Real Life or Entertainment?
Yesterday my husband brought home a newspaper article that he wanted me to read. I just looked it up and, yippee! The article is online as well. Click here. So if you haven't read the article yet, maybe you'd like to do so first. Or maybe not. Either way, I have a few things to say about this article in the Daily Iowan, written by Mr. Paul Sorenson.
While I do agree with him that, speaking of youngsters, it's "hard to list all the crap they consume these days..." I cannot completely agree with him in his attack on Disney. I've seen alot of Disney movies where I've rolled my eyes, shaken my head and cried, "Why???" Ok, melodrama aside, I have been pleased with some of what I've been seeing on Disney. Hey, each person has a right to his own opinion, and I understand what Mr. Sorenson is saying. But I think he has missed one vital point. Entertainment. We live in a world where kids deal with harsh reality every day. But for half an hour at least, young people can get away from that and enjoy a good, clean show that will make them laugh a little.
See, I'm looking at this from the side of the entertainer. I write fiction. There's this terrible (IMHO) trend these days, that says fiction has to be true to life. You know, tragedy and sad endings, because that's how life is. We read books and say, "Oh come on, that would never happen." Well duh! It's fiction! Entertainment is meant to be, well, entertaining. And entertainment should serve as a coffee break, a little recess to take us away from the realities we deal with all the time.
Should entertainment teach lessons? Well, sure. It should. Even fairy tales had morals to them, but who really wants to be preached at in their entertainment? I'm not suggesting that Mr. Sorenson is advocating such a thing, but I do maintain that I think he missed the whole point of entertainment.
While I do agree with him that, speaking of youngsters, it's "hard to list all the crap they consume these days..." I cannot completely agree with him in his attack on Disney. I've seen alot of Disney movies where I've rolled my eyes, shaken my head and cried, "Why???" Ok, melodrama aside, I have been pleased with some of what I've been seeing on Disney. Hey, each person has a right to his own opinion, and I understand what Mr. Sorenson is saying. But I think he has missed one vital point. Entertainment. We live in a world where kids deal with harsh reality every day. But for half an hour at least, young people can get away from that and enjoy a good, clean show that will make them laugh a little.
See, I'm looking at this from the side of the entertainer. I write fiction. There's this terrible (IMHO) trend these days, that says fiction has to be true to life. You know, tragedy and sad endings, because that's how life is. We read books and say, "Oh come on, that would never happen." Well duh! It's fiction! Entertainment is meant to be, well, entertaining. And entertainment should serve as a coffee break, a little recess to take us away from the realities we deal with all the time.
Should entertainment teach lessons? Well, sure. It should. Even fairy tales had morals to them, but who really wants to be preached at in their entertainment? I'm not suggesting that Mr. Sorenson is advocating such a thing, but I do maintain that I think he missed the whole point of entertainment.
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