America's Influence On Mass Shootings

Bowling for Columbine is a documentary directed by American filmmaker and activist, Michael Moore. The political documentary focuses on the 1999 school shootings that occurred in Columbine, Colorado, and Flint, Michigan and the correlation of guns to the high homicide rates in America. Moore argues that the number one problem the United States faces is gun control. Moore effectively uses ethos, pathos, and logos appeals to present an unbiased and informational view of the issue of gun violence in America. He also uses the fallacious argumentative strategy, ad hominem. Moore does not put his own direct bias into the film, he instead shows both sides of the argument to allow the viewer to decide for themselves which side they are on.

The movie "Bowling for Columbine" was made after the shooting in Columbine high school and tries to explore the reasons for America's violent nature. Moore believes that there is one main reason for this, the fact that there are relaxed gun laws in America. Therefore, Moore uses a number of different persuasive techniques in order to try and persuade the viewer to believe that this is the case. He uses certain visuals, music, sequences the scenes in a specific order and uses facts and opinions to achieve this.

Michael Moore’s documentary is filled with an ample amount of logos, ethos, and pathos which helps get his message through to the audience. In ‘Bowling for Columbine’, Moore talks about the horrific shooting, which occurred on April 20th, 1999 at Columbine high school. Moore explains how Michigan has a disturbingly big tolerance for firearms and actually see it as a necessary item that everyone should have. Guns in Michigan are so easily accessible that it can be obtained at a bank for free if you open up an account with them. Moore demonstrated this to be true as he so easily walked into the bank empty handed and came out with a rifle. ‘Bowling for Columbine’ revealed how America has the worst murder rate when it comes to shootings even though

Has the deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill led to the increase of mass shootings experienced in the US? According to Lankford, several reports suggest that up to 60% of offenders of mass shootings in the US since 1970, exhibited symptoms including depression, delusions, and acute paranoia prior to the commission of their crimes. Further statistics have shown that since 1982, there have been at least 71 public mass shooting across the country; with 34 of these mass shooting having occurred since 2006. A recent analysis of the database by researchers at Harvard University corroborated by a recent FBI study concluded that mass shootings have been on the rise. More than half of the cases involve school or workplace shootings, 12 and 20

The 2002 film Bowling for Columbine is a documentary written, directed, and narrated by Michael Moore. Moore has won numerous awards including the Academy Award for best documentary feature. The film explores acts of violence with guns and the primary causes for the Columbine School Massacre, where two students shot and killed thirteen people and injured twenty-one others. Bowling for Columbine takes a deep and often disturbing probe into what the motives may have been for the shooters and investigates other gun-related issues along the way. Moore explores different aspects of gun-culture such as receiving free guns from a bank, taking a look at America’s violent history, and interviewing important people like Charlton Heston, former president of the National Rifle Association. The film ultimately comes to the conclusion that the American culture of fear along with the accessibility of guns is the reason why there are so many gun-related deaths. This thesis is supported by many examples Ethos, Logos, and Pathos evidence.

Bowling for Columbine is a documentary about how guns are a bad influence and pollute the mind, rather than supplying safety, which is the real reason behind the possession of a gun being legalised. Michael Moore, the film maker, wrote and produced the film to emphasise his point on why guns should never be sold or purchased again. The main story Moore focused on was one that was absolutely shocking and could astonish you from start to finish: The Shooting at Columbine High School. The ordinary and average school was put through an attack by two absent minded children who destructively killed 1 teacher and 12 students, not including the many more they injured. Moore also tried interviewing people whose lives had been affected due to guns.

As humans living in a modern sociological time period, the truth can be cleverly and ingeniously twisted by film directors to convince us that their sole opinions are factual. This is most definitely no exception regarding Academy- Award winning filmmaker Michael Moore and his documentary Bowling for Columbine. Michael Moore explores the lead up to the Columbine massacre and more broadly, the proliferation of guns and rapidly growing homicide rate in America. Moore also investigates the reason as to why Canada, in comparison to America, does not have the same rate of gun related crimes.

