The Symbolism And Social Meaning Of The Truman Show
The Truman Show is the story of a thirty-year old man whose entire life has been broadcast to a global audience as a television show. As Truman catches on to the made-for-television nature of his entire world, the film focuses on the negative effects of living during a television culture. This film can be read for symbolism and social meaning of the current television culture that we live in today, not just entertainment. The story of The Truman Show allows the audience to grasp that even "real" broadcasts, such as news programs and reality television shows are produced and controlled for the viewer's consumption.
The Truman Show is a non-stop live broadcast that generates revenues through product-placement advertisement, such as Meryl's promotion of kitchen items or Marlon's constant beer …show more content…
drinking. In fact, the show has become its own product, marketing video collections of the greatest episodes, pillows, and even everything seen on the show.
Even Truman is seen as a product, being forced into an unrealistic reality in order to keep Christof's spectacle going (McGregor, 112). Advertising is constant in the world that we live in today. We see advertisements at all points of our day, just as in the world of Sea Haven. Sea Haven could be considered the epitomy of a society dedicated to consumption, which is not far from the society that we live in presently. We are compelled to ask ourselves what is actually being advertised to us on television, is it products or ways of life and is this type of advertisement ethical or effective. Television programs that are watched all the time advertise more than just clothes for us to wear, they advertise the way our society should live, just as The Truman Show. For example, the type of family that is acceptable in our society is advertised to us on television. Years ago, a television show would only portray a family with both heterosexual parents raising the children. As our society has evolved, television programs and commercials let our society know that it is acceptable to be a single or homosexual parent. And if you have a
problem raising your child because of the type of situation you are in, just go on Super Nanny or buy a product that will make your child feel better. We barely recognize the ways we participate in advertising. Every time a television or radio is turned on or the Internet is used our society is attempting to be consumed. Think about a course of a television show, there are hundreds of attempts to advertise products to the audience that the audience does not even know about. Truman can be seen as a metaphor for us watching television. Until he began to pay close attention, he had no idea that everything in his life was an advertisement.
It can be said that things are not the way they appear to be in the production of television. All images are constructed for a particular purpose and for a specific audience (Galagher, 111). Every image will produce different responses in different viewers, depending on their culture, past experiences, age, and beliefs (Galagher, 111). But viewers are not entirely free to decide their own interpretation of any image. All filmmakers use techniques that the audience responds to automatically. The angle of each shot, the choice of music and lighting and film editing, are all techniques that produce certain responses in viewers. Techniques are also used to make characters look heroic or on the other hand passive. For example, during The Truman Show, when Truman is reunited with his fictitious father, the creators of this sitcom use techniques, such as particular music and fog, in order to create an experience as emotional as possible for the audience. An emotional response from the audience allows the show to continue its' popularity, enabling the consumed society of Sea Haven to make money. The extreme manipulation used by the creators and actors of The Truman Show in order to keep Truman in Sea Haven is similar to the manipulation used by current television producers. Many television shows demand that we ignore certain questions about our viewing experience, in much of the same way that Truman is persuaded that what he is seeing, hearing and touching is real (Gillard and Thomas, 116). By placing enough real factors in a show, such as a live audience, various filmmaking techniques, a set of live characters for us to watch, and even an occasional mistake, the audience is expected to accept the reality that is presented to them. We are not watching a television program; we are watching the roommates, the biggest losers, or Truman Burbank.
At one point of the film, Christof states, "We accept the reality of the world in which we are presented." In our television culture, we are constantly being made aware of the power of the media, and the way in which reality is constructed for us by television. The Truman Show, in which one's life is completely exploited for the purpose of entertainment for others, is not all so different from the television shows that are aired today or the intrusion of the media in the lives of celebrities and the trouble such actions cause, such as in the life of Princess Diana. The media has also intruded into all of our lives with shows like Montel and Jerry Springer broadcasting the lives of average people, exploring and devouring all privacy. These television shows have taken away the separation between our public and private lives attempting to bring the real world to television in some form. These shows all act as if they represent reality, but actually make life into straightforward stories that let people enjoy familiar emotional responses. At the end of the film, Christof tries to persuade Truman that the world he created is actually a better place to be than the real world outside. Are the television producers of today attempting to have us believe that everything we see on television is true because it is so called reality?. Does television want us to ignore our lives because according to them, what is seen on television is better?
