The Mulatto Dilemma in Modern America
In Danzy Senna’s sharply observed new novel “Colored Television,” the age-old “tragic mulatto” trope gets a contemporary, satirical makeover. Set against the backdrop of image-obsessed Los Angeles, Senna’s protagonist Jane Gibson navigates the treacherous waters of racial identity, artistic integrity, and Hollywood opportunism. Through Jane’s misadventures, Senna probes the commodification of racial narratives and the fraught terrain of “diverse content” in the entertainment industry. With biting wit and keen insight, “Colored Television” illuminates the absurdities and painful truths of being mixed-race in America today.
Plot Summary: From Struggling Novelist to Hollywood Hopeful
Jane Gibson is a 46-year-old adjunct professor and struggling novelist, desperate to finish her sprawling historical epic about mixed-race Americans, which she’s been working on for nearly a decade. When she and her painter husband Lenny house-sit for a wealthy friend in the Hollywood Hills, Jane sees it as her chance to finally complete her magnum opus and secure tenure. But when her agent and editor reject the 400-page manuscript, Jane finds herself at a crossroads.
Desperate for a Plan B, Jane gets drawn into the world of television development, meeting with a successful Black producer named Hampton Ford who’s looking to create “diverse content” for a streaming network. Jane pitches ideas for a comedy series about a mixed-race family, drawing on her own experiences and novel research. As she gets deeper into the project, Jane finds herself compromising her artistic vision and integrity in pursuit of Hollywood success. When Hampton ultimately steals her ideas and life story to create his own hit show without crediting her, Jane is left to reckon with her choices and identity.
Key Themes: Race, Art, and Selling Out
- The commodification of racial identity and diversity in media
- Artistic integrity vs. commercial success
- The “mulatto experience” in contemporary America
- Impostor syndrome and feelings of racial inauthenticity
- The allure and corruption of Hollywood
Writing Style: Sardonic Wit Meets Painful Truths
Senna employs a darkly comic tone to explore weighty themes of race, art, and identity. The prose crackles with sardonic observations and cultural references that skewer both Hollywood and academia. Jane’s inner monologue reveals a biting wit tinged with self-loathing as she grapples with feelings of fraudulence.
Senna deftly balances humor and pathos, allowing us to laugh at the absurd situations Jane finds herself in while still feeling the underlying pain and struggle. The dialogue is particularly sharp, capturing the faux-woke speak of Hollywood executives and the passive-aggressive civility of academic politics.
Notable Stylistic Elements:
- Pop culture references and industry jargon
- Biting satire of Hollywood and academia
- Stream-of-consciousness passages reflecting Jane’s anxieties
- Flashbacks to Jane’s childhood and young adulthood
Character Analysis: Jane Gibson – A Mulatto for All Seasons
Jane is a fascinatingly flawed protagonist—brilliant yet insecure, principled yet prone to compromise. Her struggle to complete her novel mirrors her struggle to define her own identity. As a light-skinned mixed-race woman, she feels caught between worlds, never quite belonging anywhere.
Jane’s desperation for success and validation leads her to make increasingly questionable choices, from lying to her husband to handing over her life’s work to a virtual stranger. Yet Senna renders her with enough vulnerability and self-awareness that we empathize even as we cringe at her decisions.
Jane’s Key Traits:
- Intelligent and creative, but plagued by self-doubt
- Yearns for stability and success while fearing “selling out”
- Struggles with impostor syndrome in both Black and white spaces
- Uses humor and cultural references as a defense mechanism
Supporting Characters: A Diverse Ensemble
- Lenny: Jane’s husband, a struggling abstract painter fixated on moving to Japan
- Hampton Ford: Charismatic TV producer who exploits Jane’s ideas and experiences
- Brett: Successful screenwriter friend whose house Jane and Lenny are sitting
- Honor: Jane’s literary agent who rejects her novel
- Ruby and Finn: Jane and Lenny’s children, navigating their own mixed-race identities
Social Commentary: The Diversity Industrial Complex
Through Jane’s experiences in Hollywood, Senna offers a scathing critique of the entertainment industry’s approach to diversity and representation. Hampton Ford and his colleagues talk a big game about amplifying marginalized voices, but ultimately exploit and commodify racial narratives for profit.
The novel exposes the hollowness of corporate diversity initiatives and the way “diverse content” often flattens nuanced experiences into easily digestible stereotypes. Jane’s own complicity in this process raises uncomfortable questions about the price of “making it” in a white-dominated industry.
Key Targets of Satire:
- Performative wokeness in Hollywood
- The fetishization of mixed-race identities
- Academia’s handling of race and diversity
- The pressure on artists of color to be “representatives” of their race
Literary Influences and Connections
“Colored Television” continues themes Danzy Senna has explored throughout her career, particularly the complexities of mixed-race identity in America. The novel’s Los Angeles setting and entertainment industry satire call to mind Nathanael West’s “The Day of the Locust,” while the razor-sharp cultural commentary evokes the work of Paul Beatty and Ishmael Reed.
Senna’s previous novels, including “Caucasia” and “New People,” also center on biracial female protagonists grappling with identity and belonging. “Colored Television” feels like a natural evolution of these ideas, updated for the era of streaming content and viral racial discourse.
Critical Analysis: Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths:
- Incisive social commentary on race and media
- Complex, flawed yet relatable protagonist
- Sharp, witty dialogue and observations
- Nuanced exploration of mixed-race identity
Weaknesses:
- Some plot developments feel contrived
- Supporting characters could be more fully developed
- Ending feels somewhat abrupt and unresolved
Conclusion: A Timely and Provocative Satire
“Colored Television” by Danzy Senna is a searing and timely satire that challenges readers to examine their own assumptions about race, art, and authenticity. Senna’s razor-sharp prose and complex characters bring humor and humanity to weighty themes. While the plot occasionally stretches credibility, the emotional and intellectual core of the novel rings devastatingly true.
In an era of hashtag activism and corporate diversity initiatives, “Colored Television” by Danzy Senna offers a necessary critique of how racial narratives are packaged and sold. It’s a book that will make you laugh, cringe, and ultimately reflect on the messy realities of identity in 21st century America.
Recommendation
Readers who enjoyed the racial satire of Paul Beatty’s “The Sellout” or the entertainment industry critique of Nafissa Thompson-Spires’ “The Last Transmission” will find much to appreciate in “Colored Television.” Fans of Senna’s previous work will recognize her sharp insights on mixed-race identity, updated for the streaming era.
This novel is best suited for readers who appreciate dark comedy and don’t mind their social commentary with a heavy dose of cringe. Those looking for a more straightforward or uplifting narrative about diversity in Hollywood may want to look elsewhere. But for those willing to laugh uncomfortably while confronting difficult truths, “Colored Television” by Danzy Senna offers a brilliantly observed and thought-provoking read.