Filmmaker Michael Moore takes up the lane and splits the nation with his controversial documentary Bowling for Columbine. The Oscar winning film shows America and it’s gun culture within it. Made in 2002, a bit after the infamous columbine shooting, this movie was made to open up all discussions on media and gun control. By asking the question of why America is so violent compared to other civilized countries, Michael Moore successfully raises awareness of the causes of gun violence. But how does he raise awareness?

Three years after the massacre at Columbine High School, left-wing political filmmaker Michael Moore released his award winning documentary ‘Bowling for Columbine,’ which persuasively conveyed his negative view on the ownership and retail of guns and ammunition in America. Moore’s emphatic use of documentary techniques and fallacies collaborate to strengthen his biased message, that America’s questionable attitude towards firearms is the primary cause of the Columbine High School massacre and other acts of arm related violence. Throughout the film, Moore continually utilizes such techniques as juxtaposition, where he creates irony to weaken an opposing argument though disparity. Furthermore, the use of a cartoon segment serves to satirise the opposing point of view, combined with interviews where hard hitting questions are carefully chosen to attempt to catch the subject off guard.

In Bowling for Columbine, Michael Moore, an award winning writer and director takes a look at some of the many social problems that plague America to this day. Moore starts his documentary by briefly talking about the Columbine High School shooting and then moves on to discuss things that may have truly been a factor in some the aggression that the two students so aggressively took out on their peers. Many issues are talked about in this movie including but not limited to: The Oklahoma City bombing, the presence of a leading tactical weapons provider located near the small town of Littleton, and many others. Not all of the things brought up in the film directly relate to the incidents at

Bowling For Columbine is a well-directed documentary that informs people about gun violence in America. Michael Moore is successful in showing that America has been going through many gun tragedies; and portrays the sense that America’s problems are out of control. He conveys this through informative facts, images, and comparisons.

In a more recent study conducted between 2009-2010 showed “a decrease of 18 percentage points from the peak of 31 percentage points in 1995-96”, this was the year in which the mass shooting in Port Arthur took place, and following this was when all of the firearms regulations were introduced. In Australia, a total of three mass shootings and one other incident of gun violence with a handgun with death resulting occurred over fourteen years. Following each of these incidences there were proposals for new firearm regulations that would limit the types of guns allowed, the ammunition you were able to have, as well as regulate the people who were able to obtain a firearm, and for what reason they were able to have one. In Australia, it appears that the incidence of gun homicide, in addition to the incidence of suicide has decreased since the new regulations have been

Is it the bowling? It must be the Video games? Michael Moore’s award winning documentary; ‘Bowling for Columbine’ explores the reason for the violence in America and the reason for the Columbine High school mascara. In April 1999 two students Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold went on a shooting rampage killing 12 students and a teacher before committing suicide, Moore looks at the background in which the massacre took place and assumptions about related issues. Moore uses Bill Nichols’ four modes of representation; the interactive, expository, observational and reflexive to convey his viewpoint on gun control in America and the nature of violence in the United States of America.

Michael Moore’s flawed 2002 expository documentary Bowling for Columbine is ineffective in its goals to open Americas eyes to its very serious gun violence problem. Michael Moore sets out to uncover why the United States can’t seem to end its devastating and reoccurring mass shootings, by using deception as its primary tool of persuasion and effect, Moore attempts to vilify pro-gun activists. The humorous documentary frequently highpoints controversial decisions and actions made by the then President of the National Rifle Association Charlton Heston. Bowling also raises issues such as the ease of buying pointless high powered assault weapons just about anywhere, and American media’s film first ask later attitude towards gun crimes and social and racial issues. Americans are left even more paranoid and hostile than ever before, something the documentary should have set out to end.

The Techniques of Michael Moore in Bowling For Columbine to Present the Message on Gun Control