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“Hidden Figures” Is a Subtle and Powerful Work of Counter-History

The basic virtue of “Hidden Figures” (which opens on December 25th), and it’s a formidable one, is to proclaim with a clarion vibrancy that, were it not for the devoted, unique, and indispensable efforts of three black women scientists, the United States might not have successfully sent people into space or to the moon and back. The movie is set mainly in 1961 and 1962, in Virginia, where a key NASA research center was (and is) based, and the movie is aptly and thoroughly derisive toward the discriminatory laws and practices that prevailed at the time.

The insults and indignities that black residents of Virginia, and black employees of NASA , unremittingly endured are integral to the drama. Those segregationist rules and norms—and the personal attitudes and actions that sustained them—are unfolded with a clear, forceful, analytical, and unstinting specificity. The efforts of black Virginians to cope with relentless ambient racism and, where possible, to point it out, resist it, overcome it, and even defeat it are the focus of the drama. “Hidden Figures” is a film of calm and bright rage at the way things were—an exemplary reproach to the very notion of political nostalgia. It depicts repugnant attitudes and practices of white supremacy that poisoned earlier generations’ achievements and that are inseparable from those achievements.

“Hidden Figures” is a subtle and powerful work of counter-history, or, rather, of a finally and long-deferred accurate history, that fills in the general outlines of these women’s roles in the space program. Its redress of the record begins in West Virginia in 1926, where the sixth-grade math prodigy Katherine Coleman is given a scholarship to a school that one of her teachers refers to as the only one in the region for black children that goes beyond the eighth grade. She quickly displays her genius there—but the school’s narrow horizons suggests the sharply limited opportunities for black people over all.

The nature of those limits is indicated in the very next scene, which cuts ahead to a lonely road in Virginia in 1961. There, a car is stalled, its hood open. Katherine is there with her two other African-American friends and colleagues. She’s sitting pensively in the passenger seat; Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer) is beneath the engine, trying to fix it; and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe) is standing impatiently beside the car. A police cruiser approaches. They tense up; Dorothy says, “No crime in a broken-down car,” and Mary responds, “No crime being Negro, neither.” Their fearful interaction with the officer—a white man, of course, with a billy club in hand and a condescending bearing—is resolved with a comedic moment brought about by the women’s deferential irony. What emerges, however, is nothing less than an instance in a reign of terror.

Dorothy is the manager and de-facto supervisor of a group of “computers”—about thirty black women, all skilled mathematicians—that includes Katherine and Mary. Dorothy is awaiting a formal promotion to supervisor, but a talk with a senior administrator makes clear that it’s not to be; the clear but unspoken reason is her race. (Tellingly, Dorothy addresses that official, played by Kirsten Dunst, as “Mrs. Mitchell,” who, in turn, calls her by her first name.) Mary, endowed with engineering skill, is summoned to a team led by an engineer named Zielinski (Olek Krupa), a Polish-Jewish émigré who escaped the Holocaust and who encourages her to seek formal certification as an engineer. To do so, Mary will have to take additional classes—but the only school that offers them is a segregated one, whites-only, from which she’s barred.

When NASA astronauts ceremoniously arrive at the research center, the black women “computers” are forced to stand together as a separate group, conspicuously divided from the other scientists. (Only John Glenn, played by Glen Powell, greets them, and does so warmly, shaking their hands and lingering to chat with them about their work.)

As for Katherine—now Katherine Goble, the widowed mother of three young girls—she’s plucked from the pool of mathematicians to join the main research group, headed by Al Harrison (Kevin Costner). There, she’s the only black person and the only woman (other than the secretary, played by Kimberly Quinn). She once again rapidly displays her mathematical genius, but not before being taken for the department custodian; forced to drink from a coffeepot labelled “colored”; treated dismissively by the lead researcher, Paul Stafford (Jim Parsons); and compelled to walk a half-mile to her former office in order to use the “colored ladies’ room.” (Moreover, the contrast between that depleted and dilapidated facility and the well-appointed and welcoming white-women’s bathroom proves the meaning of “separate but unequal.”)

Each of the three women has a particular conflict to confront, a particular focus in the struggle for equality. Mary’s struggle takes place in a public forum: she petitions a Virginia state court for permission to take the needed night classes in a segregated school. She’s not represented by a lawyer, and speaks on her own behalf; but, rather than making her case in open court, she makes a personal plea to the judge that’s as much about him and his outlook as it is about her, and her work and its usefulness. What her plea isn’t about is law, rights, or justice.

The omission is no accident; it’s set up by dramatic contrast with the angry insistence of Mary’s husband, Levi (Aldis Hodge), a civil-rights activist, that she not bother pursuing a job as an engineer: “You can’t apply for freedom. . . . It’s got to be demanded, taken.” Mary says that there’s “more than one way” to get opportunities, but the deck of this debate is stacked by the terms in which Levi couches it, saying that there’s no such thing as a woman engineer—at least, not a black one—and blaming her for not being home often enough to take proper care of their children.

Dorothy’s pursuit of a formal promotion to supervisor also takes place against the backdrop of the civil-rights movement. She learns that her entire department of human “computers” will soon be replaced by an electronic computer—an enormous I.B.M. mainframe that’s being installed. A gifted technician, Dorothy seeks out a book from the local library (a segregated library from which she’s thrown out), in which she’ll learn the programming language Fortran; she soon becomes NASA ’s resident expert. On that trip to the library, in the company of her two sons on the cusp of adolescence, they witness a protest by civil-rights activists chanting “segregation must go” and see police officers, with police dogs, approaching the protesters. Dorothy and her sons pause and look, until she tells them to “pay attention that we’re not part of that trouble.” But, sitting in the back of the bus with them, she emphasizes that “separate and equal aren’t the same thing,” and adds, “If you act right, you are right.”

Katherine, too, fights for her dignity and for opportunities at work. Her calculations very soon prove indispensable to the effort to put the first American astronaut, Alan Shepard, into outer space. (The scene in which she displays her calculations to the entire office of scientists features a small but brilliant stroke of film editing, which suggests that she envisioned the effect of that bold step before she took it.) She’s fighting prejudice against blacks, against women (none has ever been admitted to a Pentagon briefing, where she can get the information she needs for her analyses), and against bureaucracy itself. Paul, who has been the department’s resident genius, and to whom she reports, is resentful of his subordinate—a black woman, for good measure—outshining him in mathematical talent and analytical insight.

