Native American Stereotypes in Popular Media: The Case Study of Thunder Hawk Character’s Representation in the Street Fighter Video Game

Abstract

ABSTRACT

Native American is one of the most stereotyped races in United States, despite being the native to the American Soil. This paper aims to elaborate the Native American stereotypes based on a character in the video game entitled Street Fighter. The character in the video game is named Thunder Hawk and is depicted as a member of a Native American tribe. Thunder Hawk's depiction has been subject to criticism for perpetuating Native American stereotypes. His appearance, featuring traditional Native American attire and war paint, has been seen as reinforcing clichéd representations of indigenous peoples. The depiction of Thunder Hawk in the Street Fighter video game showcases his strengths and fighting abilities, but raises concerns about perpetuating Native American stereotypes. After knowing the existing stereotypes, the authors also compare the representation of the Thunder Hawk character in the video game with stereotypes regarding Native Americans. This research analyzes representations of Native American, or so-called Indian using critical discourse analysis. Based on this research, the author discovered various stereotypes of American Indians that are discriminatory. The stereotypes that the authors found include physical characteristics, culture, and other stereotypes such as the clothes shown in the video game.