v. Board of education and the interest-convergence dilemma. Harvard Law Review, 93(3), 518–533.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cannon, K. G. (2006). Black womanist ethics. Eugene: Wipf and Stock Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Collins, P. H. (2019). Intersectionality as critical social theory. Durham: Duke University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Collins, P. H. (1986). Learning from the outsider within: The sociological significance of Black feminist thought. Social Problems, 33(6), s14–s32.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Duran, J. (2015). Women of the civil rights movement: Black feminism and social progress. Philosophia Africana, 17(2), 65–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Farinde, A. A., & Lewis, C. W. (2012). The underrepresentation of African American female students in STEM fields: Implications for classroom teachers. Online Submission, 4, 421–430.

    Google Scholar 

  • Few, A. L. (2007). Black feminist thought. In George Ritzer (Ed.), The Blackwell encyclopedia of sociology. Oxford: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fiske, J. (2002). Television culture. London: Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Gordon, J., & Patterson, J. A. (2013). Response to Tracy’s under the “Big Tent” establishing universal criteria for evaluating qualitative research. Qualitative Inquiry, 19(9), 689–695.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Griffin, R. A. (2014). Pushing into precious: Black women, media representation, and the glare of the white supremacist capitalist patriarchal gaze. Critical Studies in Media Communication, 31(3), 182–197.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Griffin, F. J. (2000). Black feminists and Du Bois: Respectability, protection, and beyond. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 568(1), 28–40.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Green, M. J., Sonn, C. C., & Matsebula, J. (2007). Reviewing whiteness: Theory, research, and possibilities. South African Journal of Psychology, 37(3), 389–419.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hall, S. (1989). Cultural identity and cinematic representation. Framework: The Journal of Cinema and Media, 36, 68–81.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hamlet, J. D. (2015). Still standing, still here: Lessons learned from mediated mentors in my academic journey. The Popular Culture Studies Journal, 3(1), 232–299.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harshman, J. (2017). Developing globally minded, critical media literacy skills. Journal of Social Studies Education Research, 8(1), 69–92.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harris, P. J. (2003). Gatekeeping and remaking: The politics of respectability in African American women’s history and Black feminism. Journal of Women’s History, 15(1), 212–220.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harris, F. C. (2014). The rise of respectability politics. Dissent, 61(1), 33–37.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Higginbotham, E. B. (1993). Righteous discontent: The women’s movement in the Black Baptist church, 1880–1920. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Horton, D. R., & Wohl, R. (1956). Mass communication and parasocial interaction: Observations on intimacy at a distance. Psychiatry, 1(3), 215–230.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kellner, D., & Share, J. (2005). Toward critical media literacy: Core concepts, debates, organizations, and policy. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 26(3), 369–386.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kellner, D., & Share, J. (2007). Critical media literacy is not an option. Learning Inquiry, 1(1), 59–69.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • La Rue, L. (1970). The black movement and women’s liberation. The Black Scholar, 1(7), 36–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu, H., & Baker, C. (2016). White knights: Leadership as the heroicisation of whiteness. Leadership, 12(4), 420–448.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lopez, G. R. (2003). The (racially neutral) politics of education: A critical race theory perspective. Educational Administration Quarterly, 39(1), 68–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maparyan, L. (2012). The womanist idea. London: Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Milkie, M. A. (1999). Social comparisons, reflected appraisals, and mass media: The impact of pervasive beauty images on Black and White girls’ self-concepts. Social Psychology Quarterly, 62(2), 190–210.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pimentel, C. N., & Busey, C. L. (2018). Hollywood films as social studies curriculum: Advancing a critical media literacy approach to analyzing black male representation. Critical Education, 9(4), 1.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rousseau, N. (2013). Historical womanist theory: Re-visioning Black feminist thought. Race, Gender and Class, 20(3), 191–204.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shetterly, M. L. (2017). Hidden figures. Sweden: HarperCollins Nordic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Snyder, T. D., de Brey, C., & Dillow, S. A. (2019). Digest of Education Statistics 2017, NCES 2018–070. National Center for Education Statistics.

  • Solórzano, D., Ceja, M., & Yosso, T. (2000). Critical race theory, racial microaggressions, and campus racial climate: The experiences of African American college students. Journal of Negro Education, 69(1/2), 60–73.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tenenbaum, L. S., Anderson, M. K., Jett, M., & Yourick, D. L. (2014). An innovative near-peer mentoring model for undergraduate and secondary students: STEM focus. Innovative Higher Education, 39(5), 375–385.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tisdell, E. J. (2008). Critical media literacy and transformative learning: Drawing on pop culture and entertainment media in teaching for diversity in adult higher education. Journal of Transformative Education, 6(1), 48–67.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Trier, J. (2006). Representations of critical media literacy in the film pump up the volume. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 49(7), 622–625.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitbeck, C. (1995). Teaching ethics to scientists and engineers: Moral agents and moral problems. Science and Engineering Ethics, 1(3), 299–308.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yosso, T. J. (2002). Critical race media literacy: Challenging deficit discourse about Chicanas/os. Journal of Popular Film and Television, 30(1), 52–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Tara Nkrumah.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Lead editor: Bal Chandra Luitel.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Nkrumah, T. Problems of portrayal: Hidden Figures in the development of science educators. Cult Stud of Sci Educ 16, 1335–1352 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11422-021-10021-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11422-021-10021-3

Keywords

Navigation