Bowling for Columbine Summary Paper Example

Societies are made up of different components. People living in a country may have different traits depending on the environment. These are called personality. They dictate on how people relate to the society. There are several issues that when introduced in a country can either impact the local people positively or negatively. War is one major thing that affects the society. It can be caused by several things. For instance, when a common citizen is given dangerous and crud weapon, it can be very dangerous to the general public. This is the exact case in the movie bowline for Columbine. This is a movie that talks about the effect of placing dangerous weapons in the hand of few individuals. Therefore, these armed citizens use the weapon to harm the innocent and common citizen in the country (Thone 381). It should be noted that this can be done with different motives. First, it can be because of political reasons. Those who are in power may take advantage of the position to give citizens weapons so as to avoid opposition. Such happens in places where the leader is a dictator and wants to have absolute power over everybody. Such leaders will, therefore, ensure that the weapons are used to eliminate the opposition. Secondly, citizens of a country that has a lot of insecurity and increased crime rate will tend to acquire the weapons for the purpose of revenge and protection. In the process, they end up doing more harm than good. It is therefore dangerous and not recommended to have weapons on the hands of citizens as seen in the analysis of the movie, "bowline for Columbine.

American society has escalated cases of violence and killings. This situation is enhanced by the fact that gun ownership is not well controlled, meaning there are loopholes. Young people, even those with criminal records, can acquire lethal weapons quickly. This has resulted in a society that is marred by gun-related murders and acts of violence. This forms the main idea of the movie Bowling for Columbine written and directed by Michael Moore (Thone 381). The movie focuses on the young generation, who are mostly involved in gunfights and violence. The film sets out to gather answers on the issue of violence and killings, in particular where firearms are involved. It is based on the streets of the United States and Canada, and it gives special attention to the 1999 Columbine High School massacre. This incident is investigated to try and uncover the answers to how the perpetrators acquired the firearms despite having a well-documented criminal record. As a result of moral agitation, Moore examines the causes and nature of violence and killings in American society in the modern days (Carretero and Enriquez 179). He applies various ways in his investigations such as interviews with the survivors of the Columbine High School massacre, the National Rifle Association spokesman Charlton Heston and artist Marilyn Manson. This paper explores the movie, noting the major scenes and incidents that involve guns.

The beginning of Michael Moore's movie, Bowling for Columbine, shows Moore entering the North Country Bank and asking a bank representative of wanting to open an account for a free firearm. She (the bank representative) hands Moore a firearm catalog and advises him to choose the firearm he wants while opening the bank account. She also advises Moore of having at least five hundred firearms in their vault. Before receiving his gun, Moore is seen in a bank office filling out paperwork for a background check. He asks the bank representative of what to write down for his race, either white or Caucasian, and asks how to answer the mental adjudicated or deficient question on the form. She tells Moore to write down Caucasian for a race and explains to Moore to answer yes or no on the mental capacity question if a crime was committed. Moore was advised of the bank being an authorized gun dealer when completing the background check. Moore questions another bank representative about loitering around a bank with a gun (Thone 381). The final bank scene shows Moore walking out with the rifle being carried over his shoulder.

Another scene in the movie shows Michael Moore interviewing Marilyn Manson before a concert in Denver Colorado. Protests were ongoing before Manson's concert by the religious right stating his music causes violence. Manson was additionally accused of inciting hate speech. Moore asks Manson why people were protesting him. Manson told Moore of being associated with fear because of his looks and music. Manson also told Moore of advocating free speech and gun control. Manson had been linked with the Columbine shooters in the news and other media outlets. Apparently, it was reported that on the morning of the massacre at Columbine High School, the shooters listened to Manson's music.

The third scene in Michael Moore's movie showed a cartoon about the history of the United States. The cartoon showed how guns played a role in different periods of American History. The Pilgrims, for instance, used guns to kill all the native savages. Another scene in the cartoon showed how the KKK and the NRA were similar and worked together against the black man. Other time periods were discussed in the cartoon of the violence caused by guns and the fear by white people.

From the first scene of Bowling for Columbine, it is clear that it is easy to access and own firearms in the United States. The acquisition of a gun in the U.S. involves a simple process such as opening a bank account. As it was noted, banks are authorized dealers of firearms. Moore suggests that the cause of violence in the country is as the result of having too many guns in the hands of members of the public (Carretero and Enriquez 179). However, he raises a point that Canada also has many firearms in civilian hands but is not as violent as the United States. In the interview with the rock star Marilyn Manson, Moore points to the media influencing the high rates of gun murders and related violence. The musician is also accused of composing angry music. It is also revealed that the Columbine High School massacre perpetrators listened to his songs in the morning they committed the crimes. To his revelation, the artist seemed angry for being blamed for the killings. He points out that he supports gun control. Moore backs this up by presenting evidence of television shows that had violent acts. He goes ahead to interview the National Rifle Associations chairperson, Charlton Heston. After a short moment of the interview, Heston rises and declares the interview over. In his conclusion, Moore states that fear among the public contributes to gun violence. He supports this by indicating that Canadians own as many guns but gun murders are fewer than in the U.S.

In conclusion, everyone deserves to have good security in a country. This is because it helps to upgrade public unity and cohesion. Once a section is deprived this, there will be no harmony in such county. It is the duty of the government, therefore, to ensure that the security of all her citizens is ensured. To manage this, it is the duty of the government to ensure that all the weapons are centralized and that only the authorized personnel get access to them. I a case where these weapons are accessed by illegal people, the government should device methods to regain the back. This can be done through several ways. First, the law can be formulated against individuals that hold firearms illegally. This can cause fear and may make such individuals surrender the weapons. When this fails to apply, dialogue can be brought to the place. This can be done through creating public awareness through any media forum just to inform the people about the dangers of holding a crud weapon. Lastly, those who are found with illegal weapons should be arrested and given serious charge so as to act as an example to the rest. Above all people should be taught the art of neighborhood. The awareness of the love for a neighbor is important. This is because, when you love your neighbor you will not harm them. This is, therefore, a bright move to solve the nightmare

Works Cited

Bowling for Columbine. Dir. Michael Moore. Perf. Michael Moore. MGM Home Entertainment, 2003. Film.

Carreteiro, Teresa Cristina, and Eugene Enriquez. "Le Modele Americain De La Violence. Reflexions Sur Le Film Bowling For Columbine". Nouvelle revue de psychosociologie 2.2 (2006): 179.