Death, Destruction and Mayhem!!
Now that's a title. I wanted to spend a few minutes talking more about my obsession with horror. As we grow up we are taught some morals and what's right and wrong. We are usually discouraged from dark thinking as our parents and society do not want a bunch hood rats running around with asocial personalities. Turns out, young people have a way of finding each other and learning about such darkness on their own.
So maybe we shouldn't be so concerned about not exposing our children to the horrors of monsters, evil, and darkness. Instead we should seeking opportunities to teach them about those things and what they mean. Teach them that movie monsters are not real, homicidal maniacs on the 6:00 news are. Things that blow up in the movies CAN be considered cool as long as we teach them that is all special effects and no is getting hurt. The violence that they see on television over in countries like Iraq on the other hand is real and people are dying everyday. The complete chaos and disorder in a variety of entertainment (comics books, t.v., movies, etc.) is all fiction and the real world can be much more frightening.
Now I am not suggesting that you take your 4 year old to the latest horror movie and explain it all to him. Nor am I expecting that we should expose them to all of it at once. What I am saying is to teach them the difference over time and let them understand what darkness is before they learn it on the streets and accept it as normal behavior. That way you can have a functional adult who may or may not enjoy horror as a concept of entertainment without detaching themself from the real world.
Does that make sense? Oh well, I hope it does.
Now I am off to blow something up and watch the fire rage!! (In my mind people, in my mind.)
I will also begin to feature a daily Cure song. Just because. I love the music of The Cure and would love to chat with other fans anytime!
- Today's Cure song is "
CJ
Don't forget to read the Fine Print!
decaying words by Rotting Dead @ 7:22 AM
3 Comments:
Interestingly, my hubby and I were just talking about artistic violence and how it effects people. He write video games and is very much opposed to those who suggest censoring the artistic content of games. We both agree that censorship is nothing more than shoving the problem in a closet and hoping that it goes away, while all the time it grows bigger and more powerful. We basically came up with the same thing you said - monitor children's exposure to games/movies/television and make sure that you have open lines of communication regarding the reality/fiction of it all. We were reading an article about how participating in a war effects soldiers psychologically, and desensitization seems to be a big problem these days. It all comes down to recognizing, discussing, and understanding the feelings that are raging inside you at all times, and art can be a great way to start a dialogue if used the right way.
Great post today. :) It made me curious (and you can feel free to tell me to mind my own business) about how you were raised. Were you sheltered and then left to learn about it on your own? Or did you explore and discuss this stuff with adults over time?
I now exactly what you mean. There is so much evil in the world that gets overlooked because we are so used to seeing way worst things on tv and the movies. Teaching children that some things they see can happen is very important.
I watched all horror movies from the 80's. Today I will not go near them. I must say the experience left me a little paranoid.
In being paranoid I discovered that If I had a propensity for mental illnes I would never leave the house.
Interesting comments Steven. By the way your blog address was printed incorrectly. I found you at the following address:
http://grandwazoo.blogspot.com
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