Platform Readers, Question 5

5. Did the performances of the various platform performers mentioned in these articles encourage awareness of the diversity of political, social, economic, and intelllectual extant in their American audiences or did they reinforce the existing regional sterotypes and class/gender/racial prejudices?

Yes, I believe the platform humorists encouraged awareness of the diversity of American culture. Petroleum Vesuvius Nasby (David Ross Locke) created a character that embodied familiarities such as bigot, racist, and womanizer to his audience. However, he would always counter each of his characters act with his own actual thoughts on social and political issues saturating the day. For example, "Cussid Be Canaan" summarizes the theological, legal and economic reasons for slavery. The last line of this act states "if [the Negro] is not a man, he is a most excellent imitation...[His rights] must be secured by law." With this statement, it is clearly obvious Nasby turned his political satires into political rhetoric. He was known to transition from character to Locke without any cues to the audience.

Locke was also a supporter of women's rights. In his "The Struggles of a Conservative with the Woman Question", Nasby addresses and argues a place for women in society. He started with " I adore woman, but I want her to keep her place. Her place has been either as a beast of burden or a toy". He concluded by saying "What shall we do with the woman question? and explained that the only solution was the give women the vote and pay equal that of men". It is once again obvious that Locke does see the necessity of women's rights thus encouraging a type of awareness for the whole of American society.

Nasby also adovcated reforms that are were incorporated into six ratified or proposed amendments to the Constitution including the 13th (abolish slavery), 14th (equal rights), 15th (right to vote), 19th (vote for women), 24th (barring poll tax in federal elections), and 27th (women's rights). He definitely advocated for reform and change within American society through his humor, satire and wit.

On a different note, I do not believe that all or the majority of platform humorists were dedicated to social change. For many, it was simply a job, a means to an end, a way to earn a living when American culture was experiencing a paradigmatic shift from an egrarian to industrial culture. For example, Bill Carleton once exclaimed that when they say "You're a genius," I say, "No, it's my job".