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The Great Debaters

The Great Debaters. Released on Dec 25 th , 2007 Directed by and starring Denzel Washington Produced by Oprah Winfrey, Harpo Productions Co-stars Forest Whitaker, first film to feature two African Americans who had previously won the Academy Award for Best Actor

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The Great Debaters

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  1. The Great Debaters Released on Dec 25th, 2007 Directed by and starring Denzel Washington Produced by Oprah Winfrey, Harpo Productions Co-stars Forest Whitaker, first film to feature two African Americans who had previously won the Academy Award for Best Actor Based on an article written about the Wiley College debate team by Tony Scherman for the 1997 spring issue of American Legacy

  2. Plot Summary Based on a true story, it takes place in 1935 at Wiley College, an all black school, in Marshall, Texas. Melvin B. Tolson is a professor who starts a debate program to encourage equality between his students and white students in the south. This is a difficult task because of the social issues in Texas during the Great Depression including day-to-day insults, Jim Crow laws, racism, sexism, and lynch mobs. Jim Crow laws are state and local laws between 1876-1965 which segregated blacks and whites. The movie ends with Wiley College being invited to debate Harvard University.

  3. Characters and Themes The team consists of 2 debaters and 2 alternates, including James L. Farmer Jr. who is 14. Coming of age story. Samantha Booke, based on the real life person Henrietta Bell Wells, is the only female member. Saint Augustine: “An unjust law is no law at all.” Saint Augustine was an early Christian theologian whose writings and teachings are considered very influential in the development of Western Christianity and Western philosophy. Variations of the following theme…“We do what we have to do in order to do what we want to do.”

  4. Inconsistencies The movie ends with Wiley College debating Harvard University. In reality, they debated the University of Southern California, reigning champions at that time. Although they beat the University of Southern California, they were not truly considered a part of the debate community because African Americans were not admitted until after WWII.

  5. Trivia/Fun Facts Debuted at No. 11, grossed over $30 million with a budget of $15 million First film since 1979 to be allowed to film on Harvard’s campus. Denzel Washington donated $1 million of his own money to Wiley College so they could restart their debate program

  6. Behind the StoryMelvin Tolson Melvin Tolson accepted a position at Wiley College in 1924. Taught English and Speech. While at Wiley College, he wrote poetry, novels, coached football and directed plays. Established a 10 year winning streak with the debate program, left Wiley College to become a professor of English and Drama at Langston University in Oklahoma. A controversial figure, Tolson challenged the social issues of the time and was under constant fire for this unconventional and ferocious teaching methods as well as his radical political view.

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