Eventually, upbraided by the head of the department, Al, in the presence of the entire staff, Katherine explodes with rage, setting forth the full litany of indignities to which she’s subjected because of her skin color, before storming out. But this sublimely righteous outburst is posed on a solid meritocratic basis. Katherine isn’t the only black woman to have worked in the main research department under Al; there has been a veritable parade of black women “computers” stationed in that department, and each has been found wanting and has been sent back to the pool. As a result, none has effected any change in the status of black employees or of women at NASA . Katherine’s outburst is effective because Katherine, unlike her predecessors, is indispensable. Taking her claims to heart, Al plays a heroic role, championing Katherine’s work and treating her with due respect—but his heroism is a conditional and practical one, spurred by his single-minded devotion to the space program.

In “Hidden Figures,” the civil-rights movement isn’t just a barely sketched backdrop; it’s in virtual competition with the efforts in personal advancement and achievement heroically made by the three women at the center of the film. In the movie, the three women never speak directly of civil rights. In the warmhearted romance at the center of the movie—Katherine’s relationship with Col. Jim Johnson (Mahershala Ali)—the subject never comes up. (Katherine Johnson is now ninety-eight; a title card at the end of the film declares that she and Johnson recently celebrated their fifty-sixth wedding anniversary.) The movie presents three women whose life experiences have been extraordinary; their work, their personal lives, and their struggle for justice are uncompromisingly heroic. What the movie is missing, above all, is their voices.

These women are not in any way submissive or passive. On the contrary, each one speaks up and takes action at great personal risk. (For instance, Dorothy steals a book that the library won't let her borrow and then speaks sharply to the guard who hustles her and her sons out.) The movie's emphasis on individual action and achievement in the face of vast obstacles is both beautiful and salutary, but its near-effacement of collective organization and political activity at a time when they were at their historical apogee—for that matter, its elision of politics as such—narrows the drama and, all the more grievously, the characters at its center.

What the women at the center of “Hidden Figures” lived through in their youth, in the deep age of Jim Crow, and, later, at a time of protest and of legal change, remains unspoken; their wisdom and insight remain unexpressed. For all the emotional power and historical redress of the movie—above all, in the simple recognition of the centrality of its three protagonists to the modern world—it pushes to the fore a moderation, based solely on personal accomplishment, in pursuit of justice. This is different from the civil-rights goal of a universal equality based on humanity alone, extended to the ordinary as well as to the exceptional. This is, by no means, a complaint about the real-life people on whom the movie is based; it’s purely a matter of aesthetics, a result of decisions by the director and screenwriter, Theodore Melfi, and his co-writer, Allison Schroeder, about how they imagined and developed the characters. (I found myself thinking, by contrast, of recently published stories by the late filmmaker Kathleen Collins , with their incisive observations regarding participants and observers of civil-rights activism.)

Melfi and Schroeder are white; perhaps they conceived the film to be as nonthreatening to white viewers as possible, or perhaps they anticipated that it would be released at a time of promised progress. Instead, it’s being released in a time of resurgent, unabashed racism. The time for protest has returned; for all the inspired celebration of hitherto unrecognized black heroes that “Hidden Figures” offers, and all the retrospective outrage that “Hidden Figures” sparks, I can only imagine the movie as it might have been made, much more amply, imaginatively, and resonantly, linking history and the present tense, by Ava DuVernay or Spike Lee, Julie Dash or Charles Burnett.

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Hidden Figures: the American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians who Helped Win the Space Race

This essay will discuss the book and film “Hidden Figures,” which tell the story of the black women mathematicians at NASA who played a crucial role in the space race. It will explore themes of racial and gender discrimination, perseverance, and the pursuit of the American Dream. The piece will analyze how these women’s contributions challenged societal norms and advanced both civil rights and space exploration. At PapersOwl, you’ll also come across free essay samples that pertain to American Dream.

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“Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race” written by Margot Lee Shetterly was the book I had chosen for my first book review. This book illustrates a remarkable story about Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden. These unbelievably black women had to face impossible obstacles as they went to work as “calculators” at NASA but at the time was called, “National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics” also known as NACA.

Despite the amount of social and political challenges they have faced at the heights of Jim Crow, these women became an essential project that put the first man on the moon. Hidden Figures tells a story about four amazing women whose contribution to science led to NASA’s greatest successes. Not only does Margot Lee highlight an astonishing account of intelligent, hard-working, and devoted African-American women who made crucial contributions to the Space Race but they also changed history.

Firstly, I thought this book was researched by Author Margot Lee because she had provided us with many details of the civil rights movement, school segregation, and the aeronautic industry. These women had to face many difficult obstacles and discrimination in their workplace as they continued to live in a country where being a white male meant the best chances of fair pay and advancement. However, these women’s brilliant minds did not go unnoticed and they were able to get the respect from their coworkers that they deeply deserved. Their willpower soon led them to opportunities that they thought were unimaginable. Yet, after everything they all went through to get to where they were, they still had to face the ugly reality of a “colored only” bathroom in the workplace.

Although this may be true, women were not taken seriously as men when it came to this profession. NASA began hiring women during World War II as female computers. These women did the work of mathematicians but were considered less of a professional in order to be paid less. Each specific character in this story worked hard in their career but was not acknowledged for their hard work. In 1943, there was a push in hiring qualified black women because the demand could not be satisfied with white employees only. Many people of skin color were given an opportunity to show off their skills in the real world.

In addition, I enjoyed how this book focused a lot on the individual stories for each of the women. I was very inspired by the sacrifices, determination, and intelligence each of these ladies had to offer. The book incorporated few stories of history that moved from WWII to the Cold War and then the Space Race. The book also included the Civil Rights Movement and the push to end school segregation. These “human computer” women were forced to work on the west side of the Langley campus until the 60s when integration occurred. It is very disappointing to imagine all the brilliant minds that never realized their potentials because of influences like race, gender, and income.

Hidden Figures includes a lot of feminism and breaking down race barriers which I enjoyed. Reading more into this book, I really respect the message that Margot Lee was writing about. Even more, I was on board to calling attention to something that most Americans were very ignorant about women’s roles and black people’s roles in NASA during the Space Race and WWII. The simple facts that this news was shocking to a lot of people means this story is important and should be shared. The story was soon made into a movie which was even better because a lot of people would not read the book. Black history in America, as Shetterly points out, is extremely hidden. Stories like this one can inspire young females to follow their dreams no matter what society may say we can or cannot do.

