The Concept of Community in Black Panther Movie

This essay analyzes how the movie Black Panther has brought out the concept of community, its functions as well as its various aspects with a special focus on the Black culture.

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The movie, Black Panther is an enlightening event that has led to rave reviews and triggered
conversations all over traditional media and social media alike. In fact, there are no signals of the
exhilaration dwindling, either, as the discussion regarding the movie has changed from
deliberations about the significance of demonstration into something grander: a rather world-
shattering commemoration of the African-American culture. This essay will analyze how this
movie has brought out the concept of community, its functions as well as its various aspects with
a special focus on the Black culture.
African-American community plays critical functions in the Marvel’s film, Black Panther. For
many years, this community has been portrayed as unsophisticated, backward, disorganized, and
savage in almost everything from videos to news. Black Panther aims at challenging such
perceptions using the critical functions of the African-American community. Black culture in
this movie shows the unnoticed beauty and ingenuity among the African-American population.
In so doing, it works as an empowerment tool for the Blacks who feel inferior or hideous vis-à-
vis to their White counterparts. What is more, African-American community in Black Panther
draws attention to showcase the culture’s incomparable designing capabilities. In point of fact,
Camille Friend, in an interview in New York referred to it as “a totally Afrocentric, natural hair

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movie” (Martin par.6). In a nutshell, The Black community in this video purpose to show various
concealed aspects of their culture and in the process restore the pride amongst its members.
In the previous essay, community was defined as a large or small social unit (a group of people)
which has mutual or shared values, identity, norms, or religion. Community often shares a sense
of locale which is found in a particular geographical region (for instance a village, neighborhood,
town, or country) or in an implicit space through communication platforms (consultez par.7).
Long-lasting relationships which broaden past immediate genealogical bonds also characterize a
sense of community. Community members tend to describe these communal connections or
bonds as vital to their practice, identity, as well as roles in social institutions (like work,
government, family, home, society, or humanity at-large). African-American community in the
movie Black Panther explicitly fit in this description. Throughout the film plot, the characters
intent to define their social ties by working together in unison, and as highlighted beforehand,
they am at displaying various outstanding aspects of the culture such unity of purpose. There is
scene when five African ethnic groups fight over a meteorite comprising of vibranium. One of
the warriors gulps a "heart-shaped herb" affected by the metal and acquires extraordinary
capabilities, emerging the first "Black Panther". Using his supernatural abilities he unites all
people but the Jabari Tribe to establish the homeland of Wakanda. With years, the Wakandans
make use of the vibranium to build up sophisticated technology and separate selves from other
people by forming as a Third World nation (Coogler 2018).
African-American in Black Panther movie emphasizes various aspects of community such as
naturality, permanence, and identity. Characters and the environments where the movie is set
depict the aspect of naturality. The environment is at its ordinary setting perhaps in impressive,
imaginative place or far-flung planet. This environment represents the collective resourcefulness

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and beauty of the Blacks. Besides, the African costumes as well as general appearance of the
actors are used to inculcate meaning and pride of the community. Permanence is another aspect
emphasized by Wakanda in this movie. A community is always a permanent group of people
living in a given territory. Unlike an association or a crowd, it is not temporary. The production
of the movie was meant to reveal the lengthy spiky journey which the community has embarked
on since the time immemorial. Despite the various changes which have taken place in the general
human race, the Black society remains intact with a strong belief in its values, ethnicity, and
culture. As the video’s chief attire designer, Ruth Carter, told NPR, the set of clothes, like
Wakanda itself, purposed to stir up a people and place that had “never been colonized, one that
looked toward the future but was based on a genuine history (Yu par.5).” Carter in collaboration
with her panel drew on South African, Namibian, and Kenyan points of reference to complete
the video’s collection of outlooks, reflecting not only the ethnic diversity found within Wakanda
but as well the identity of black culture. The movie is a critical validation stamp for African-
Americans’ urge for the chance to commemorate everything from Afrofuturism to the natural
hair movement that is normally ridiculed in the majority spaces.
There are various realistic and unrealistic aspects of the African-American community. The
blacks have a strong believe in the importance of communication skills. To them efficient
communication skills are vital for an individual’s success in his/her endeavors. Ideally, it is
sensible to argue that at the current era, one has to master exceptional communication abilities
for him to make in the contemporary labyrinth of life. What is more, religion is a powerful force
among the Black community and they have a strong trust in the significance of religious
doctrines. Needless to say, religion is a pertinent part of people’s lives. It influences their
loyalties, hopes, views, values, worries and fears. Hence it helps them build their relationships as

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well their abilities to work together. An example of an unrealistic aspect of the African-
American community is the bogus belief that they are unappreciated and not respected as a
people. Perhaps that was an orthodox discernment which must have lacked space in the present
day’s society where human rights are given first priority in all social echelons.
The general plot, setting and production of the movie Black Panther suggest that a community’s
distinctive features should be reverenced. It suggests that even though some communal values,
characteristics or attributes appear absurd or illogical, they should be respected and those people
should not be scorned, mistreated or disdained. It is a common knowledge that African-
Americans are conservatives and the majority of them have a robust belief in the importance of
their customary lifestyle, dress code, practices, eating habits and so forth. Black Panther draws
attention to this fact and this is why even the actors and actresses are in their conformist dress
codes and in their natural hairstyles and complexions. It purposes to remind the community
members that in spite of changes such as Westernization which have occurred in the past years,
their values, beliefs and their lifestyles in general are still intact.

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Works Cited
Black Panther . Dir. Ryan Coogler. Perf. Ryan Coogler. 2018.
consultez, Vous. "Community, identity and the cultural space." 2001. CAIRN.INFO. 15 Nov.
2018 <https://www.cairn.info/revue-rue-descartes-2002-2-page-19.htm>.
Martin, Crystal. "How ‘Black Panther’ Got Its Gorgeous Afrocentric Hair." 14 February 2018.
The New York Times. 16 November 2018 <https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/14/style/black-
panther-natural-hair.html>.
Yu, Mallory. "'Black Panther' Costume Designer Draws On 'The Sacred Geometry Of Africa'."
16 February 2018. npr. 16 Nov. 2018 <https://www.npr.org/2018/02/16/586513016/black-
panther-costume-designer-draws-on-the-sacred-geometry-of-africa>.