Sharks (West Side Story)
E776051
The Sharks are a Puerto Rican street gang in the musical "West Side Story," serving as the rival group to the white American Jets and embodying themes of racism, immigration, and cultural conflict.
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
fictional street gang
ⓘ
musical theatre ensemble ⓘ theatrical character group ⓘ |
| allegoricalRelation | Capulets from Romeo and Juliet ⓘ |
| appearsIn |
West Side Story (1961 film)
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
West Side Story (2021 film) NERFINISHED ⓘ West Side Story (stage musical) NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| associatedSong |
America
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
The Rumble NERFINISHED ⓘ Tonight (Quintet) NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| basedInFictionalLocation | New York City NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| conflictType | interethnic gang rivalry ⓘ |
| costumeColorAssociation | warm colors such as reds and purples ⓘ |
| createdBy |
Arthur Laurents
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Leonard Bernstein NERFINISHED ⓘ Stephen Sondheim NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| createdForWork | West Side Story NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| fictionalEthnicity | Puerto Rican ⓘ |
| firstAppearanceYear | 1957 ⓘ |
| genderComposition | primarily male members ⓘ |
| genreContext | musical drama ⓘ |
| includesCharacter |
Anita (West Side Story)
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Bernardo (West Side Story) NERFINISHED ⓘ Chino (West Side Story) NERFINISHED ⓘ Maria (West Side Story) NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| includesSubgroup | Shark girls NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| inspiredBy | Puerto Rican migration to New York City ⓘ |
| inUniverseActivity |
social dancing
ⓘ
street fighting ⓘ territorial protection ⓘ |
| languageAssociated |
English
ⓘ
Spanish ⓘ |
| ledBy | Bernardo (West Side Story) NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| mediumOfOrigin | Broadway musical ⓘ |
| narrativeFunction |
antagonists to the Jets
ⓘ
victims of discrimination ⓘ |
| opposedBy | white American community in the story ⓘ |
| partOf | West Side Story NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| portrayedAs |
recent immigrants
ⓘ
working-class youth ⓘ |
| representsTheme |
assimilation
ⓘ
cultural conflict ⓘ immigration ⓘ racism ⓘ xenophobia ⓘ |
| rivalOf | Jets (West Side Story) NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| symbolizes | Latino identity in mid-20th-century New York ⓘ |
| timePeriod | mid-1950s ⓘ |
Referenced by (2)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.