Despite the good messages in this book, I do have my opinions and reviews. While reading the book, I thought that the book was not well written. Shetterly was unable to distinguish characters from one another. As I was reading each chapter, I could not tell the difference at times between Dorothy, Katherine, and Mary. What they did, what their roles were, it was all blurred together due to Shetterly’s incapability to develop characters or personalities for any of them. She often also switches from person to person, and from time period to time period in the same chapter which made it very confusing. It also is hard to differentiate the three women focused on here. “Katherine listened intently as her brother-in-law described the work, her thumb cradling her chin, her index finger extended along her cheek, the signal that she was listening carefully” (118). She was reporting on a conversation she was not present at. Secondly, she is hearing about it from someone who is relating something that happened 60 years ago.

This book could be a learning experience and give an insight to the scenes’ making of the space program. It could also prove that every person’s role and contribution is important and makes a difference. Best of all, it’s a true story. This was such an extraordinary and important story to tell, but the writing was a bit dry and repetitive.

In Conclusion, this book was highly informative, though I think I would have enjoyed it more if I was more interested in science, space and aerodynamics. My understanding for these topics is lacking, which is the reason why I often skimmed some overly technical paragraphs.

However, the life stories this book depicts are awe inspiring and moving, and this is what I’m here for. Strong and educated women of every race and heritage, taking a stand, breaking down stereotypes, making a career, proving that they have the brains it takes to work in one of the most prestigious scientific facilities in the world (and everywhere else as well). All of that, while so many hindrances were put in their ways, because of their gender, because of their race. Because of prejudice, ignorance and hate. This book shows – and reminds us – that there are people who take opportunities and master them with grace, people who hold doors open for the less fortunate and give them a chance to shine, people who value bravery and kindness more than anything else. This is what made this book worth reading.

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What Sets the Smart Heroines of Hidden Figures Apart

Movies about brilliant scientific or mathematical minds often focus on their subject’s ego—not so with a new film about three African American women who worked at NASA in the ’60s.

When it comes to historical movies about brilliant minds, especially in the realms of math or the sciences, audiences can all but expect a tale of ego. Films such as A Beautiful Mind , The Theory of Everything , and The Imitation Game all lean in some way on the idea of the inaccessible genius—a mathematician, computer scientist, and theoretical physicist all somehow removed from the world.

Hidden Figures is not that kind of film: It’s a story of brilliance, but not of ego. It’s a story of struggle and willpower, but not of individual glory. Set in 1960s Virginia, the film centers on three pioneering African American women whose calculations for NASA were integral to several historic space missions, including John Glenn’s successful orbit of the Earth. These women—Katherine Johnson, Mary Jackson, and Dorothy Vaughan—were superlative mathematicians and engineers despite starting their careers in segregation-era America and facing discrimination at home, at school, and at work.

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And yet Hidden Figures pays tribute to its subjects by doing the opposite of what many biopics have done in the past—it looks closely at the remarkable person in the context of a community. Directed by Theodore Melfi ( St. Vincent ) and based on the nonfiction book of the same title by Margot Lee Shetterly, the film celebrates individual mettle, but also the way its characters consistently try to lift others up. They’re phenomenal at what they do, but they’re also generous with their time, their energy, and their patience in a way that feels humane, not saintly. By refracting the overlooked lives and accomplishments of Johnson, Vaughan, and Jackson through this lens, Hidden Figures manages to be more than an inspiring history lesson with wonderful performances.

From the start, Hidden Figures makes clear that it is about a trio, not a lone heroine. Katherine (played by a radiant Taraji P. Henson) is the film’s ostensible protagonist and gets the most screen time. But her story is woven tightly with those of Mary (Janelle Monáe) and Dorothy (Octavia Spencer); the former became NASA’s first black female engineer , the latter was a mathematician who became NASA’s first African American manager . (It’s worth noting that, as a dramatization, the film makes tweaks to the timeline, characters, and events of the books.)

Hidden Figures begins in earnest in 1961. Katherine, Mary, and Dorothy are part of NASA’s pool of human “computers” —employees, usually women, charged with doing calculations before the use of digital computers. Due to Virginia’s segregation laws, African American female computers have to work in a separate “colored” building at the Langley Research Center. But the U.S. is so desperate to beat the Soviet Union into space that NASA becomes a reluctant meritocracy: Because of her expertise in analytic geometry, Katherine is assigned to a special task group trying to get Glenn into orbit. She arrives at her new job to find she’s the sole brown face in the room.

Katherine is closest to the excitement, but Hidden Figures widens its scope beyond her. Mary must navigate layers of racist bureaucratic hurdles in her quest to become an engineer. Dorothy is fighting for a long overdue promotion, while the arrival of an IBM machine threatens to put her team of computers out of work. The women consistently out-think their higher-ranked (usually white, male) colleagues, whether by learning a new programming language, solving problems in wind-tunnel experiments, or calculating narrow launch windows for space missions. Each is uniquely aware of the broader stakes of her success—for other women, for black people, for black women, and for America at large—and this knowledge is as much an inspiration as it is a heavy weight.

Early on, Dorothy shares her ambivalence about Katherine’s prestigious new assignment. “Any upward movement is movement for us all. It’s just not movement for me,” she says, disappointed after a setback at work. It’s a subtle, but loaded point, and one of the most thought-provoking lines in the film. Of course she’s proud of Katherine, and of course Katherine is paving the way for others. But individual victories are often simply that—Katherine knocking down one pillar of discrimination doesn’t mean countless more don’t remain. Still, Dorothy’s frustration with her stagnation at work doesn’t translate to defeatism or selfishness. She spends much of the film maneuvering to protect her team’s jobs, even if it means risking her own status and security.

Their intellect may not be broadly relatable (again, they’re exceptional for a reason), but their sense of rootedness is. Though most of their time and energy go to their careers, the women of Hidden Figures don’t take their relationships with each other and with their friends and families for granted. If one gets held up at work for hours, the other two wait in the parking lot until they can all drive home. On the weekends, they go to church and neighborhood barbecues and spend time with their children. They don’t “have it all,” but they do strive for balance and connection. (Another “feel-good film” from 2016, Queen of Katwe , also used the concept of community and interdependence to undermine the built-up notion of isolated talent.)

Despite the racism and sexism Katherine, Dorothy, and Mary face, Hidden Figures is a decidedly un-somber affair. The breezy script by Melfi and Allison Schroeder opts not to dwell much on the particulars of aeronautical science; instead, it revels in the intelligence and warmth of its subjects, in their successes both in and out of the office, and it wants viewers to do so too. Hidden Figures doesn’t hide its efforts to be a crowdpleaser—depending on audience size, you can expect clapping and cheering after moments of victory, and loud groans whenever egregious acts of racism take place (there are many). A buoyant soundtrack by Pharrell Williams, Hans Zimmer, and Benjamin Wallfisch and regular doses of comic relief help keep the tone light and optimistic despite the serious issues at hand.

