Somewhere up above, Uncle Jacque said that, by portraying blacks in minstrel shows, white performers may have achieved some insight into what it was to be a black person in 19th century America. Frankly, I can't see how portraying the clownish, ignorant, and child-minded black characters that were typical of these entertainments could give insight into what black people actually experienced as slaves. In turn, the characters could teach nothing to the Northern audiences about slavery or black people, both unfamiliar subjects to them. I don't think these are reasons for boycotting black-face minstrel revivals, but I certainly don't see them as justifications for them either.

I believe that these black-face characters served much of the function that formal masks played in the Greek plays : They disguised the individuality of the performer in favor of portraying universal themes of humor or tragedy through familiar, symbolic characters.