Interpersonal Communication in Boyz in the Hood
Boyz in the Hood (1991), directed by John Singleton, examines the obstacles that individuals in 1980s Crenshaw, California are forced to face and the struggles endured to overcome them. The film focuses on Tre Styles and Ricky Baker, two friends from different backgrounds who attempt to overcome their struggles together. These obstacles include, but are not limited to, Tre and Ricky’s individual and shared socio-economic status, the stigma associated with youths from Crenshaw, and personal life goals and ambitions.
In the film, language helps the viewer understand how the characters view themselves and how they view each other. One term that is used frequently and in a derogatory manner is n-. The term appears to be used as an attempt to subjugate individuals. For instance, when Furious Styles, Tre’s father, calls the police after shooting at an intruder, one of the police officers — who is paradoxically also black — uses the term to insinuate people from and in Crenshaw, regardless of their education or background, are below him simply because he works in an authoritative position. This term is also used by Doughboy, Ricky’s brother, towards his gangster friends (Boyz in the Hood, 1991). While the term has derogatory connotations, Doughboy has embraced the word as a term of endearment. At the same time, n- is still used to refer to people from the neighborhood. It is interesting to see how Doughboy’s language and attitude change when an outsider is introduced and welcomed into his home. When he first meets Lewis Crump, a scout from USC, he immediately changes his tone because he recognizes that Crump may be Ricky’s only opportunity to get out of Crenshaw. Additionally, men frequently refer to women as bitches and hoes in a failed attempt to demean and subjugate them. Examples of the use of these terms can be seen at the BBQ at Ricky’s house and at the car rally later on in the film.
Self can also be defined in the way characters dress themselves and how they socialize with others. For instance, the way in which Tre and Ricky dress as young children is foreshadowing of their future selves. In the scene where Ricky gets his football taken away, Ricky is seen wearing a football jersey, an early indication that football will be his life goal. Seven years later, Ricky is a high school football star and is working on getting a scholarship to USC to continue pursuing his goal. In the same scene, Tre is wearing a Georgetown University shirt, which hints at his academic ambitions that are eventually realized at the end of the film. Likewise, Doughboy’s manner of dress allows the audience to see how he identifies himself as a gang member, a life that will he will lead and ultimately contribute to his death at the end of the film (McLeod, 2008).
Doughboy’s self-identity also affects others in the film. Associating with Doughboy automatically ropes in Tre and Ricky into his problems. Because of their association and friendship with Doughboy, Tre and Ricky are targeted by a rival gang even though they themselves are not gang members. Doughboy’s gang affiliation also leads Brenda, Ricky and Doughboy’s mother, to blame Doughboy from Ricky’s death (McLeod, 2008; Boyz in the Hood, 1991).
The relationships that are formed and developed in Boyz in the Hood (1991) strengthen the characters and allow them to achieve their goals. Through the use of engagement strategies, strong relationships are formed between Tre and Furious, Tre and Ricky, and Tre and Brandi. The engagement strategies used by Furious towards Tre are altruism, which is an intrinsic part of his paternal responsibilities; the assumption that he and his son are equal; and conversational rule keeping coupled with listening (Changing the Distance Between You, 2010). Altruism is demonstrated by his willingness to take care of Tre after Tre’s mother, Reva, leaves him at Furious’s house. Moreover, Furious treats his son as an equal and uses this attitude to teach him how to be a responsible man. Through the use of conversational rule keeping and listening, Furious and Tre develop a strong relationship that enables Tre to approach his father if and when he has problems in his life (Boyz in the Hood, 1991). The engagement strategies Tre uses in the development of his friendship with Ricky are self-inclusion, the assumption of equality, and similarity (Changing the Distance Between You, 2010). Self-inclusion is demonstrated by Tre making time to hang out with Ricky, such as going over to his house for a BBQ. Moreover, Tre assumes he and Ricky are equal because they share similar backgrounds and have grown up together. As their friendship develops, they also share similar life goals that they hope will get them out of Crenshaw. Likewise, Tre utilizes the same engagement strategies with Brandi, his girlfriend. Tre makes time to hang out with Brandi and get to know her better. It is important for Tre to make this effort since he and Brandi do not go to the same school. Tre also treats Brandi as an equal and never refers to her in derogatory terms. This not only demonstrates that Tre considers her to be an equal, but also shows that he respects her as a person. Tre and Brandi also share similar life goals of going away to school and getting out of Crenshaw, which they are eventually able to do at the end of the film (Boyz in the Hood, 1991).
