Fritz Lang 's Metropolis And Charlie Chaplin 's Modern Times

The Progressive Era had a distinct separation of social classes, differentiating economic positions within the cities themselves between the poor and the wealthy elite. Through dangerous factory conditions, horrid living circumstances, and the overall experience within the slums of the city, those living below the poverty line had all but nothing to take advantage of in regards to purchasing decently crafted goods, partaking in leisure time, and even having the funds to move into a two bedroom home for their larger sized families. Through future Progressive Era reforms, the lives of the poor had substantially improved as the result of between housing

In the 1931 film “City Lights”, Charlie Chaplin “opens our eyes”, so to speak, about how society values trivial elements of people over the deeper person by using blindness. In this film, Chaplin brilliantly mixes lighthearted comedy with deep and complex ideas about problems with society. Chaplin uses music, gags, and a genuine love connection to portray this point in multiple ways throughout the movie. Chaplin also took the bold step of not making a talking movie, even though they were available at the time, making the details in the pictures and sounds he was creating that much more important. What makes “City Lights” so special, and different from other comedies, is Chaplin’s natural blend of comedic scenes with tense and serious scenes. Chaplin weaved together a masterpiece that culminates in the end with the lady seeing who she fell in love with, which is also the moment Chaplin slaps the viewer in the face with the realization that the priorities in society are misguided and that the important things cannot be seen with the eye.

Many movie companies and industries have made millions of dollars off of movies that portray poor people, because many individuals prefer to relive the times when they were either poor, or disliked by the society as a whole. There are many movies such as Pretty Woman which “is a perfect example of a film that made huge sums of money portraying the poor in this light” (Hooks, 486). Hooks perceives this as a very good way of making profit, but does mention that the poor should not be devalued by the society this way, and should be treated differently with respect. The way the companies portray the poor in the movies is the way the higher and middle class

The parallels between the theme of the film and rising fears of communism and related topics of concern during that time are captivating. Communism was an ideology originating in the Soviet Union with the ideas of establishing a

When describing how the Underground Man became alienated, Dostoyevsky surfaces some of the Underground Man’s past life. When the Underground Man meets Liza, the prostitute he eventually sleeps with, he thought to himself: “I was already longing to expound the cherished ideas I had brooded over in my corner” (118).

As Marx’s states in his theory, when the working class becomes aware of their exploitation, this will result in a revolt lead by the proletariats. The major theories studied by Marx can be used to analyze the characters and situations presented in the film.

Poverty has been a big issue over the past century or so and continues to be a problem to this day in the United States. Due to the Civil War, rural areas and industrial areas were affected by poverty. The poverty of rural sharecroppers in 1877 was different from the poverty of unemployed industrial workers in 1939. Even though both situations were dealing with a form of poverty, both were two completely different situations. There were several major events that happened that caused poverty of rural sharecroppers in 1877. Although there were various events leading up to the poverty of unemployed industrial workers in 1939, poverty in the year of 1877 was just as bad, if not worse, as in the year of 1939.

Poverty has always been an issue throughout centuries. In most areas living conditions were horrible due to wars, and corruption within cities and states. Most families lost their male sons to the draft of the war at the ages of 6 years or older. Families struggled and did what they had to, to maintain a home as well as food for their families. Because of this Social Realism was successful. Social Realism was an international movement that many artists and composers where a part of. This movement highlights inequalities of capitalism, and gave the chance to these artists and composers to express everyday living conditions of the working class and the poor through their work. Diego Rivera is one of those artists that through his work showed the struggle of the poor, he was one of the most famous muralists in the Mexican Social Realism. The Harlem Renaissance was known as the “New Negro Movement” where African Americans where forced out of Southern states to the urban areas due to the Great Migration. Jacob Lawrence was one of those that expressed his thought on the Great Migration describing it as the push and pull factors.

Kazan highlights how the mob exploits their position at the expense of the longshoreman. The union has instilled fear into all of the union

Workers were marginalized by the poor working conditions they had. A lot of the time the workers

Dystopian science fiction films of the past have frequently presented a critical dystopia, by projecting future cities that perpetuates corporate capitalism’s prominent features. Examples of these features are urban decay, commodification, overcrowding, highly skewed disparities of wealth and poverty, and authoritarian policing. An example of a Dystopian science fiction film that project cities that perpetuates

The idea of progress being inspired by the past is revisited in Fritz Lang's 1927 film Metropolis.

Dystopia and Utopia can be explored in many forms of media such as artwork, film, music, poetry and even dance. The easiest and most vivid way to depict these genres to the audience is in films. Films specifically incorporate visual symbolism through colors and settings and screenshot width and filters. Films may also incorporate a subliminal message to the reader through background music used in different scenes. Displaying utopian and dystopian societies through film leaves some imagination to the audience while allowing them to visually compare with the real world around them. For the purpose of exploring aspects of utopia and dystopia through films, I have chosen the films Metropolis by Fritz Lang (1927) and the episode Nosedive from

The Man Who Lived Underground by Richard Wright is full of symbols. The story is that of a man who after being accused of a murder starts living in underground sewers, in an attempt to escape the law. There are several themes in the story, however, underground life is a powerful major theme in it that has several meanings and implications in the context of the story. Underground can be seen as a potent symbol meaning an escape from the social institution and its bondage, as a relief from inequality and racial divisions, as solitude and self-discovery and many more similar things. Underground is also the stage for the most of the drama that takes place as a part of the story. However, underground also appears as a symbol of repulsion and revolt. Overall, the writer has used the symbol of underground to expose the corruption and chaos in the society in a brilliant manner.

The silent film, Metropolis directed by Fritz Lang, released in 1927, reflects the social situation of the time in Germany during the Weimar Period, before the rise of Hitler power. At that time, there was a new political climate, which was in favor of an equity-oriented fascism rather than liberty-oriented capitalism. The film clearly gives viewers an idea that fascism way of the political system is the preferable ideology for the society by depicting the class struggles between capitalists and labours. Thus, the movie was often interpreted as a propaganda movie and being criticized.