A few weeks ago my writing professor gave us an assignment. We had 4 prompts, the first of which he said was the toughest and recommended we not do it because it was unlikely that we would earn a decent grade from it. He said he's only ever read one 'A' paper written on that subject and that was years ago. Being the stubborn little snot that I am I decided to write on the first prompt. I got an A.Here's my paper :] Quite a few people, especially in Utah, find moral conflict in whether or not a college professor should be allowed to show an R-rated movie to his students. More specifically, if the professor of an African-American Literature class should be allowed to show his students the movie Amistad, a movie made in the late 1990’s by Stephen Spielberg about the “mutiny onboard a slave ship” (IMDb). Generally speaking these people who oppose the viewing of said film belong to the LDS faith, so they are the religious side I will be addressing although I realize there are other religions that may struggle with rated R movie watching. But I think that this issue should be viewed in a secular way to help us see the issue more logically.
Logically speaking movie theaters aren’t allowed to admit people under 17 into rated R, or ‘Restricted’, movies unless they are accompanied by an adult (mpaa.org). The people who made up the movie rating system took great consideration into what certain age groups of people could handle watching in movies. Amistad received the rating they deemed appropriate – R for its “nudity and graphic sequences aboard the ship” (IMDb). Children ages 17 and under are not allowed admission to the screen(s) showing Restricted movies such as Amistad. On a slightly different note, most college students are over the age of 17. Heck, lots of people I know didn’t even graduate high school until they were almost 18. If those guys were to go to a movie theater showing Amistad, they would be granted permission to buy a ticket, grab a Coke and a box of Goobers, and sit their non-restricted butt into one of the coveted, communicable disease infected theater chairs to watch Amistad with no regrets or fears that this movie might be too intense for them.
If that same person were enrolled in college and just so happened to be in this African-American Literature class where Amistad was going to be shown, according to the movie rating system, he would be able to handle it. This student, who on their own volition went to the theater to watch a rated R movie, took it upon himself to enroll in college. He decided his major and registered for classes by himself, perhaps with some help from dad or a counselor, but mainly this guy did this all by his lonesome. Let’s say this same student signed up for this African-American Literature class; that really isn’t the kind of class you just take, it’s more of a ‘This is a subject I’m into’ sort of deal. And people who have been properly educated with an American elementary and secondary education know that America has had a rough past with Africans, namely slaves, and they also know that slavery played no small role in that history. Anyone [knowingly] taking this lit class could aptly assume that slavery won’t just be skimmed over or briefly mentioned and then brushed to the side. Slavery defined African-Americans for a long time, that’s just how it is. America shipped people over from Africa to enslave them. We’re not proud of it, but it happened. You can’t, in good conscience, just look past that. That would be like being the grandchild of a Nazi from WWII and saying the Holocaust never happened. With that knowledge in mind, any college student signing up for that class is well informed, or at least knows about the slavery issue America had to deal with.
Once in that class I am more than certain that the professor would hand his students a syllabus and in this syllabus it would mention that the class would be viewing certain films. The professor would go over their syllabus, but if not, then the student, the college student who is now living on their own and sustaining their own life, should be responsible enough to give that document a once-over. He might still need mom to wash his Underoos, but heaven help me, he should know how to read a paper thoroughly. Even if the professor didn’t give their students a syllabus or just didn’t go over it, or if the student wasn’t smart enough to read that piece of paper, it shouldn’t matter. If the professor hadn’t mentioned to his class that they would be watching a historically correct film on slavery, that shouldn’t matter either because I’m about 99% sure that the entire class is over the age of 17 and can legally take part in viewing said Restricted film because, according to the film rating gods, these kids can handle themselves when they watch this movie.
But what if they can’t handle themselves? What if they claim that watching an R rated movie is against their religion? Well, then this turns away from being secular and into an issue of more personal weight. I know that most LDS folk say that the viewing of rated R movies is against their religion. Well, that isn’t really doctrine according to popular Latter-day Saint author Orson Scott Card in his talk ‘Is There an R-Rated Movie Commandment?’ In this talk he addresses the scorn he received from fellow Latter-day Saints about the praise he gave Mel Gibson’s movie The Passion of the Christ. He also quotes the only Prophet to have ever said any ‘real’ council against rated R movies, Ezra Taft Benson. Here is the actual quote:
"We counsel you, young men, not to pollute your minds with such degrading matter, for the mind through which this filth passes is never the same afterwards. Don't see R-rated movies or vulgar videos or participate in any entertainment that is immoral, suggestive, or pornographic. Don't listen to music that is degrading" (Ensign, May 1986, p 43). (Card)
Card goes on to clarify that this council was given to keep our minds free from anything that will “excite sexual lust in an inappropriate content.”(Card) It wasn’t meant to say ‘Don’t watch rated R movies ever!’ just to make sure that we are aware of what we’re watching. And I’m sure hoping that no one in this African-American Literature class is getting off by watching slaves being whipped to within an inch of their life. If they are, then they’ve bigger issues to deal with.
Amistad isn’t intended to provoke elicit sexual feelings in people, it’s meant to help further the understanding of African-American history, the professor wouldn’t show it to his class if it wasn’t. Yes this movie is graphic, but it is a fairly accurate portrayal of what actually went on during these times. If a teacher wants their students to truly understand the African-American background, then showing their class this movie will most definitely aid in their students’ comprehension of the subject.
I know that when I was in the 8th grade my history teacher had us watch Glory to help us understand better the role blacks played in the Civil War. Glory is rated R and the age range of my class was 13-14, well below the age recommended to watch this movie. Our teacher sent us home with permission slips for our parents to sign to allow us to watch this movie. I was one of only a handful of kids whose dad signed the permission slip. I’m guessing my father (active in the LDS faith at the time) signed the slip because he understood that this movie would help me understand something that the teacher needed me to. So I watched Glory and at the end of the year when we had our test on the Civil War, I was one of two students who passed with an 80% or better. I know I did well on that test because Glory really did help me grasp certain concepts of the Civil War.
Now, if Junior High students were able to further their knowledge of major historical events from a rated R movie then just think of how much more a college student will gain from watching a movie of equal or greater weight. I know that the professor wouldn’t show these kinds of things to their students if they didn’t believe that their students would benefit from it. I say that the showing of rated R movies, under proper circumstances such as the expanding of a student’s knowledge in a specific subject, should be allowed. I especially think that the film Amistad should be shown in this African-American Literature class because it will drive home key points the professor needs their students to know.
*I'm also putting this on my personal blog ... cuz I can :]*