Rounding out Hidden Figures ’ all-star cast are Kevin Costner, as Katherine’s boss and eventual ally; an appropriately un-funny Jim Parsons as a new colleague of Katherine’s who can barely tolerate her presence; Kirsten Dunst as Dorothy’s manager and the epitome of the racist-who-thinks-she’s-not type; Glen Powell as an affable John Glenn; and Mahershala Ali as Katherine’s kindly love interest, Jim Johnson. Because of the engaging performances that Henson, Monáe, and Spencer give, each main character is fascinating to watch in her own right. But it’s their dynamic that makes it a joy to see them onscreen together.

Hidden Figures doesn’t try to push many artistic boundaries, but it tells its story so well that it doesn’t really have to. The film also avoids the most glaring missteps of historical movies that deal with race: At no point does it try to give viewers the impression that racism has been “solved,” and its white characters exist on a constantly shifting spectrum of racial enlightenment. What’s more, the film’s straightforward presentation belies its fairly radical subject matter. As K. Austin Collins notes at The Ringer , Hidden Figures “might be one of the few Hollywood movies about the civil rights era to imagine that black lives in the ’60s, particularly black women’s lives, were affected not only by racism but also by the space race and the Cold War.”

The Hidden Figures author, Shetterly, has discussed how the film only portrays a fraction of the individuals who worked on the space program— and how the movie was meant to speak to the experiences of the many African American women working at NASA at the time. Watching this particular story unfurl on the big screen, it’s hard not to think of how many more movies and books could be made about women like Katherine Johnson—talented women shut out of promotions and meetings and elite programs and institutions and, thus history, because they weren’t white. Even today, barriers remain. A 2015 study found 100 percent of women of color in STEM fields report experiencing gender bias at work, an effect often influenced by their race. Black and Latina women, for example, reported being mistaken for janitors (a scene that, fittingly, takes place in Hidden Figures ).

With the complex social forces that shaped its characters’ lives still so relevant today, Hidden Figures is powerful precisely because it’s not a solo portrait or a close character study. Certainly, Hollywood will be a better industry when there are more films about the egos and personal demons and grand triumphs of black women who helped to change the world. But Hidden Figures shines with respect for sisterhood and the communistic spirit, and in casting its spotlight wide, the film imparts a profound appreciation for what was achieved in history’s shadows.

Hidden Figures

Margot lee shetterly, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions.

Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on Margot Lee Shetterly's Hidden Figures . Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.

Hidden Figures: Introduction

Hidden figures: plot summary, hidden figures: detailed summary & analysis, hidden figures: themes, hidden figures: quotes, hidden figures: characters, hidden figures: symbols, hidden figures: theme wheel, brief biography of margot lee shetterly.

Historical Context of Hidden Figures

Other books related to hidden figures.

Full Title: Hidden Figures: The Story of the African-American Women Who Helped Win the Space Race
When Written: 2010-2014
Where Written: Mexico and Virginia
When Published: 2014
Literary Period: Contemporary
Genre: Non-fiction, 20th century American history
Setting: Hampton, VA

Extra Credit for Hidden Figures

All in the Family. Margot Lee Shetterly was raised near the Langley Research Center, where her father worked for forty years, ultimately becoming an internationally renowned climate scientist. One of the women featured in the book, Mary Jackson, was once Shetterly’s father’s employees.

And the Oscar Goes To… Hidden Figures was made into a film the same year it was published. The film was nominated for three Academy Awards.

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Hidden Figures : Book summary and reviews of Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly

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Hidden Figures

The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race

by Margot Lee Shetterly

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Published Sep 2016 368 pages Genre: History, Current Affairs and Religion Publication Information

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Book summary.

The phenomenal true story of the black female mathematicians at NASA at the leading edge of the feminist and civil rights movement, whose calculations helped fuel some of America's greatest achievements in space—a powerful, revelatory contribution that is as essential to our understanding of race, discrimination, and achievement in modern America as Between the World and Me and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks . The basis for the smash Academy Award-nominated film starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monae, Kirsten Dunst, and Kevin Costner.

Before John Glenn orbited the earth, or Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, a group of dedicated female mathematicians known as "human computers" used pencils, slide rules and adding machines to calculate the numbers that would launch rockets, and astronauts, into space. Among these problem-solvers were a group of exceptionally talented African American women, some of the brightest minds of their generation. Originally relegated to teaching math in the South's segregated public schools, they were called into service during the labor shortages of World War II, when America's aeronautics industry was in dire need of anyone who had the right stuff. Suddenly, these overlooked math whizzes had a shot at jobs worthy of their skills, and they answered Uncle Sam's call, moving to Hampton, Virginia and the fascinating, high-energy world of the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory. Even as Virginia's Jim Crow laws required them to be segregated from their white counterparts, the women of Langley's all-black "West Computing" group helped America achieve one of the things it desired most: a decisive victory over the Soviet Union in the Cold War, and complete domination of the heavens. Starting in World War II and moving through to the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement and the Space Race, Hidden Figures follows the interwoven accounts of Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson and Christine Darden, four African American women who participated in some of NASA's greatest successes. It chronicles their careers over nearly three decades they faced challenges, forged alliances and used their intellect to change their own lives, and their country's future.

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The #1 New York Times bestseller Winner of the Anisfield-Wolf Award for Nonfiction Winner Black Caucus of American Library Association Best Nonfiction Book Winner NAACP Image Award Best Nonfiction Book Winner National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine Communication Award "Much as Tom Wolfe did in The Right Stuff , Shetterly moves gracefully between the women's lives and the broader sweep of history ... Shetterly, who grew up in Hampton, blends impressive research with an enormous amount of heart in telling these stories" - Boston Globe "Meticulous… the depth and detail that are the book's strength make it an effective, fact-based rudder with which would-be scientists and their allies can stabilize their flights of fancy. This hardworking, earnest book is the perfect foil for the glamour still to come." - Seattle Times "Margot Lee Shetterly does not play the austere historian in Hidden Figures . She is right there at the beginning with evocative memories of her childhood, visiting her father—an engineer turned climate scientist—at NASA's Langley Research Center in Virginia…Hidden Figures…is clearly fueled by pride and admiration, a tender account of genuine transcendence and camaraderie. The story warmly conveys the dignity and refinements of these women. They defied barriers for the privilege of offering their desperately needed technical abilities." - The New York Times Book Review - Janna Levin "Shetterly crafts a narrative that is crucial to understanding subsequent movements for civil rights." - Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Shetterly's highly recommended work offers up a crucial history that had previously and unforgivably been lost. We'd do well to put this book into the hands of young women who have long since been told that there's no room for them at the scientific table." - Library Journal (starred review) "Much of the work will be confusing to the mathematically disinclined, but their story is inspiring and enlightening." - Kirkus

Author Information

Margot lee shetterly.

