The Respectful Prostitute, a play written by philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre in the 1940s, is described by some as "a scathing attack on American racism" (Vintage International - back cover of book). Although this is an accurate description of the play, it fails to capture many of the nuances of Sartre's arguments. The Respectful Prostitute details an American prostitute's failure to uphold justice by falsely accusing an innocent black man of rape, in order to protect a white murderer with the same disrespect for women as a rapist. Through this plot, Sartre is able to depict what he finds most troubling about American racism. Namely, the citizens and law enforcement dehumanize Black Americans by stripping them of personal identity and defining them as eternally guilty.
Sartre's character development in this play is brilliant. Although "The Negro," is the focus of the play, he is never given a name. The desperation of this character is apparent from the beginning of the play. A black man arrives at the door of Lizzie, a prostitute, pleading for help. Lizzie has just gotten off a train with the man, yet she doesn't recognize it. This is the first sign that Sartre views Black Americans as invisible. The black man is eventually able to get through to Lizzie, and she remembers him. A riot is after him, as he's been accused of rape. Really, he's had to run from two white men who have tried to murder him. Lizzie is aware of this, yet all she does is ask the man "do you want money?" (Sartre, 139). This again demonstrates the ignorance of white Americans to the obvious problems and hardships of many Black Americans. The black man needs to be hidden in order to survive, but Lizzie refuses.
The play further develops to explain the criminalization of Black Americans. The previous night, Lizzie worked for a man named Fred, who is the son of a Senator. Through conversation, it is uncovered that Fred intentionally hired Lizzie. Fred's brother was on the train with Lizze, and murdered one of the black man's friends. Fred needs to convince Lizzie to sign a statement saying that the black man raped her, a seemingly unrelated crime, which seems to somehow nullify the murder at hand. Lizzie is unconvinced, and eventually the Senator must sidestep her reasonable logic in order to get her to sign a statement. Again, Sartre's argument becomes obvious. The Senator cannot convince Lizzie that she was raped by the black man, but he can convince her that black people are worthless. Intentionally taking the voice of Uncle Sam, the Senator says, "Lizzie, this Negro whom
you are protecting, what good is he? Somehow or other he was born, God knows where. I nourished and raised him, and how does he pay me back? What does he do for me?" (Sartre, 150). Lizzie is still resistant to sign the statement, but the senator takes her hand and she does not resist. Here, Sartre is making another subtle argument about American racism. The first is the pre-determined criminalization of black Americans as described above. The statement of accusation is pre-written, and thus is a sign that the government has defined black existence as criminal in ink.
The same ideas are continued through the conclusion of the play. The black man is accused of rape, and is being hunted by the police. Again he needs to be helped by Lizzie, who eventually agrees to. While being hidden by Lizzie, the black man has his last conversation. Lizzie acknowledges that he is innocent, but asks the black man "you feel guilty?" (Sartre, 155). Again along with Sartre's message, he responds, "yes ma'am" (Sartre, 155). American society has defined the black identity as guilty, and this notion even permeates the pride of many Black Americans. The black man is killed by Fred, but Lizzie still feels no pain for him. Strangely, the play concludes as Fred says to Lizzie, "My name is Fred" (Sartre, 157). This is also significant to Sartre's message. Black Americans are never able to build an identity for themselves, even when they are absolutely innocent. White Americans, although they can commit the most horrible crimes against black Americans, can still justify themselves and build their identity. Despite all that has happened, Fred is still able to introduce himself. This last line concludes Sartre's main message, which emphasizes the destruction of black identity.
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