Violence as entertainment Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Violence as entertainment - Research Paper Example Epics and classics such as Iliad and Odyssey in Greek, Ramayana and Mahabharata in Hindu, Shakespearean Literature in Western and 1001 Arabian Nights in Arabian cultures stand as testimony to this. However, on the flipside, the sagas of wars and battles always illustrate the devastating miseries that the practice of violence has brought upon humans. Therefore, violence that sets misleading examples for children is not an appropriate form of entertainment as it glorifies brutality and breeds hostility besides fostering insensitiveness and apathy. The emergence of television, as a dominant form of entertainment during the early 1960s, has brought with it a major concern supported by scientific evidence that establishes the â€Å"casual relationship between violent television and aggressive behavior† (3). Psychologist contend that youngster modulate their attitudes and behavior on the basis of the â€Å"symbolic environment† that media promotes apart from their experiences in real life (3). Thus, when they remain exposed to violence in the media they will tend to imitate what they view on the TV and thus run the risk of indulging in violent behavior. The advent of visual technologies today offers the youngsters a wide range of channels on TV that telecast violent content in high definition and with 3 D effect. Thus, the viewing pleasure they receive from the media is so attractive as to be addictive and they spend a lot of time watching TV. When TV programs bombard their subconscious mind with constant images of violence, and influenced by such content, they will tend to believe that violence is an acceptable norm and become aggressive in real life. Evidence in the form of psychological research findings further suggests that watching violence in the media makes youngsters imitate the act as can be seen from incidents that involve â€Å"lethal violence† that has an â€Å"uncanny resemblance† to scenes in movies (Cantor 1). Children†™s tendency to imitate media content can be illustrated from the â€Å"crisis of playground injuries in schools† after the introduction of WWF in Israeli TV (2). The repercussions of this show on the children in Israel have forced the school authorities to conduct â€Å"media literacy programs† and the channel to reduce the frequency of its telecast (2). On the other hand, studies further show that frequent viewing of violent entertainment that portrays â€Å"graphic display of injuries† desensitizes children and reduces their â€Å"emotional response† to violence over a period of time (2). Similarly, such children, when they become adults are likely to indulge in â€Å"domestic abuse† as they tend to have lesser sympathy for the victims. Thus, it can be construed that when people remain exposed constantly to violence in media, they become indifferent to it and loses their emotional response and feelings of compassion for fellow beings. Research statistics further indicate that Americans constantly remain exposed to violent content and â€Å"60% of TV programs† contain violence (Bushman and Anderson 478). Studies also find that by the time children pass out from elementary grade, they would have seen over â€Å"8000 murders† and â€Å"