Show Don't Tell: Issue 5

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FIGHT CLUB

This in turn affects the debate on free speech. Free speech would be chaos if there is no form of conduct because everyone would become transgressive and experimental, speaking their mind and possibly finding themselves in some form of trouble because they have been taboo and crossed a line that may send societies into pandemonium. The freedom of speech in order to create transgressive and experimental works as well as the freedom of speech to comment on it is both significantly important. As Uncle Ben (Parker) said to his nephew Peter (Parker); “With great power comes great responsibility.” And although he wasn’t the first to have been recorded saying the phrase, (that would be William Lamb, a.k.a. Lord Melbourne British Parliament member, 1807) it doesn’t mean the homily doesn’t resonate profound truth. To be successfully transgressive is to show a developed understanding of its power through responsible practices of the arts in the same way that a great horror story is still a great story without the horror elements. Films and TV programmes are perfect examples for this explanation because those that have had success while still presenting a transgressive product have left their audiences appropriately shook up, opening their minds to the psychological elements of sexual, violent , and other taboo themes. Some filmmakers are just about the shock factor, instead of focusing on reinforcing boundaries of human development. Transgression needs to pave the way inch by inch. There are some filmmakers that disconnect themselves from that rule and cross the line and go way beyond it, only considering traumatising their audiences with images, sounds, and implications of ultra violence, disturbing sexual activities that compromise a more steady growth of the human condition. Just like free speech, if there were no rules in place or codes of conduct, there would be chaos and mass depravation in the human condition. Transgression is, in my opinion, a necessary peccadillo that, with the right amount of responsibility, can further improve the human condition, with a better understanding and an appreciation of the arts.

PICTURE FROM CRITICALCOMMONS.ORG

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