White Voice

Sorry To Bother You is an incredibly humorous film and has been quite a blast to watch in class. One central theme is the "white voice", which portrays to the listener that "the money doesn't matter and that I'll be going home in my Ferrari" (I definitely got the quote wrong but you get the idea). It also sounds hilarious coming from the main character, especially since you know what his actual voice sounds like.

I think what the writer, Boots Riley, was trying to point out (jocularly) is privilege. Just by being a white person in America you have certain undefinable edges over other minorities, and while simplifying that into a voice sounds silly, in telemarketing all you have is your voice. It's also notable that as soon as he starts using his "white voice", Cassius isn't shown being thrust into his client's homes, as if they can't see who he really is anymore.

Interestingly, his friends aren't as impressed with his "white voice" as his clients are. They describe as creepy, and not really him. While he gains increasing corporate success in the white business world, his black and Asian friends become disillusioned with him.  At least initially (we haven't finished the movie yet while I'm writing this post), Riley may be suggesting that fitting with with both white and black crowds is impossible.

Overall, the "white voice" is a very original concept that I've never seen before in movies, and definitely makes the movie memorable fro a variety of reasons. I definitely would recommend Sorry To Bother You to anyone, although everyone reading this has probably already watched it.

Comments

  1. SarahDecember 17, 2018 at 12:29 PM

    I think the point Riley makes regarding white privilege in America is still very relevant today, and that although the film has several humorous aspects, it doesn't exaggerate the consequence of using a "white voice". The old man who introduces him to this phenomena says that it's not necessarily about what the voice sounds like, but how the voice presents itself. Confidence is the key, he says, and I think this is incredibly important to the main theme of the film which is that white privilege allows them to have such confidence and feel superior.

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  2. Ayat JaberDecember 17, 2018 at 5:28 PM

    Nice post, Tue. I've never seen the white voice used so explicitly and making such a huge change in the story to the main character in any other movie or novel, and it justness points out now even our voice defines your status within seconds. It reminds me of an early scene in Native Son, when Bigger and his friend are playing a game in which they try to sound like a white guy.

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  3. IzzyDecember 18, 2018 at 10:32 AM

    I definitely think what Riley was saying about white privilege still applies today. One of the poems we read towards the beginning of the year also spoke about white privilege and it also made a point of showing what issues privileged people care about compared to those who aren't privileged, especially by repeating the line "I am white and I own the world."

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  4. SJDecember 26, 2018 at 4:08 PM

    While I see what you mean when you say that Cassius stops popping into people's home when he uses the white voice, however once he hits the power caller stage he is shown popping into bathrooms with powerful men to discuss slave labor. I still see what you mean with the disconnect from regular people though.

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