Speech in Modern Times

Modern Times by Charlie Chaplin is a movie set in the 1930s, during the Great Depression era. The movie starred Charlie Chaplin as the famous Little Tramp and his life’s journey during this era. From factory worker under proletarian control to convict to entertainer at a restaurant, Chaplin had depicted the life of millions of people during the Great Depression as he struggles with overwhelming obstacles. With the help of costar Paulette Goddard as the Gamin, they ultimately proved the hardship of unemployment, poverty and hunger that millions of people had actually endured years ago in America. Chaplin did a very well job conveying a message with his acting skills but it was the silence in which this movie brought that captured the essence of what everything was about. Charlie Chaplin chose to film this movie in silence because it represented all of the common people during the Great Depression era and how they were never heard. Whether they are factory workers, or convicts, just like the Little Tramp was, they weren’t important enough to have a voice. They had no purpose to have a voice because they weren’t rich or in charge of a big corporation. They were just one in a millions of other struggling people during the Depression. If they didn’t like the way they were being treated, they can be easily replaced, no questions asked because a lot of people craved for a job. Towards three quarters of the movie, the Little Tramp wanted to get his job back in a factory. While he was on his way to get in the gate of the factory, there were thousands of people pushing and pulling to get inside. The factory wanted a limited amount of people and luckily for the Little Tramp, he was able to squirm his way through all the people to be the last person to be admitted to the factory. The fact that there were a lot of people eager to get a job, just proves that no one person in that crowd is important enough to have a voice because they can be easily replaced.