Impact of Mass Media on Children Essay Example for Free

Impact of Mass Media on Children Essay Too much media attention focuses on the impact of sex and violence on children. The assumption seems to be that if the media stopped showing sex and violence on television and in filmsand now video games are the culpritthe world would be a better place. Sometimes the argument goes further. If the media instead presented quality family and religious programming, children would grow up to be moral people. Both of these ifs are based on the premise that the media makes us do things that we dont want to do. The scenario in the 1950s played out like this: We have two good teenagers; They listen to Rock N Roll music; The music stimulates their animal instincts; They have sex. They didnt want to; the music made them. Today the scenario goes like this: The boy is good; The boy plays video games; The boy becomes a crack shot; The boy goes to school and shoots his classmates; He didnt want to; violent video games made him. I agree that the video games and the music have an impact on children. From the video gamesand televisionand films, the child learns the signifiers of violence. Similarly, the media teaches us the signifiers of sexuality. Once those signifiers become signifieds stored in our memories, that learning cant be unlearned this side of suffering a brain injury. However, no single signifier stands alone. Individuals interpret each signifier as part of a mental schema. The final influence for a given individual to choose antisocial behavior may be the video game or the music. Or it might be the chocolate doughnut. With billions of people in the world, somebody somewhere is likely to be motivated to action by just about anything. To blame the media for individual behavior is missing the point and simplifies the issues. Just getting the bad messages out of the media is not going to create a good society. The media is an influence The media does have an influence on children; the same impact it has on all of us: 1. The media teaches us the signifiers of the culture and what they mean. 2. The media sets an agenda which directs our attention to the issues that the media managers think are important. 3. The media teaches us ideology by offering us solutions to binary oppositions. Let us look at each of these points separately and see what the impact could be on children. Here are two typical sets of signifiers found in our culture. The images of Jennifer Anniston from Seventeen (August 2000) teach the signifiers of sexuality, feministic and gender. Whether those signifiers have a positive or negative impact on a given individual depends on individual past experience. One person may read her images as cultural definitions of cute. A victim of sexual abuse may interpret the signifiers as an invitation to arouse notice. A person who knows the signifiers of pornography may read the images as indicating availability. The CD cover to the right teaches the signifiers of gender and masculinity. The images create an association of masculinity with violence and weapons. Both images put signifiers into the culture, set an agenda and offer solutions to binary oppositions to the children to whom they are targeted. Teaches signifiers. From watching violent films, television, and playing violent video games, we all learn how to be violent. Similarly, we learn the signifiers of sexuality and what those signifiers mean. How we interpret those signifiers is going to depend on our own past experiences. Children who are sexually abused are going to read sexual signifiers differently than children whose parents demonstrate a loving, caring relationship and explain sexual behaviors to their children. Similarly, children who were physically abused or who live in violent neighborhoods also will bring their past experiences to any media experience. In short, the past experiences of children help determine what impact the medias images have on children. What this means is that the media cant make mass murderers or schoolyard shooters, but if a child decides to go in that direction, the media helps teach them how to do it. Sets the Agenda. An analysis of mass media becomes a bit scary at this point. What are the three dominant topics presented in the media? Sex, Violence and The Consumer Culture. This is what we are telling children is important. Offers Solutions to Problems. Now things become really scaryat least to me. Lets look at this media effect in three ways: 1. The media constantly presents the binary opposition of good vs. evil. This is particularly true in many cartoons, such as Batman or G.I. Joe, or some other superhero scenario. In each case, society is held hostage by evil. The average person can do nothing. Only the superhero can defeat evil through the use of violence. But, theres a limit to what even the superhero can do. If the good guys destroy evil, then the premise of the cartoon is over. The heroes win but evil continues. Here are the lessons being taught: Evil exists to destroy good and so the world is a conflict between good and evil. Most of us cannot do anything against evil; therefore, we are easy victims. We must give control over to superheroes who can wage war on evil. Violence is the solution to problems. 2. True love is the solution to all personal problems. Remember the Jerry MaGuire line: You complete me? True love means only one person in the world exists for each person. The current cliche soul mate sums up this way of thinking. Here are the lessons being taught: If there is only one person for each person, how do you explain an attraction to another person? Todays economy constantly puts men and women together in high pressure, stimulating circumstances. We are psychologically and physiologically wired to respond to members of the opposite sex. Sooner or later, most people in our culture will be placed in an interpersonal context that can easily assume the feelings of love because body chemistry is responding to the closeness of the other person. If a person needs someone to complete that individual, what happens when the part that needs completing feels incomplete again? The fault lies with the relationship. No doubt all of us need someone some of the time, but a person with serious, unresolved personal issues is probably incapable of forming a healthy relationship in the first place. When the first partner fails to fill the personal hole, then the incomplete person will go in search for another completer. Is it any wonder that so many failed relationships exist? Is it any wonder that so many teens engage in premarital sex since love is the solution so often offered by the media? Why is the media hooked on love? Love motivates us to purchase so many productsfrom toothpaste to diamondsso that we can offer our ideal selves to another person instead of the actual people we are. Plus, it is easy for the media to connect sex and love. What was the name of the last new movie you saw where sex didnt follow once the lead male and female fell in love? As Maslow argues, sex is a strong motivatorstrong enough to convince people to spend money to acquire sexual attractiveness, and, by extension, love. 3. Finally, the media offers violence as the method chosen by men. The movie industry presents us with Tom Cruise, Wesley Snipes, Al Pacino, James Bond, and the list goes on and on. In sports, we have Sunday football and Wednesday wrestling. The History Channel presents the heroes of World War II. A E and Discovery channels prove the power of cops through their programming. According to the media, such men are heroes. They protect their families. They are honored by those around them. They are rewarded with the most attractive women available. Any boy unwilling to engage in violence can not be a man. Girls also have something to learn. They need a man to protect them from becoming victims of rape and violence. As cheerleaders stand on the sidelines cheering on the team, they are taught to reward the guys who prove they are men. Conclusions The media teaches children the signifiers of sex, violence and consumerism. The media tells children it is important to think about these three things because these are the topics the media most often places into the agenda. Finally, either sex, violence or a product offers a solution to every problem.

