A Critical Research Paper on the Performing Arts and Social

A Critical on the Performing Arts and Social Responsibility - Research Paper Example of early filmmaking in America was aimed at depicting family life, romance, social systems, and the government as without flaws, yet the reality was much different behind closed doors. In a way, it gave people an avenue to explore their feelings as well as to escape their own situation and find a way to cope. During the first half of the twentieth century, the entertainment industry primarily focused on the positive aspects of living. It was a way to soothe the populace from the effects of the Great Depression and both World Wars. The focus was on how to make people believe that normalcy would return and that family life wouldn’t be abnormally affected beyond that from which it could regenerate. Television capitalized on this message with weekly series that portrayed families in idealic settings with only minor mishaps; creating the chance to teach a moral message to the viewers. There were also the fantasy programs and westerns that brought escapism and adventure to those who just wanted to forget the harshness of reality for awhile. Most of the box office movies portrayed life as manageable with a certain degree of hardship which caused people to become stronger and more valued as human beings. Society still expected the men to lead the way; therefore most media portrayed life a s being a man’s world, reinforcing the idea that we were safe. After the Vietnam War, the entertainment industry moved away from the â€Å"all is well, we’ll be ok† message, due to the horrific effects of that time period. As soldiers returned from the war, they weren’t ok, and neither were we; everything about life as we knew it had changed, leaving us groping for a way to understand and deal with it all. Families were broken, social roles had changed; it was the first time we had gone to war senselessly and been defeated. Society had begun to question everything it believed; an epiphany moment. The entertainment industry focused more on expressing our horror, rage,