Margot Lee Shetterly is a writer who grew up in Hampton Virginia, where she knew many of the women in Hidden Figures . She is an Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Fellow and the recipient of a Virginia Foundation of the Humanities grant for her research into the history of women in computing. She lives in Charlottesville, VA.

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Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly

The untold story of the brilliant minds behind America's space race

Title: Hidden Figures

Author: Margot Lee Shetterly

Publisher: William Morrow and Company

Genre: True Accounts, Society & Culture, 20th century American history

First Publication: 2016

Language: English

Setting: Hampton, VA

Book Summary: Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly

Set amid the civil rights movement, the never-before-told true story of NASA’s African American female mathematicians who played a crucial role in America’s space program.

Before Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, a group of professionals worked as ‘Human Computers’, calculating the flight paths that would enable these historic achievements. Among these were a coterie of bright, talented African American women. Segregated from their white counterparts, these ‘coloured computers’ used pencil and paper to write the equations that would launch rockets and astronauts, into space.

Moving from World War II through NASA’s golden age, touching on the civil rights era, the Space Race, the Cold War and the women’s rights movement, ‘Hidden Figures’ interweaves a rich history of humankind’s greatest adventure with the intimate stories of five courageous women whose work forever changed the world.

Book Review - Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shatterly

Book Review: Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly

Hidden Figures tells the stories of Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden, four African American women who blazed the trail for others to follow in the fields of mathematics and engineering at NASA.

NASA, originally known as NACA ( National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics ) began hiring women during WWII as female computers. These women essentially did the work of mathematicians but were labelled as subprofessionals in order to be paid less. In 1943 there was a push to hire qualified black women because the demand could not be satisfied with white employees only.

“Women, on the other hand, had to wield their intellects like a scythe, hacking away against the stubborn underbrush of low expectations.”

Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly is a remarkable account of a small number of intelligent, hard-working, driven and admirable African American women who made significant contributions to the Space Race and to the fields of math, science and engineering. At a time when many parts of the United States still practiced segregation and racial prejudices were still widespread, their story is even more extraordinary. What a day it must have been for those women standing in that room in 1969 as the culmination of their dedication and perseverance was about to peak as the first man made his way to the moon!

I particularly enjoyed how this book focused on the individual stories of each woman. I was so inspired by the sacrifice, determination, and intelligence of these ladies. The book incorporates the history that coincides with the stories moving from WWII and aviation research to the Cold War and the Space Race . The book focuses a lot on the Civil Rights Movement and the push to end school segregation. At the onset of the story, the black mathematicians are forced to work on the west side of the Langley campus until the 60s when integration occurs.

“Their dark skin, their gender, their economic status–none of those were acceptable excuses for not giving the fullest rein to their imaginations and ambitions.”

This book is thoroughly researched and introduces us to four of these gifted women and their stories as they took the plunge into careers as mathematicians – or ‘computers’, as they were called before the age of information technology and digital electronics. Author Margot Lee Shetterly also provides us with many details of the civil rights movement, school segregation and eventual integration, and the aeronautic industry.

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Book Review: Hidden Figures

Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly, published by Harper Collins.

We'd do well to put Margot Lee Shetterly's book Hidden Figures into the hands of young men and women who love science. Shetterly's book is about a team of African-American women with a knack for numbers. They defied gender and race barriers in the early years of the US space program to problem-solve for NASA. They crunched numbers and were called human “computers.” They calculated the complex trajectories, launch windows and back-up return paths for flights that allowed astronauts like Neil Armstrong, Alan Shephard and John Glenn to travel to space safely.

There are interesting accounts of a heavily reinforced glass ceiling at NASA and its occasional, wafer-thin cracks in "Hidden Figures." Shetterly writes, “Women...had to wield their intellects like a scythe, hacking away against the stubborn underbrush of low expectations.”

Doing the Math

These underpaid African American women employees were blatantly overworked. But they loved their work. They defied low expectations based on gender and race with composure to scale great heights. Shetterly's book which shot to No 1 on the New York Times bestseller list is now a blockbuster Hollywood movie. The audience pleaser about the 1960s Space Race is competing for best picture this year at the Academy Awards.

Shetterly doesn't play the austere historian in “Hidden Figures” so the book brims with anecdotes which serves the movie adaption well. We learn that when American astronaut John Glenn was minutes from being blasted into orbit aboard Friendship 7 in 1962, there was just one person he trusted with the complex trajectory calculations required to bring him down safely from his orbital spaceflight: Katherine Johnson, who was something of a child prodigy in mathematics and worked in NASA’s segregated West area computers division.

“Get the girl, check the numbers,” Glenn said before boarding the rocket writes Shetterly in the book. “If she says they’re good, I’m good to go.”

Johnson was one of four female African-American mathematicians known as the “computers in skirts” who worked on the Redstone, Mercury and Apollo space programmes for NASA. Starting in World War II and moving through to the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement and the Space Race, Hidden Figures follows the interlaced accounts of Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, and Christine Darden, four African American women who participated in some of NASA’s greatest successes.

Empowering Future Generations

While these women did the same work as their white counterparts, they were paid far less and started their careers by being relegated to the segregated west section of the Langley campus, where they had to use separate dining and bathroom facilities. The book chronicles their brilliant work over three decades which eventually earned them slow advancement.

In 2015, physicist and mathematician Katherine Johnson who calculated the trajectories for many NASA missions received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from former US President Barack Obama. She calculated Alan Shepard 's launch window for his 1961 Mercury mission . In 1969, she also contributed to the legendary Apollo 11 mission, in particular to the safe return of the astronauts to Earth after Neil Armstrong set foot on the Moon. In those decades, it inevitably fell on Johnson to plot complex back-up navigational charts for astronauts in case of electronic failures.

In "Hidden Figures" we then meet the larger-than-life mathematician and computer programmer Dorothy Vaughan who became a passionate leader and advocate for the "West Computers." In 1948, she became NASA's first black supervisor and an expert FORTRAN programmer. She later headed the programming section of the Analysis and Computation Division, a racially and gender-integrated group on the frontier of electronic computing. Vaughan retired from NASA in 1971. She sought, but never received, another management position at Langley. Her legacy lives on in the successful careers of second-generation mathematicians and aeronautic engineers such as Christine Darden.