Anger of Gods Depicted in the Old Testament and Kafkas Book, Metamorph

The anger of Gods throughout both stories leads you to believe that the Gods will not hesitate to take revenge on mankind for creating a world of evil in a world they created for good. The Gods from Metamorphoses and the God from the Old Testament create a world full of life, to live happy and full of grace. The destruction and recreation of the world by the Gods of each book, however similar they may seem, are full of differences as they both teach mankind lessons that should not be forgotten. â€Å"Whatever God it was, who brought order to the universe, and gave it division, subdivision, he molded earth† Metamorphoses pg 685. In the beginning the earth had nothing, no light to call sun, no water to bath in, and no human to walk on the ground that we call land that was not land. The Gods choose to make a playground of sorts. In both literature pieces the Gods divide the heavens and the earth, split the water from the land, light from the dark. The God’s made animals for this land and water and creatures for the air. â€Å"But something else was needed a finer being, more capable of mind, a sage, a ruler, so man was born, It may be in God’s image† Metamorphoses pg 686. â€Å"And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul† The Old Testament pg 54. The Old Testament God thought it was not good for man to be alone so from the bone of man’s r ib he made a woman. The first murder in the Old Testament is the beginning of God realizing that man was evil, â€Å"god saw the wickedness of man† Old Testament pg 56. Cain murdered his brother Abel, out of jealousy of the Lord’s love. Able a Sheppard who brought the fat of the animals and the Lord had respect fo... ...s to repopulate the earth, â€Å"Go from the temple, cover your heads, loosen your robes, and throw your mothers bones behind you† pg 692. Pyrrha being so innocent could not throw the bones of her mother and refused until she would never insult her mother in such a way. Themis over and over told them to do this until Deucalion thought maybe he meant to throw stones behind them. When Deucalion and Pyrrha did this the stones â€Å"began to lose their hardness, to soften, slowly, to take on form, to grow in size, a little, become less rough, to look like human beings† pg 693. All the stones that Deucalion threw turned to man and all the stones that Pyrrha threw behind her became women. Life began to form from other things as well. The moist mud from the waters drying turned to animals that now roam our earth, swim in our seas and oceans, birds that fly in our skies.