It can be asked, why do so many of us invest so much of our time, energy and lives in consuming stories and in following reality that has been made up? Have we become addicted to the spectacle of the lives of others, rather than in making our own? As Truman abandons the security of acting in Christof's illusory world, are we also challenged to change accepting what is presented to us? Does Truman represent the truth and Sea Haven represents the media; desperately trying to sell us, make us believe in false information, and once we believe accept that what is told to us is true?
The Truman Show is a non-stop live broadcast that generates revenues through product-placement advertisement, such as Meryl's promotion of kitchen items or Marlon's constant beer …show more content…
drinking. In fact, the show has become its own product, marketing video collections of the greatest episodes, pillows, and even everything seen on the show.
Even Truman is seen as a product, being forced into an unrealistic reality in order to keep Christof's spectacle going (McGregor, 112). Advertising is constant in the world that we live in today. We see advertisements at all points of our day, just as in the world of Sea Haven. Sea Haven could be considered the epitomy of a society dedicated to consumption, which is not far from the society that we live in presently. We are compelled to ask ourselves what is actually being advertised to us on television, is it products or ways of life and is this type of advertisement ethical or effective. Television programs that are watched all the time advertise more than just clothes for us to wear, they advertise the way our society should live, just as The Truman Show. For example, the type of family that is acceptable in our society is advertised to us on television. Years ago, a television show would only portray a family with both heterosexual parents raising the children. As our society has evolved, television programs and commercials let our society know that it is acceptable to be a single or homosexual parent. And if you have a
problem raising your child because of the type of situation you are in, just go on Super Nanny or buy a product that will make your child feel better. We barely recognize the ways we participate in advertising. Every time a television or radio is turned on or the Internet is used our society is attempting to be consumed. Think about a course of a television show, there are hundreds of attempts to advertise products to the audience that the audience does not even know about. Truman can be seen as a metaphor for us watching television. Until he began to pay close attention, he had no idea that everything in his life was an advertisement.
It can be said that things are not the way they appear to be in the production of television. All images are constructed for a particular purpose and for a specific audience (Galagher, 111). Every image will produce different responses in different viewers, depending on their culture, past experiences, age, and beliefs (Galagher, 111). But viewers are not entirely free to decide their own interpretation of any image. All filmmakers use techniques that the audience responds to automatically. The angle of each shot, the choice of music and lighting and film editing, are all techniques that produce certain responses in viewers. Techniques are also used to make characters look heroic or on the other hand passive. For example, during The Truman Show, when Truman is reunited with his fictitious father, the creators of this sitcom use techniques, such as particular music and fog, in order to create an experience as emotional as possible for the audience. An emotional response from the audience allows the show to continue its' popularity, enabling the consumed society of Sea Haven to make money. The extreme manipulation used by the creators and actors of The Truman Show in order to keep Truman in Sea Haven is similar to the manipulation used by current television producers. Many television shows demand that we ignore certain questions about our viewing experience, in much of the same way that Truman is persuaded that what he is seeing, hearing and touching is real (Gillard and Thomas, 116). By placing enough real factors in a show, such as a live audience, various filmmaking techniques, a set of live characters for us to watch, and even an occasional mistake, the audience is expected to accept the reality that is presented to them. We are not watching a television program; we are watching the roommates, the biggest losers, or Truman Burbank.
At one point of the film, Christof states, "We accept the reality of the world in which we are presented." In our television culture, we are constantly being made aware of the power of the media, and the way in which reality is constructed for us by television. The Truman Show, in which one's life is completely exploited for the purpose of entertainment for others, is not all so different from the television shows that are aired today or the intrusion of the media in the lives of celebrities and the trouble such actions cause, such as in the life of Princess Diana. The media has also intruded into all of our lives with shows like Montel and Jerry Springer broadcasting the lives of average people, exploring and devouring all privacy. These television shows have taken away the separation between our public and private lives attempting to bring the real world to television in some form. These shows all act as if they represent reality, but actually make life into straightforward stories that let people enjoy familiar emotional responses. At the end of the film, Christof tries to persuade Truman that the world he created is actually a better place to be than the real world outside. Are the television producers of today attempting to have us believe that everything we see on television is true because it is so called reality?. Does television want us to ignore our lives because according to them, what is seen on television is better?
It can be asked, why do so many of us invest so much of our time, energy and lives in consuming stories and in following reality that has been made up? Have we become addicted to the spectacle of the lives of others, rather than in making our own? As Truman abandons the security of acting in Christof's illusory world, are we also challenged to change accepting what is presented to us? Does Truman represent the truth and Sea Haven represents the media; desperately trying to sell us, make us believe in false information, and once we believe accept that what is told to us is true?