The Portrayal of Violent Content In Cartoons Shown on Satellite Television: Dstv

The Portrayal of Violent Content In Cartoons Shown on Satellite Television: Dstv.

ABSTRACT  

The notion that art reflects reality is an ideology set upon works of art to influence the perception of the audience to decode the message as it is or in a way that relates to the message the artist intends to pass across. As a result of this notion, the message or messages tend to influence the audience psychologically altering the way they think, how they behave, and also the perception to which they perceive reality.

Over the years, with the evolution of new mediums whereas these works of art can be exhibited. The prevalent mediums thesis day are the internet and the television. Hence countless contents are being uploaded and aired every single day. This is a source of entertainment for many depending on their choices or what is been provided for the audience. As a result, this content influences the audience psychologically. 

INTRODUCTION  

Cartoons are mostly 2d animations made from drawing characters and making those characters move in a designed environment in a story of a motion picture. These days, cartoons are mostly made for the entertainment of children mainly. With the element of exaggeration found in these cartoons, children become enthusiastic to watch them and as a result of these, the cartoon comes to have an effect on the child’s life.

According to a report “The Effects of Cartoon Characters as Motivators of Preschool Disadvantaged Children”, children tend to develop interpersonal behavior, social growth, and learning based on characters in cartoons. (Gill). Furthermore, some of these children get attached to cartoons to the extent that they associate more with cartoon characters more than they do with grown-ups.  

BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY  

The term Violence simply means to cause intentional harm or hurt someone or something physically. Depending on the context which the word is used, the fundamental concept of inflicting hurt intentionally is what violence is all about. From the dictionary, violence is defined as behavior involving force physically, with the intention of damaging, hurting, or killing a thing or person.

Cartoons are generally exaggerated drawings of a subject. The inception of cartoons dates back to the 18th century in Italy. This was derived from the concept of caricature which means a drawing that adds or exaggerates its subject anyhow. The caricature was derived from the “caricature” which denotes exaggeration. (Harry) 2 Content containing violence can be found in cartoons since their inception.

From the early day of cartoons when it was just a single-frame drawing, the aim was to portray what was going on in society in an exaggerated way. Cartoonists used this medium to draw and give their opinion on what was happening in their societies. Some of these drawings had the elements of violence in them because, at that period of time, there was a lot of tension in Europe.

From a single-frame caricature, cartoons have evolved from single drawings in a frame. Eventually, these drawings found their way to appearing in newspapers and magazines through the 1900s. (Harry) In the late 20th century, cartoons started to become popular for the element of humor and exaggeration. Additionally, in the 20th century a breakthrough in the world of animation and cartoons. 

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