There are also relationships that are influenced and are demonstrative of disengagement techniques. These relationships include Tre and Reva, Tre and Doughboy, and Tre and Brandi. In the film, Reva disengages herself from Tre after resolving to send him to live with Furious and reasons that sending her son away is the only way to teach him how to be a man (Review Guide For Interpersonal Communication Test 3, n.d.). Furthermore, Reva shifts parental responsibility to Furious at least until she is able to accomplish her personal life and educational goals. Tre uses disengagement strategies to remove himself from Doughboy’s quest for vengeance against the gang members that murdered Ricky. Tre knows his involvement in this quest goes against everything his father has taught him and what he has worked towards, and Doughboy understands why Tre had to distance himself from the situation. Lastly, Tre and Brandi disengage themselves, not against other people, but from Crenshaw. They know that the only way to escape the violence they have had to live with is by working hard to get into college and being successful in their future endeavors. Tre and Brandi are able to successfully disengage themselves from the dangerous neighborhood by moving to Atlanta, Georgia to attend college.
In the film there are two important friendships that influence Tre in his endeavors and future pursuits. The first friendship is the one he develops with Ricky. The two grow up together and share similar experiences. They attend the same high school and have similar academic goals. They trust each other and are each other’s confidant. There are tensions that arise between the two, but they are mostly restricted to how Ricky wants to approach the future. It is evident when Ricky is talking to Tre about joining the Army that Tre does not support Ricky’s decision, but as his friend, he cannot turn his back on him. While Ricky helps Tre follow his academic and life goals, Brandi gives Tre the opportunity to visualize what his life can be life after he has accomplished his goal of leaving Crenshaw and going to college. As Tre and Brandi get to know each other, sex is one of the most evident sources of tension as Brandi fears that getting pregnant before she is able to accomplish her goals will prevent her from living the life she wants and escaping Crenshaw.
Through the various complex relationships in Boyz in the Hood (1991), Singleton is able to demonstrate how relationships are formed and dissolved and the factors that bring people together. Moreover, the film provides insight into the issues people have to deal with and the steps they take to overcome these obstacles.
References
Boyz in the Hood. (1991). Directed by John Singleton. United States: Columbia Pictures.
Accessed 23 February 2013, from Netflix Instant Streaming.
Changing the Distance Between You. (2010). Retrieved 23 February 2013, from http://wps.ablongman.com/ab_devito_intrprsnl_11/43/11049/2828785.cw/content/index.html
McLeod, S. (2008). Self-concept. SimplyPsychology. Retrieved 23 February 2013, from http://www.simplypsychology.org/self-concept.html
Review Guide For Interpersonal Communication Test 3. (n.d.). University Center Rochester.
Retrieved 23 February 2013, from http://www.roch.edu/course/spch1130/ipreview3.htm
Get Professional Assignment Help Cheaply
Are you busy and do not have time to handle your assignment? Are you scared that your paper will not make the grade? Do you have responsibilities that may hinder you from turning in your assignment on time? Are you tired and can barely handle your assignment? Are your grades inconsistent?
Whichever your reason is, it is valid! You can get professional academic help from our service at affordable rates. We have a team of professional academic writers who can handle all your assignments.
Why Choose Our Academic Writing Service?
- Plagiarism free papers
- Timely delivery
- Any deadline
- Skilled, Experienced Native English Writers
- Subject-relevant academic writer
- Adherence to paper instructions
- Ability to tackle bulk assignments
- Reasonable prices
- 24/7 Customer Support
- Get superb grades consistently
Online Academic Help With Different Subjects
Literature
Students barely have time to read. We got you! Have your literature essay or book review written without having the hassle of reading the book. You can get your literature paper custom-written for you by our literature specialists.
Finance
Do you struggle with finance? No need to torture yourself if finance is not your cup of tea. You can order your finance paper from our academic writing service and get 100% original work from competent finance experts.
Computer science
Computer science is a tough subject. Fortunately, our computer science experts are up to the match. No need to stress and have sleepless nights. Our academic writers will tackle all your computer science assignments and deliver them on time. Let us handle all your python, java, ruby, JavaScript, php , C+ assignments!
Psychology
While psychology may be an interesting subject, you may lack sufficient time to handle your assignments. Don’t despair; by using our academic writing service, you can be assured of perfect grades. Moreover, your grades will be consistent.
Engineering
Engineering is quite a demanding subject. Students face a lot of pressure and barely have enough time to do what they love to do. Our academic writing service got you covered! Our engineering specialists follow the paper instructions and ensure timely delivery of the paper.
Nursing
In the nursing course, you may have difficulties with literature reviews, annotated bibliographies, critical essays, and other assignments. Our nursing assignment writers will offer you professional nursing paper help at low prices.
Sociology
Truth be told, sociology papers can be quite exhausting. Our academic writing service relieves you of fatigue, pressure, and stress. You can relax and have peace of mind as our academic writers handle your sociology assignment.