Mary Jackson's own path to an engineering career at the NASA was far from direct. She graduated with dual degrees in math and physical science and worked in the computing pool, reporting to the group’s supervisor Dorothy Vaughan. After two years in the computing pool, she got the chance to work for engineer Kazimierz Czarnecki in the new-fangled Supersonic Pressure Tunnel. Czarnecki offered Mary hands-on experience conducting experiments in the facility, and eventually suggested that she enter a training program that would allow her to earn a promotion from mathematician to engineer. Trainees had to take advanced engineering after-work courses held at then-segregated Hampton High School. Jackson who never balked at a challenge, petitioned a judge to allow her to join her white peers in the classroom. Mary completed the courses, earned the promotion, and in 1958 became NASA’s first black female engineer.

Shetterly's pain staking work offers up a crucial slice of NASA history that had previously and unforgivably been lost. The author moves gracefully between the women’s lives and the broader sweep of history. This story is nothing short of inspiring and enlightening for science buffs.

Uttara Choudhury is a writer for Forbes India and The Wire. In 1997, she went on the British Chevening Scholarship to study Journalism in the University of Westminster, in London.

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Hidden Figures

By margot lee shetterly.

Hidden Figures Summary

Hidden Figures begins with the following author's note from Shetterly:

"Negro." "Colored." "Indian." "Girls." Though some readers might find the language of Hidden Figures discordant to their modern ears, I've made every attempt to remain true to the time period, and to the voices of the individuals represented in this story.

This guide follows Shetterly's example, using the terms that Shetterly includes where she includes them.

Hidden Figures opens with a prologue in which the author, Margot Lee Shetterly , outlines her research into the women—particularly black women—who worked as “human computers” at the Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, from the 1940s on. Shetterly knows many of these women and their families personally, and as she digs deeper into their stories, she discovers that there are hundreds upon hundreds of them, largely forgotten by history.

Black women were first hired at Langley during the height of WWII, when the NACA personnel manager at the time, Melvin Butler , faced enormous pressure to keep Langley properly staffed during wartime. Langley creates the “West Computers,” named for their segregated space in the West Area, and hires (among other mathematicians) Dorothy Vaughan. Vaughan is a hardworking, frugal, brilliant high school mathematics teacher, mother of four (and later more), who applies to the job at Langley after seeing Butler’s multiple flyers for the position.

When Vaughan arrives at Langley, overcrowding and Jim Crow laws have tensions running high, as the American Negro is conflicted in their search for the “double V” (victory abroad, over the Axis powers, and victory at home, over racism and inequality). Restaurants that won’t serve Dorothy Vaughan will happily serve Germans from the POW camp in the area. At Langley, attitudes toward the computers range from friendliness to hostility, with most engineers ambivalent—as long as computers can do math, they’re useful, white or black. One of Vaughan’s fellow West Computers, Miriam Mann , steals the “COLORED COMPUTERS” sign from their segregated cafeteria table, a small act of protest until Langley stops replacing the sign.

The computers do long, complex equations by hand, supporting engineers who are trying to improve aircraft. Vaughan works at the NACA for seven months before the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and when WWII ends, she keeps her job at Langley, unlike many women across America. Research becomes more experimental after wartime pressures lift, and in 1947, an American aircraft breaks the sound barrier. As research becomes more specialized, it makes sense for computers to specialize as well, joining engineering teams so their math is more accurate for specific experiments. The white supervisor of West Computing, Blanche Sponsler , leaves Langley for health reasons; in her absence, Vaughan steps up as supervisor, the first black supervisor at the NACA, though it takes the NACA two years to make the title official.

Mary Jackson joins West Computing in 1951. She’s 26 years old, with degrees in math and physical science, and she’s passionately involved in the Hampton community (especially Girl Scouts). There’s a nationwide fear of spies and communism, as the tension between the United States and the USSR rises. The USSR uses America’s racist domestic policies as leverage to gain allies in non-white nations, so President Truman desegregates the military and tries to instate some anti-workplace-discrimination practices. After two years at West Computing, Jackson is sent by Vaughan to work on a specific engineering project, where she encounters racism from some East Computers. She complains to Kazimierz “Kaz” Czarnecki , an engineer who offers to let her work for him instead. With Czarnecki’s support, and after petitioning the City of Hampton to let her take classes at a white school, Jackson becomes the first black female engineer at the NACA.

Katherine Johnson joins West Computing in 1953 (at the time she was known as Katherine Goble, having taken the last name of her first husband, who dies of an inoperable tumor in 1956, but she’s most famous as Johnson, so this summary will refer to her as such). Johnson is at Langley two weeks before Vaughan assigns her to a project for the Flight Research Division, where she stays; Vaughan talks to Johnson’s boss, Henry Pearson , to make the position official and get Johnson a raise. Vaughan also predicts the rise of non-human computers, and she encourages other women to take programming courses.

In 1957, as the USSR launches Sputnik and there are protests over desegregation in Little Rock, Arkansas, Christine Mann (later Christine Darden) is a high school student, mathematically inclined and politically engaged. The next year, under enormous pressure to beat the USSR into space, the NACA dissolves West Computing, then is reorganized, becoming NASA. When West Computing is dissolved, Vaughan loses her position as supervisor and is “one of the girls” again. Johnson gets remarried, and she excels with the Flight Research Division. In 1960 she authors a paper on azimuth angles—one of few women to be recognized as authoring a report.

The 60s see NASA’s rise on a national and global stage, as work at Langley is thrown into the spotlight. Vaughan reinvents herself as a programmer, taking engineers’ problems to machine computers instead of her old West Computing pool. In 1962, John Glenn becomes the first American to orbit the Earth, using calculations Johnson checks by hand. In 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his “I Have a Dream” speech. Christine Darden joins Langley in 1967, Dr. King is assassinated in 1968, and Neil Armstrong touches down on the Moon in 1969. America wins the race to the Moon, but the civil rights movement feels like it’s at a standstill. Johnson, Vaughan, Jackson, Darden, and the thousands of black folks who helped make the Moon Landing possible watch the televised broadcast of white men, alongside 600 million others worldwide. Johnson feels hopeful, though, as the moon landing confirms her belief in progress: Once you take the first step, anything is possible.

The epilogue of Hidden Figures recounts the protagonists’ remaining tenure at Langley. Jackson pivots to become Langley’s Federal Women’s Program Manager, helping other women get the jobs and promotions they deserve. Johnson is the most famous of any NASA computer, black or white. Darden gets a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering, though she feels she missed the height of the Langley space-race activity. Vaughan retires in 1971, and though her name doesn’t appear on any report, she contributed to countless numbers of them—and her greatest legacy is still at work, in the young women like Darden still in the office at Langley.

