Negative Effects of Popular Media
Oletha Moore
April 25, 1997
Humanities 490
Seeing Is Believing: Negative Effects
Of Popular Media On
Society’s Views of Disabled People
Social Therapists teach that much of what we learn is the result of observation, in which we pay attention to what people do and say, and notice the consequences of their behavior. Also, Richard MacCann shares that “the best method to begin [sic] discovering the truth about something is to observe that thing and the circumstances surrounding it”. The latter, however, certainly appears to be lacking in popular media’s portrayals of people with disabilities. The manners in which they are depicted are oftentimes distorted, and thus encourage society’s members to exhibit acts of pity, fear, ridicule, and discrimination. From the eyes of filmmakers and writers, some of the images in which disabled people are created include: helplessness, violent and/or criminal, child-like, and crazed. Joseph P. Shapiro confirms that these images result from portrayals of characters in popular media. Examples of two movie characters that can cause society to respond with pity and fear are Tiny Tim in “A Christmas Carol”, and Lenny in “Of Mice and Men”. “Tiny Tim is depicted as a helpless crippled boy who is in need of cure or care from a nondisabled person”, and Lenny’s mental retardation and child-like behavior cause him to commit acts of murder because he has no sense of his body strength or the value of life. Tiny Tim’s and Lenny’s character are presented is not completely falsely presented, however, because some physically disabled people do need our assistance, and some mentally retarded people do cause harm on themselves and others. But it is our own individual responsibility to learn and realize that all things of which the media presents is not necessarily the total truth. Miller (1985) shared her opinion of literature’s regard for the depiction of disabilities when she stated:
The writer’s eye is supposed to spy out
April 25, 1997
Humanities 490
Seeing Is Believing: Negative Effects
Of Popular Media On
Society’s Views of Disabled People
Social Therapists teach that much of what we learn is the result of observation, in which we pay attention to what people do and say, and notice the consequences of their behavior. Also, Richard MacCann shares that “the best method to begin [sic] discovering the truth about something is to observe that thing and the circumstances surrounding it”. The latter, however, certainly appears to be lacking in popular media’s portrayals of people with disabilities. The manners in which they are depicted are oftentimes distorted, and thus encourage society’s members to exhibit acts of pity, fear, ridicule, and discrimination. From the eyes of filmmakers and writers, some of the images in which disabled people are created include: helplessness, violent and/or criminal, child-like, and crazed. Joseph P. Shapiro confirms that these images result from portrayals of characters in popular media. Examples of two movie characters that can cause society to respond with pity and fear are Tiny Tim in “A Christmas Carol”, and Lenny in “Of Mice and Men”. “Tiny Tim is depicted as a helpless crippled boy who is in need of cure or care from a nondisabled person”, and Lenny’s mental retardation and child-like behavior cause him to commit acts of murder because he has no sense of his body strength or the value of life. Tiny Tim’s and Lenny’s character are presented is not completely falsely presented, however, because some physically disabled people do need our assistance, and some mentally retarded people do cause harm on themselves and others. But it is our own individual responsibility to learn and realize that all things of which the media presents is not necessarily the total truth. Miller (1985) shared her opinion of literature’s regard for the depiction of disabilities when she stated:
The writer’s eye is supposed to spy out
Bibliography: New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1994. Hamilton, Ontario, Canada: Health Markets Research, 1993. New Brunswick: Rutgers Univerisy Press, 1994. 8Shapiro, Robert P. No Pity. New York: Times Books, 1994