Spinning Into Butter Stirs Up the Issue of Racism
Bailey Triggs
Issue date: 9/24/02 Section: Arts
The title of the play, Spinning Into Butter, is taken from the children's book Little Black Sambo that is infamous for its exaggerated and allegedly demeaning portrayal of African Americans. The story the title references is one where Sambo is walking through the woods in a new set of clothes when a tiger leaps up in the middle of his path and does not allow him to pass until he has given up an article of clothing. Sambo agrees to give up the clothing, only to be greeted by another tiger demanding the same thing.
The same pattern continues until Sambo has entirely run out of clothing. As he is walking through the woods naked, he stumbles upon the tigers all wearing his new clothes and arguing about who looks the best in them. Finally, the tigers get so mad at each other that they throw off the clothes and begin chasing each other around a tree.
Sambo calmly dresses himself in the discarded clothing while the tigers spin faster and faster around the tree until they finally spin into butter. In the same way that the tigers chased each other around the tree, members of the administration of Belmont College have been chasing each other around with accusations of racism, whipping themselves into figurative butter.
Though it might be hard to imagine that a play dealing with such weighty subject matter could be comic, it is in fact the play's quick and witty dialogue that saves it from being a morose journey into the heart of the white man's burden.
When Dean Daniels criticizes Professor Collins's attempt to fix the problem of racism on campus by holding discussion forums she says, (to paraphrase): So basically the kids all sit around talking about how they're secretly racist, heave a collective sigh for their white man's burden, and then go drive off in their Saabs to buy sweaters.
The humor of this play lies in its so-true-it's-funny/so-true-it's-sad moments, ones that every Trinity student could probably relate to from first-hand experience.
The same pattern continues until Sambo has entirely run out of clothing. As he is walking through the woods naked, he stumbles upon the tigers all wearing his new clothes and arguing about who looks the best in them. Finally, the tigers get so mad at each other that they throw off the clothes and begin chasing each other around a tree.
Sambo calmly dresses himself in the discarded clothing while the tigers spin faster and faster around the tree until they finally spin into butter. In the same way that the tigers chased each other around the tree, members of the administration of Belmont College have been chasing each other around with accusations of racism, whipping themselves into figurative butter.
Though it might be hard to imagine that a play dealing with such weighty subject matter could be comic, it is in fact the play's quick and witty dialogue that saves it from being a morose journey into the heart of the white man's burden.
When Dean Daniels criticizes Professor Collins's attempt to fix the problem of racism on campus by holding discussion forums she says, (to paraphrase): So basically the kids all sit around talking about how they're secretly racist, heave a collective sigh for their white man's burden, and then go drive off in their Saabs to buy sweaters.
The humor of this play lies in its so-true-it's-funny/so-true-it's-sad moments, ones that every Trinity student could probably relate to from first-hand experience.