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Hidden Figures Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Hidden Figures is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

What is the area rule?

I think this has something to do with professional blacks not having the same areas as whites. Not knowing her way around the East Area, Mary asks the white women she is working with for directions to the bathroom. She is humiliated by their...

How are societal norms changed economic need

All of the women featured in Hidden Figures serve as examples of the power of hard work. This theme is explored in their professional achievements as well as their personal lives, where their reliability and engagement boosts their community. On...

Mobilization

They analyzed data and performed mathematical calculations for the research taking place at NACA.

Study Guide for Hidden Figures

Hidden Figures study guide contains a biography of Margot Lee Shetterly, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

About Hidden Figures
Character List

Lesson Plan for Hidden Figures

About the Author
Study Objectives
Common Core Standards
Introduction to Hidden Figures
Relationship to Other Books
Bringing in Technology
Notes to the Teacher
Related Links
Hidden Figures Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for Hidden Figures

Introduction
Historical accuracy

Home — Essay Samples — Entertainment — Movies — Hidden Figures

Essays on Hidden Figures

Hidden Figures is a compelling and inspiring story that has captivated audiences around the world. As a result, it has become a popular choice for essay topics in various academic settings. However, with so many possible angles to explore, it can be challenging to choose the right topic for your essay. In this guide, we will discuss the importance of the topic, provide advice on choosing a topic, and offer a detailed list of recommended essay topics, divided by category.

The Importance of the Topic

Hidden Figures is a story that sheds light on the often-overlooked contributions of African American women to the field of space exploration. It is a powerful narrative that highlights the struggles and triumphs of these women in a time of segregation and discrimination. By choosing a topic related to Hidden Figures, you have the opportunity to explore important themes such as racial and gender inequality, perseverance, and the power of human potential.

Advice on Choosing a Topic

When choosing a topic related to Hidden Figures, it is important to consider your interests and the specific themes or aspects of the story that resonate with you. Think about the questions or issues that you find most compelling and consider how you can explore them in the context of the film or book. Additionally, consider the requirements of your assignment and ensure that the topic you choose aligns with the parameters provided by your instructor.

Recommended "Hidden Figures" Essay Topics

Historical and societal impact.

The role of African American women in the space race
The impact of segregation on the women featured in Hidden Figures
The significance of the Civil Rights Movement in the context of the story
The portrayal of gender roles and expectations in the 1960s

Scientific and Technological Advancements

The contributions of Katherine Johnson to the field of mathematics
The role of Dorothy Vaughan in advancing computer science
The importance of Mary Jackson's work in aeronautical engineering
The influence of Hidden Figures on the representation of women in STEM fields

Personal and Professional Development

The leadership qualities demonstrated by the women in Hidden Figures
The impact of mentorship and support in the characters' professional growth
The portrayal of resilience and determination in the face of adversity
The significance of family and community in the characters' lives

Representation and Media

The portrayal of African American women in mainstream media
The impact of Hidden Figures on popular culture and public perception
The importance of diverse storytelling in film and literature
The role of historical accuracy in cinematic adaptations

Educational and Institutional Systems

The challenges faced by the women in accessing education and career opportunities
The role of advocacy and activism in advancing equal access to education and employment
The significance of representation and diversity in educational settings
The impact of institutional policies and practices on marginalized communities

Psychological and Emotional Themes

The emotional journey of the characters in Hidden Figures
The psychological impact of discrimination and prejudice on the women's experiences
The portrayal of resilience and coping mechanisms in the face of adversity
The importance of self-empowerment and self-worth in the characters' narratives

Women in STEM

Role of women in the space race
Challenges faced by women in STEM fields
Impact of women in NASA's history
Representation of women in the film Hidden Figures
Gender discrimination in the workplace

Racial Segregation

Effects of racial segregation on education and career opportunities
Racial discrimination in the workplace
Segregation in the United States during the 1960s
Contribution of African American women to the civil rights movement
Portrayal of racial segregation in the film Hidden Figures

Mathematics and Engineering

Role of mathematics in space exploration
Contribution of African American women to the field of mathematics
Challenges faced by female mathematicians and engineers
Representation of mathematical concepts in the film Hidden Figures
Impact of engineering on space technology

Leadership and Empowerment

Leadership qualities of the main characters in Hidden Figures
Empowerment of women in the workplace
Importance of mentorship and support in career advancement
Overcoming adversity and achieving success in a male-dominated industry
Inspiring future generations of women in STEM

These essay topics provide a comprehensive look at the themes and issues presented in the film Hidden Figures. Whether you are interested in exploring the historical context, the challenges faced by women and minorities, or the impact of individuals in the STEM fields, there are plenty of thought-provoking topics to choose from. By delving into these topics, students can gain a deeper understanding of the contributions of women and African Americans to the fields of mathematics, engineering, and space exploration. Remember to choose a topic that resonates with you personally and allows you to explore the themes and questions that you find most compelling.

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Movie Review: Hidden Figures (2016)

Hidden figures: a summary and analysis, the power of hidden figures: feminist and antiracist values in american history, relevant topics.

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Hidden Figures

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A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Prologue-Chapter 3

Chapters 4-7

Chapters 8-13

Chapters 14-19

Chapter 20-Epilogue

Key Figures

Index of Terms

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Discussion Questions

Shetterly describes many of the activities the main characters were involved in outside of work, such as in their church or the community. Because the focus here is on their careers, why do you think Shetterly includes so much of their personal activities? What message does she give by doing so? Give specific examples, drawing on the lives of all four characters.

Shetterly mentions A. Philip Randolph twice, during key moments 20 years apart. In 1941, he helps convince Franklin D. Roosevelt to issue an executive order banning discrimination in federal agencies and departments. In 1963, he has a large role in the groundbreaking March on Washington that became famous for Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Who was Randolph and how important was he in the civil rights movement? What were the key issues and accomplishments he was responsible for?

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Review: ‘Hidden Figures’ Honors 3 Black Women Who Helped NASA Soar

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By A.O. Scott

Dec. 22, 2016

“Hidden Figures” takes us back to 1961, when racial segregation and workplace sexism were widely accepted facts of life and the word “computer” referred to a person, not a machine. Though a gigantic IBM mainframe does appear in the movie — big enough to fill a room and probably less powerful than the phone in your pocket — the most important computers are three African-American women who work at NASA headquarters in Hampton, Va. Assigned to data entry jobs and denied recognition or promotion, they would go on to play crucial roles in the American space program.

