Ratings In Theaters Essay

The theatre industry would not suffer if a rating system were instituted. As any society moves forward, its inhabitants tend to progress toward that which is fresh, new, and exciting. Western society has become globalized on a scale that no culture has ever witnessed before. This enables the youngest generation, the one that’s most actively using the internet, to have a greater effect on what is socially and culturally acceptable. This inevitably moves culture toward a “freer”, more self-ruled state. Clothing becomes more promiscuous. Movies contain more graphic and sexual content. Music becomes more vulgar. As a society, we tend to avoid anything that appears to put a limit on anything else. No one should tell us what to do. No one should tell us how to live.
When questioned, we simply point to the Romans. Roman culture is used to praise all sorts of things, notably the extreme content of cable shows or sexuality laws. But is it truly beneficial to do as the Romans do? We praise the Romans for their forward thinking on homosexuality, and ignore their similar thinking regarding pedophilia. Roman plays were filled with much “offensive” material. Perhaps, we should learn something from the Romans. Their coliseum was filled with people watching slaves murder each other for sport. Perhaps we shouldn’t learn too much from the Romans.
The Roman standard is not a sufficient measuring stick for morality. Ratings systems for films have occasionally been subject to controversy. At the end of the day, people frown upon their works of art becoming all but untouchable after someone slaps the dreaded NC-17 rating. However, while this system might have killed a few movies, the film industry as a whole has not appeared to suffer. Audiences flock to movies and continuously pile millions of dollars into producers’ pockets. The actors continue to be paid millions and the movies keep getting made. Film technology continues to grow and one would be hard pressed to say the “art” of move is as a whole has suffered.
Furthermore, one should consider the morality of allowing unbridled vulgarity to be shown whenever and wherever “artists” might desire. Should children really be watching a naked man have sex with horses? Should they watch people have their heads sawn off and entrails spilled? Surely, a line exists that we might not want to cross when filling young, ultra-impressionable minds with such things. If nothing else, some parents should have the option to censor their own children’s content.