Expert: John Baranyai - 10/27/2009

Question
Hello. For my AP English class I need to write an essay defending the idea that entertainment has the capacity to ruin our society. I am looking for some specific examples in class literature or history to defend my argument. Can you help me out? Thanks.

Answer
Hi  Ashlie and thank you for your most interesting question. One  historic example that comes to mind is the  Woodstock Music  Festival held so many years ago. It involved thousands of hippies who listened to  live rock music  in  a farmer's fields for  days on end and got high  and stayed that way.They fried their brains on LSD and selfishly thought that the party should  never end and contibuted in no way, shape or form to Society.When entertainment becomes a total goal then you forsake the good things  in life such  as work and family.This led to the fall of the Roman Empire where  complete and total debauchery was the goal of everybody.An extreme example is the Charles Manson mass murders on the 1960's which was supposedly inspired by the Beatle's song "Helter Skelter". A helter skelter is a piece of equipment in an English child's  playground.The Blues and Jazz have often  been considered to be the "Devil's Music" and supposedly contributed to the erosion of Society's  values.Also when Elvis Presley  first appeared on the music scene in the 1950's he was considered to be a corrupting influence on the American youth  and so the US Government tried to shut him down by drafting him into the Army in the hope that it would make his poularity disappear.

Best wishes and could you please rate my answer?

John