West Virginian Stereotypes

"We should be tryin to win that science fair instead of sittin around here like a bunch of hillbillies!" said Homer. "I got bad news for ya Homer, we are a bunch of hillbillies," Roy Lee replied. This tidbit of dialogue from October Sky tells filmgoers much about West Virginia stereotypes and West Virginians' identity. Hillbilly, redneck, hick, inbred, ignorant, etc. are words associated with people from my home state. In two sentences, this movie tells not only what people think of West Virginians but what West Virginians think of themselves. Stereotypes in films encourage a bad image for West Virginians and may encourage a negative identity for its citizens.

Perhaps the beginning of stereotypes about W.V. occurred after Eleanor Roosevelt's trip to the state in the 1950s. The trip was into the mining towns and its purpose was to make the nation aware of the poverty that devastated the state and bring about a change. The media, as it sometimes does, turned the First Lady's positive purpose into a joke displaying all the bad connotations for citizens of West Virginia. They displayed pictures of run-down shacks, people going barefoot, starving children etc. and that image has remained intact--in movies and in people's impressions of W.V.

Other Appalachian stereotypes depicted in film were close ties to family, strong dialects and isolationism. You can see these in October Sky. The main character, Homer Hickam, belongs to a nuclear family (a mom, dad and a brother) and they all have unmistakable West Virginia accents. They live in the town of Coalwood, which is isolated from the rest of the world in that the only way people get out is by going to college on a football scholarship. Moonshine was used in making a successful rocket later in the movie, which pokes fun at West Virginia's culture. And the constant use of "ya'll" by Miss Riley, Homer's teacher is almost comical to somebody from West Virginia. Filmgoers from other states may however believe that this is the way West Virginians talk. The way in which the characters in October Sky see each other defines the identity of West Virginians. The older people think that they will work the coal mines till they die; that there is no other way. The young people just want out; they want to see the world. I can safely say that this is a common ideology of my friends, family, and peers. In a way, this movie could have positive influences on West Virginia citizens in that it shows that even if you are from "the middle of nowhere" and you live in poverty, you can make something of yourself. After all, Homer works for NASA now, and his parents thought all he would ever amount to is a coal miner just like his father.

The question of stereotypes in film influencing one's identity is an interesting one. In an article in the Charleston Gazette, an Appalachian author, Anne Shelby is quoted saying, "Maybe that's the trouble. We live in a real place that other people see as a symbol. And in the wide gap between the reality and the symbol - we have to live there, too. Being Appalachian means being presented throughout one's life with images of Appalachia that bear little or no resemblance to one's own experience. The difference between the image and the reality creates dissonance, a contradiction to be resolved, and people try to do that in different ways." I agree. When a West Virginian watches a film such as October Sky and thinks "Well I didn't grow up in a coal town, but I have that dialect," it is hard to separate Hollywood's portrayal of your life from your own identity. Another film in which a character makes jokes about his/her West Virginia upbringing is The Mothman Prophesies. A "hillbilly" cop tells the main character that she grew up in a house with plumbing, and wore shoes to school. She was poking fun at the belief that a generation ago, many West Virginians saved their shoes for the winter or church on Sundays, and went barefoot the rest of the year; and indoor plumbing was not readily available in the 1950's during Eleanor Roosevelt's trip to the state, so that is also joked about. Jokes about one's identity can seem confusing to the audience that relates or is from the same background as a character because one may not understand if he/she is supposed to feel the same way or instead feel pride in his/her culture.

West Virginia stereotypes are still enforced today in fashion (i.e. the Abercrombie and Fitch t-shirt "It's All Relative in West Virginia") and in modern films such as the ones I've discussed. Filmgoers should keep this in mind and keep an open mind when watching films "based on a true story" about West Virginians. Residents of the mountain state should also realize the exaggeration of Hollywood's stereotypes and not try to relate with everything on the big screen just because its got a hillbilly accent and a lack of running water.

Gustafson, Dave. "Regional Stereotypes More Than a Century Old". CharlestonGazette. April 11, 2004.

October Sky. Directed by Joe Johnston. Based on the book Rocket Boys by Homer H. Hickam, Jr.. Screenplay by Lewis Colick. MCA/Universal Pictures 1999.

The Mothman Prophesies. Directed by Mark Pellington. Based on the novel by John A. Keel. Screenplay by Richard Hatem. Screen Gems Inc. 2004.