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Hidden Figures By Margot Lee Shetterly: A Critical Analysis

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Representation and portrayal of real-life experiences of marginalized people are often polarizing as there is a concern regarding the work's authenticity. Hidden Figures, a movie adapted from the novel written by Margot Lee Shetterly, provides an excellent pro-feminist and culturally critical re-telling of the lives of 3 of NASA’s most influential black female mathematicians during the civil rights era. The feminist lens is a critical theory based upon ideas of sex, gender, race, discrimination and equality which acknowledge the presence of power systems in place to oppress individuals based on these core concepts. The lens also proposes that when these power systems and forms of oppression are acknowledged, understanding and advocacy can occur (Egbert and Roe). As such, when one applies the feminist lens to Hidden Figures, it is seen to be very pro-feminist. The movie portrays the struggles of strong, outspoken, and intelligent black women whose identities define their lives, and experiences in the era they live in. Consequently, it can acknowledge their struggles leading to real change.
Hidden Figures is able to portray strong and empowered black women during the 1960s civil rights era. This portrayal is most notable by the character Mary Jackson, the most outspoken out of the three main characters. One particular scene which shows this outspoken-ness is when an …show more content…

This allows individuals to analyze a text through different societal beliefs and how they are implicated in media (Tarrant County College). Therefore, when one applies the cultural criticism lens to Hidden Figures, the movie brings forward the ramifications of race, gender, political climate and othering and their impacts on the experiences of the characters hence reflecting and critiquing the problems with society at the

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