Ejemplo de ensayo argumentativo en inglés sobre los medios de comunicación masiva y su influencia en la sociedad
Here is an example of an argumentative essay in English about mass media and its influence on society.
In today’s society, mass media has a great amount of influence on the beliefs, values and decisions of people. No form of mass media has a greater sphere of influence than the television and movie industry; films have a strong ability to compel people to accept the ideas shown to them. This is the reason why most intelligent films have a theme or message that the film’s creators intended to impart on the audience. Many people would expect the films that have this in-depth social commentary laced throughout them to be aimed toward adults who can understand and realize the messages being conveyed to them. However, this does not always seem to be the case; sometimes movies aimed toward children and young people can address serious issues and concerns in society. Many well-known animated films marketed to kids provide thought-provoking social commentary, as is evidenced by the Pixar film WALL-E. On the surface, WALL-E is nothing more than a romantic story of a quirky junkyard robot trying to court an elegant research probe, but this movie is far more complex than it seems. The film WALL-E is more than just an animated movie aimed at kids; the film portrays present-day social concerns in an extreme way to support the main argument that people need to change the harmful practices they take part in to ensure a better future.
WALL-E addresses many environmental issues which may be detrimental to the Earth’s future. The specific environmental problems the film addresses revolve around pollution and waste management. The beginning scene of the film shows a view of Earth from outer space; the planet looks nothing like it does today. As the camera zooms in on Earth, the first thing that is noticeable is the cloud of old satellites, scrap metal and other junk that encircles the planet; this shows the far-reaching effects of the pollution that plagues the planet. The land on Earth is now littered with mounds of trash, which look like mountains from a distance, that reach heights equivalent to tall buildings. The planet is nothing more than a barren deserted wasteland with only the remains of human civilization. This scene distinctly depicts a future Earth that has become uninhabitable because of uncontrolled pollution and waste allocation. The beginning of the film also provides overhead shots of a bleak abandoned metropolitan type city that could be compared to present-day cities like Los Angeles or New York City. By portraying a future city ravaged by trash that looks similar to current cities, the scene allows the audience to relate the city to one that they possibly live in, which can cause the audience to wonder how the future city became devastated with pollution and garbage. The main point the scene attempts to convey is that a lack of environmental awareness may lead to a planet that becomes damaged beyond revival. Although an extreme exaggeration, the scene is grounded in reality. Clearly it was the filmmakers’ intent to send the message that the Earth is ours to look after and it is the peoples’ responsibility to take care of it. Although this movie is set in a distant future, the environmental issues shown are ever-present today and could become major problems in the future if measures are not taken to better care for the planet.
WALL-E brings up the issue of human overdependence on technology and how it has caused humans to become complacent and lazy. Specifically, WALL-E explores the idea that while technology can improve human life and make it easier, too much technology can cause more problems than it helps alleviate. In the film, all humans have to live on a large spaceship called the Axiom; on the ship, all humans rely on hover chairs to move around. Human life is completely controlled by the technology on board the ship; the robots take care of the humans. In one particular scene, two guys are talking to each other through their holographic screens that are built in to everyone’s hover recliner; when the camera pans out it is revealed that these guys are hovering right next to each other but are too lazy to face each other and would rather use their screens to interact. This scene highlights an important issue with the overuse of technology; people lose face to face, social interaction. In the same scene, it is evident that the hover chairs follow designated lines on the floor; this further emphasizes human overindulgence in technology because not only do the robots provide humans with transportation, but they also direct the path where the hover chair goes. Although taken to an extreme, the film shows how robots have made life so easy that humans put very little, if any, effort into anything. Modern-day society can relate to this overuse of technology because these days everyone owns some electronic device that keeps them plugged in during the day such as an iPod or cell phone. A message the audience can take away from the obvious overindulgence in automation present in the movie may be that technology can be a hindrance to society when it diminishes skills and knowledge people previously had before they began to rely on technology. The advanced technology shown in the film may seem a bit outlandish, but in reality, society is not too far from such a future.
The film uses the company Buy N Large to show the problem with big business monopolies and how this affects human life. Buy N Large represents a large corporation that has taken over the planet completely; it is shown as the only company that exists. Similar to a modern-day Amazon or Wal-Mart, Buy N Large sells everything anybody could ever want or need, and since Buy N Large controls the market system, consumers are basically slaves to the corporation. The scene showing WALL-E’s daily routine in the city demonstrates the power Buy N Large possesses; the corporate logo and brand appears plastered on all aspects of life from food, such as “cupcake in a cup,” to public transportation. The film alludes to a future that has undergone a corporate takeover of human life. Another scene that demonstrates the control the business monopoly has is when the president is addressing the humans in an archived press conference; instead of having the title of President of Earth, he has the title of “Global CEO of Buy N Large.” This subtle scene in the movie shows the blurred line between business and government. Buy N Large has so much power that they have assumed the role of government and are taking care of the people whether the people want it or not. The main problem with business monopolies is that they take away consumer independence and freedom because there is no competition for a company like Buy N Large, thereby letting the company have total control over the consumer population. The filmmakers take a present-day problem, in this case the issue of business monopolies, and take it to an extreme to cause viewers to reflect on present-day society. Big business has a powerful effect on the lives of people in today’s society, and one may wonder how close society is to a world controlled by corporations.
WALL-E brings up the unhealthy habits that people have adopted when it portrays humans as obese due to overconsumption. The film specifically shows the unhealthy habits humans have taken up now that they live in space. All humans in the film are obese to a point where it is difficult for them to walk, which is why they require hover chairs to get around. The people on board the ship do not get any exercise because they have no reason to stay in shape. Several scenes highlight the inability of the humans to walk, particularly the scene where the captain waddles like a sumo wrestler as he stands up to the autopilot. Another scene which echoes the low fitness level of the humans is when WALL-E causes a man to fall out of his chair. Instead of getting up, the man waits for the robots to come and pick him up. This scene shows how every human on board the Axiom is looked after and pampered by the robots, making human life effortless, so much so that adults have turned into immobile unhealthy babies because of it. The overconsumption portrayed in the film mirrors today’s society where people want the biggest, best and most of everything. The society in the movie has no sense of moderation anymore and has lost all self-control. WALL-E takes the present-day problem of obesity and poor lifestyle choices along with overconsumption to a future extreme that has led to Earth having depleted resources and has ruined the healthy human self-image.
Films that include lush social commentaries that examine society are the type of movies people want to watch more than once to fully comprehend the extent of the message the filmmakers were trying to convey. These films cause people to think about the world around them from a perspective that they perhaps never thought of before. WALL-E may be a family movie, but it is a perfect example of how a film can discuss social concerns in a way that can be enjoyable. WALL-E takes present-day social issues such as overdependence on technology, environmental problems, business monopolies, and unhealthy human habits to a bad extreme to portray the negative effects they can have on civilization. This makes the audience think how close today’s society is to becoming like the society shown in the film.
Works Cited
Wall-E. Dir. Andrew Stanton. Perf. Ben Burtt, Elissa Knight, Jeff Garlin, Fred Willard, John Ratzenberger. Disney-Pixar, 2008. Film.