Passion and Betrayal in “Roman Fever” Essay

â€Å"Roman Fever† is a very dynamic story, were things aren’t necessarily what they appear. The characters have two faces: the ones they show each other and the ones evident to the reader through the narration. The setting, the title, and the dialogue all develop the plot. Hypocrisy and deceit are present throughout the whole story, and they greatly drive the plot. Wharton uses irony, an omniscient narrator, and symbolism to convey the theme of passion and how it can poison the mind, leading to destructive actions. The way the author chose to narrate the story is vital to how it is perceived. The story is in a third person omniscient point of view, which greatly develops the characterization of Grace and Alida. Various times throughout the story, one of the women says something to the other and afterward that narrator will reveal to the reader what she is really thinking. This helps show the reader the hypocrisy and deception in their words. One example of this is when the women are talking about roman fever and its dangers. In the midst of this, the narrator tells us that Alida thinks she â€Å"must make one more effort not to hate her† (Wharton 115). This exposes to the reader directly for the first time that there are some underlying issues and unfinished business between these characters that they are avoiding. Another factor that contributes to the progress of the plot are the numerous symbols that Wharton chose to employ. One of the most noticeable of these is the setting. Rome is a city that almost always evokes images of passion and romance. Within this setting, the climate and time changes directly parallel the gradual changes in the women’s relationship. This is especially evident when Alida first reveals that she wrote the letter that Grace had though she received from Delphin many years ago. After this information is brought to light, the two women stand â€Å"for a minute staring at each other in the last golden light† (117). The last few moments of sun are representative of the  last moments of politeness between these two women. After â€Å"the clear heaven overhead was emptied of all it’s gold† (118), all of the women’s passionate secrets start spilling out. Grace divulges that she answered to the letter, and that Delphin came to meet her tha t night. This revelation completely changes Alida’s idea of her relationship with her late husband. The ruins that are described, the forum and the Colosseum, also mirror what happened between these two women. These structures, once representatives of Rome’s magnificence, are now reduced to a â€Å"great accumulated wreckage of passion and splendor† (114). The same goes for the friendship between these women. Love and passion came between them, causing great betrayal on both sides. This has diminished their friendship until it is really no longer there, replaced by lies and treachery. Right before Grace reveals her greatest secret, that Barbara was really Delphin’s daughter, she is â€Å"looking away from [Slade] toward the dusky secret mass of the Coliseums† (119). The â€Å"secret mass† of ruins is a direct description of their friendship, which was destroyed because of jealousy and lies. Another important symbol in the sort story is the title. â€Å"Roman Fever† has a double meaning; it was an outburst of malaria that plagued Rome in the past, but it also represents the feverish passion present in the women’s story. It is a symbol for Alida’s jealousy of Grace, and how it has simmered inside her for all of these years. Both of the women are victims of roman fever in the sense that they both fell into dangerous games of love, passion, and betrayal. This betrayal is also alluded to in the story about Aunt Harriet. The story goes that Aunt Harriet â€Å"sent her little sister to the Forum after sunset to gather a night blooming flower†¦but she really sent her because they were in love with the same man† (115). The sister died. It is possible that Alida was inspired by this story to write the fateful letter to Grace. An element that greatly contributes to the overall tone of the story is irony. Many lines throughout the narrative all culminate to the final line of the story: â€Å"I had Barbara†(119). Here, Grace is revealing that her daughter Barbara is also daughter of Alida’s husband Delphin. This line alone exposes the irony in many other parts of the story. This is apparent when Alida is thinking about Barbara Ansley. â€Å"Babs†¦ had more edge. Funny where she got it, with those two nullities as parents† (112). Irony is also present when Alida tells Grace that she was â€Å"wondering how two such exemplary characters as you  [Grace] and Horace had managed to produce anything quite so dynamic?† (114). These lines are very ironic because the reader later learns that Horace Ansley had nothing to do with the birth of Barbara. Through the use of irony, symbols, and an all-knowing narrator, Edith Wharton presents passion, betrayal, and deceit between two women. It is repeatedly conveyed in the story that things are not always what they appear on the surface, it takes a second look to realize the underlying sentiments that are occurring. This is present both in the infinite symbols in the story as well as the passion that drove Grace and Alida’s friendship to ruin. Even though they had known each other for a long time, â€Å"these two ladies visualized each other, each through the wrong end of her little tel escope†(113). Because of the destruction that their betrayals had caused when they were young women, these two people who had been â€Å"intimate since childhood† (112) discover that they truly know nothing about the other at all.

Child Abuse Is Not Gone Away - 1348 Words

â€Å"Every five minutes, somewhere in the world, a child dies from violence. Millions more are in danger of physical, emotional (neglect) and sexual abuse that could destroy their childhoods forever† (Beckham). Sadly, this is not a shocking fact, because child abuse is a very big issue in our world. The problem with child abuse and neglect is that someone is harming a child, most likely their own, and they don’t care about it. In the novel Frankenstein, Shelley argues that child abuse and neglect are unethical and that no one should be abused. This concept is scattered all over the book, because throughout the whole story, Victor is running from or yelling at his monster. Shelley’s argument is still valid today because child abuse has not†¦show more content†¦According to ChildLife, a child abuse hotline in Pennsylvania, there were more than 400 child deaths due to abuse between 2010 and 2014, and approximately 29,273 cases of abuse in the year in 2014 (Routh). One aspect of child abuse that makes it so bad is that people who are guilty of child abuse do not always do it on purposefully. For example, in July of 2011, Jaren Hare, age 21, was charged with manslaughter, third-degree murder and child neglect. Her 2 year old daughter had been killed by their python. According to the St. Petersburg Times, the snake was underfed, and when it escaped from the cage, was found in the morning wrapped around the baby. When Ms. Hare’s boyfriend found the lifeless child, there were fang marks on her arms and forehead (Anton). This is seen as unethical because we could argue if this is or is not the mother’s fault since she had a python in the same house as a baby. Even though the mother didn’t put the python in the crib with the baby, the very fact that she left a baby unsupervised counts as neglect and abuse. Now she has to face the consequence of losing her child. Another sad aspect about child abuse is that the people who commit child abuse are not always the parents. In this instance, the mothers of several children gave permission for two strangers