Based on Margot Lee Shetterly’s nonfiction book of the same title, the film, directed by Theodore Melfi (who wrote the script with Allison Schroeder), turns the entwined careers of Katherine Goble (later Johnson), Mary Jackson and Dorothy Vaughan into a rousing celebration of merit rewarded and perseverance repaid. Like many movies about the overcoming of racism, it offers belated acknowledgment of bravery and talent and an overdue reckoning with the sins of the past. And like most movies about real-world breakthroughs, “Hidden Figures” is content to stay within established conventions. The story may be new to most viewers, but the manner in which it’s told will be familiar to all but the youngest.

This is not necessarily a bad thing. There is something to be said for a well-told tale with a clear moral and a satisfying emotional payoff. Mr. Melfi, whose previous film was the heart-tugging, borderline-treacly Bill Murray vehicle “St. Vincent,” knows how to push our emotional buttons without too heavy a hand. He trusts his own skill, the intrinsic interest of the material and — above all — the talent and dedication of the cast. From one scene to the next, you may know more or less what is coming, but it is never less than delightful to watch these actors at work.

Start with the three principals, whose struggles at NASA take place as the agency is scrambling to send an astronaut into orbit. Katherine Goble is the central hidden figure, a mathematical prodigy played with perfect nerd charisma by Taraji P. Henson. Katherine is plucked from the computing room and assigned to a team that will calculate the launch coordinates and trajectory for an Atlas rocket. She receives a cold welcome — particularly from an engineer named Paul Stafford (Jim Parsons) — and is not spared the indignities facing a black woman in a racially segregated, gender-stratified workplace. The only bathroom she is allowed to use is in a distant building, and she horrifies her new co-workers when she helps herself to a cup of coffee.

Dorothy (Octavia Spencer) and Mary (Janelle Monáe) also face discrimination. Dorothy, who is in charge of several dozen computers, is repeatedly denied promotion to supervisor and treated with condescension by her immediate boss (Kirsten Dunst). The Polish-born engineer (Olek Krupa) with whom Mary works is more enlightened, but Mary runs into the brick wall of Virginia’s Jim Crow laws when she tries to take graduate-level physics courses.

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Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly Book Review Pages: 4 (932 words)
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The “Hidden Figures” Movie Review Essay

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Introduction

In the film ‘Hidden Figures’, directed by Theodore Melfi, NASA discovered the unexplored potential in a team of African-American women statisticians who acted as the mastermind responsible for one of the most critical missions in American history as the country competed against Russia to launch a man into space. Viewers follow these women as they speedily soar the tiers of NASA together with several of history’s most innovative scientists, mainly entrusted with computing the monumentally important liftoff of astronaut John Glenn into space and ensuring his safety while reentering Earth. The film is founded on the unbelievable exciting factoids and anecdotes of three women renowned as computer scientists.

Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, and Katherine Gobels Johnson cut far above all gender, color, and occupation barriers. Their genius and drive to aim high – past what the human race had ever accomplished—firmly established them as great American heroes in American history. Being the leader gives Dorothy, played by Octavia Spencer, the ability to show off her administrative and planning capabilities. She embraces programming to discover an alternative method to stay pertinent when her role is no longer vital. Dorothy utilizes her voice to advocate for wage equality for the women under her supervision. The day following the March on Washington, she commemorates her 20th year of service. Despite the difficulties, she and West Computers were successful.

When women were not even permitted to participate in editing sessions, Taraji P. Henson’s character Katherine persisted in getting a document released under her name. John Glenn asks Katherine to individually examine the work of the electronic computers as yet another proof of her exceptional abilities. Katherine has earned the respect of her coworkers due to her assistance on John Glenn’s expedition. She keeps working for NASA and contributes to the effort to send a man to the moon. She views her professional successes and those of human computers as evidence that everything is feasible.

As Mary Jackson, Janelle Monáe, an engineer, was one of the main characters. She is forthright about the prejudice at Langley, where she operates as a human computer. She soon advances as a crew member conducting wind tunnel experiments thanks to her stridency and abilities. After a manager notices that Mary has a foundation in physics and the ability to think critically required to be an engineer, she ultimately emerges as Langley’s first Black female engineer. He extends an invitation to Mary to participate in his team and urges her to pursue her studies, which will ultimately help her make history.

Although the 1969 moon missions served as the Space Race’s primary finale, neither the film’s plot nor the existence of the participants is centered on this event. In the film’s climax, the director contrasts the exhilaration preceding the moon launch with the unhappiness Black people in America experience due to continuing discrimination after years of struggling for racial equality. The Space Race had a particular commencement, a definite end, and an unquestionable winner. It started in 1957 when the Russians deployed Sputnik and ended in 1969 when American astronauts stepped foot on the moon. Other incidents demonstrate that people must still do more work before all Americans may realize equitable treatment in the law and the minds of the public. However, Katherine’s ultimate experience near the end gives viewers hope that these goals are still within reach.

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COMMENTS

"Hidden Figures" Is a Subtle and Powerful Work of Counter-History
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Hidden Figures Movie Summary. Hidden Figures (2016, directed by Theodore Melfi) is a movie that will simultaneously inspire and make people angry at the injustice African-American women face both in professional and daily life. The main characters of Katherine Goble, Mary Jackson, and Dorothy Vaughan worked at NASA and saw many opportunities for their professional growth; however, their bosses ...
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Genre: This is a captivating and inspiring book that tells the untold story of the remarkable African American women who played a vital role in NASA's space race during the 1960s. Through meticulous research and engaging prose, author Margot Lee Shetterly vividly brings to life the struggles and achievements of these brilliant mathematicians ...
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Hidden Figures was made into a film, which also came out in 2016. The story focuses on four African American women as examples of the many such women who worked at Langley. The title is a play on the meaning of the word "figures" in the sense of both people and numbers. Each was largely hidden from the public view: Most people think of ...
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PDF Hidden Figures Viewing Guide and Discussion Questions
Hidden Figures Viewing Guide and Discussion Questions Hidden Figures is a movie based on the book Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly. The book was a top book of 2016 for both TIME and Publisher's Weekly, a USA Today
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The Hidden Figures Film Analysis Essay. Hidden Figures is a 2016 American drama film directed by Theodore Melfi and written by Melfi and Allison Schroeder based on the science-fiction book of the same name by author Margot Lee Shetterly. The film was named one of the best ten films of 2016 and garnered several honors and nominations, including ...
The "Hidden Figures" Movie Review
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