Business
We take pride in having some of the best business writers in the industry. Our business writers have a lot of experience in the field. They are reliable, and you can be assured of a high-grade paper. They are able to handle business papers of any subject, length, deadline, and difficulty!
Statistics
We boast of having some of the most experienced statistics experts in the industry. Our statistics experts have diverse skills, expertise, and knowledge to handle any kind of assignment. They have access to all kinds of software to get your assignment done.
Law
Writing a law essay may prove to be an insurmountable obstacle, especially when you need to know the peculiarities of the legislative framework. Take advantage of our top-notch law specialists and get superb grades and 100% satisfaction.
What discipline/subjects do you deal in?
We have highlighted some of the most popular subjects we handle above. Those are just a tip of the iceberg. We deal in all academic disciplines since our writers are as diverse. They have been drawn from across all disciplines, and orders are assigned to those writers believed to be the best in the field. In a nutshell, there is no task we cannot handle; all you need to do is place your order with us. As long as your instructions are clear, just trust we shall deliver irrespective of the discipline.
Are your writers competent enough to handle my paper?
Our essay writers are graduates with bachelor's, masters, Ph.D., and doctorate degrees in various subjects. The minimum requirement to be an essay writer with our essay writing service is to have a college degree. All our academic writers have a minimum of two years of academic writing. We have a stringent recruitment process to ensure that we get only the most competent essay writers in the industry. We also ensure that the writers are handsomely compensated for their value. The majority of our writers are native English speakers. As such, the fluency of language and grammar is impeccable.
What if I don’t like the paper?
There is a very low likelihood that you won’t like the paper.
Reasons being:
- When assigning your order, we match the paper’s discipline with the writer’s field/specialization. Since all our writers are graduates, we match the paper’s subject with the field the writer studied. For instance, if it’s a nursing paper, only a nursing graduate and writer will handle it. Furthermore, all our writers have academic writing experience and top-notch research skills.
- We have a quality assurance that reviews the paper before it gets to you. As such, we ensure that you get a paper that meets the required standard and will most definitely make the grade.
In the event that you don’t like your paper:
- The writer will revise the paper up to your pleasing. You have unlimited revisions. You simply need to highlight what specifically you don’t like about the paper, and the writer will make the amendments. The paper will be revised until you are satisfied. Revisions are free of charge
- We will have a different writer write the paper from scratch.
- Last resort, if the above does not work, we will refund your money.
Will the professor find out I didn’t write the paper myself?
Not at all. All papers are written from scratch. There is no way your tutor or instructor will realize that you did not write the paper yourself. In fact, we recommend using our assignment help services for consistent results.
What if the paper is plagiarized?
We check all papers for plagiarism before we submit them. We use powerful plagiarism checking software such as SafeAssign, LopesWrite, and Turnitin. We also upload the plagiarism report so that you can review it. We understand that plagiarism is academic suicide. We would not take the risk of submitting plagiarized work and jeopardize your academic journey. Furthermore, we do not sell or use prewritten papers, and each paper is written from scratch.
When will I get my paper?
You determine when you get the paper by setting the deadline when placing the order. All papers are delivered within the deadline. We are well aware that we operate in a time-sensitive industry. As such, we have laid out strategies to ensure that the client receives the paper on time and they never miss the deadline. We understand that papers that are submitted late have some points deducted. We do not want you to miss any points due to late submission. We work on beating deadlines by huge margins in order to ensure that you have ample time to review the paper before you submit it.
Will anyone find out that I used your services?
We have a privacy and confidentiality policy that guides our work. We NEVER share any customer information with third parties. Noone will ever know that you used our assignment help services. It’s only between you and us. We are bound by our policies to protect the customer’s identity and information. All your information, such as your names, phone number, email, order information, and so on, are protected. We have robust security systems that ensure that your data is protected. Hacking our systems is close to impossible, and it has never happened.
How our Assignment Help Service Works
1. Place an order
You fill all the paper instructions in the order form. Make sure you include all the helpful materials so that our academic writers can deliver the perfect paper. It will also help to eliminate unnecessary revisions.
2. Pay for the order
Proceed to pay for the paper so that it can be assigned to one of our expert academic writers. The paper subject is matched with the writer’s area of specialization.
3. Track the progress
You communicate with the writer and know about the progress of the paper. The client can ask the writer for drafts of the paper. The client can upload extra material and include additional instructions from the lecturer. Receive a paper.
4. Download the paper
The paper is sent to your email and uploaded to your personal account. You also get a plagiarism report attached to your paper.
PLACE THIS ORDER OR A SIMILAR ORDER WITH US TODAY AND GET A PERFECT SCORE!!!
