The Birth of a Nation (Nate Parker, 2016): The Tale of Nat Turner’s Rebellion

Abstract

This essay examines the memories of slavery shaped by Nate Parker in The Birth of a Nation. It shows how Parker uses the biopic as a narrative frame to turn the slave rebel into a hero and analyzes the impact of the visuals over the construction of a historically controversial figure. Parker, the essay argues, has devised an aesthetic of slavery that aims to counter the visual legacy of the plantation genre and other existing representations of blackness.

Keywords

• slavery
• race
• The Birth of a Nation
• Nate Parker
• Nat Turner
• rebellion