A significant part of cinematography and fiction in one way or another repeats the same stories, which are called classic. There is nothing wrong with repetition itself, and this has been explained at different times by art historians, psychologists and historians. Indeed, the cultures of different peoples and countries have a lot in common, especially with regard to the upbringing of children.
It is alarming in this situation that one of the classic subjects in recent years, or rather, in the last 20-30 years, has become too common in cinema, literature and popular music. Especially in films and books for young people. This is a story about how a sweet and kind heroine falls in love with a villain. For many, such stories evoke associations with the fairy tale "Beauty and the Beast", but these comparisons are inappropriate here.
The plot of "Beauty and the Beast", as well as of the domestic "Scarlet Flower", is not at all comparable with what modern mass culture offers us today: the love of young heroines for monsters, murderers, monsters in the full sense of the word. In the fairy tale "The Scarlet Flower" it was told that one cannot love a person only for external beauty, because inside the Monster always possessed good qualities, and love, both of the Beauty and the Beast, was love not for the external appearance, but for the inner beauty of the soul.
There is another classic plot, elements of which are being replicated today - this is the story of how a hero (hero-prince-knight) and an antihero (villain-dragon-villain) fight for a beautiful girl-princess-princess. The plot structure is most often such that the girl is given to the monster, and the knight must, having overcome some obstacles, save his beloved. Girls brought up on such stories understand that their man should be courageous, courageous, ready to save her. For young men, such stories teach that they need to be brave and fight back evil for the sake of loved ones, beloved, family …
V. Vysotsky sang about this:
But in modern cinema, although this plot has remained, it has received a new interpretation. The change is just one detail: now the heroine's love object is the villain. Either she remains with the villain in the finale, or the villain is shown to the viewer much more romantic and interesting than the hero, although the plot may end with the classic Happy End. It also happens that the positive character is absent altogether or completely discredits himself during the development of the script.
Such a plot has now become very popular, but not because all women and girls really have masochistic inclinations in themselves, as Sigmund Freud argued, who lowered a person to the level of an animal, but because these plots are very professional, bright and seductively presented. Moreover, this know-how has certain features that give out that everything was filmed and written according to certain patterns, each of which gives an unambiguous message to the reader-spectator:
Love
Absolutely no one and nothing disputes the fact that the Villain in various variations is capable of even murder and any other atrocities, completely and completely absolutely loves the Heroine.
Here it is necessary to say a few words about the concept of "Hollywood love" - this is a kind of mythical feeling that arises at first sight and, since it is nothing less than a "Divine miracle", then under the pretext "this is love" you can justify absolutely all sins, vices, base deeds of heroes, etc.
The thesis "this is love" in the minds of the audience justifies the stupidity of the heroines, who got into relationships with those who pose a danger to themselves and those around them. The authors of such works clearly deliberately overlook the fact that love, even in the official psychological theory, consists of three components - attraction, friendly feelings and responsibility for relationships. The character of the image "Villain" or "Bad guy" cannot truly love, be faithful, be responsible, have respect for his beloved. So, through such works, an image of love that does not really exist is laid, which cannot be given by a person with such a character and worldview.
A striking example is the film "Twilight". A hundred-year-old vampire falls in love with a simple and sweet girl so much that for her sake he exposes his family and risks his life several times, and also tries to commit suicide, thinking that she is dead.
The image of the "bad guy" as a leitmotif in cinema
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Table of contents
1 Love
2 Salvation
3 Abyuz
4 Strength
5 Karpman's dramatic triangle
5.1 Where does this fashion lead?
5.2 This fashion also works for guys, but more motivating:
A significant part of cinematography and fiction in one way or another repeats the same stories, which are called classic. There is nothing wrong with repetition itself, and this has been explained at different times by art historians, psychologists and historians. Indeed, the cultures of different peoples and countries have a lot in common, especially with regard to the upbringing of children.
It is alarming in this situation that one of the classic subjects in recent years, or rather, in the last 20-30 years, has become too common in cinema, literature and popular music. Especially in films and books for young people. This is a story about how a sweet and kind heroine falls in love with a villain. For many, such stories evoke associations with the fairy tale "Beauty and the Beast", but these comparisons are inappropriate here.
The plot of "Beauty and the Beast", as well as of the domestic "Scarlet Flower", is not at all comparable with what modern mass culture offers us today: the love of young heroines for monsters, murderers, monsters in the full sense of the word. In the fairy tale "The Scarlet Flower" it was told that one cannot love a person only for external beauty, because inside the Monster always possessed good qualities, and love, both of the Beauty and the Beast, was love not for the external appearance, but for the inner beauty of the soul.
There is another classic plot, elements of which are being replicated today - this is the story of how a hero (hero-prince-knight) and an antihero (villain-dragon-villain) fight for a beautiful girl-princess-princess. The plot structure is most often such that the girl is given to the monster, and the knight must, having overcome some obstacles, save his beloved. Girls brought up on such stories understand that their man should be courageous, courageous, ready to save her. For young men, such stories teach that they need to be brave and fight back evil for the sake of loved ones, beloved, family …
V. Vysotsky sang about this:
“And the villain's footprints were not allowed to cool down, And they promised to love the most beautiful ladies.
And calming friends, and loving neighbors, We introduced ourselves to the role of heroes."
But in modern cinema, although this plot has remained, it has received a new interpretation. The change is just one detail: now the heroine's love object is the villain. Either she remains with the villain in the finale, or the villain is shown to the viewer much more romantic and interesting than the hero, although the plot may end with the classic Happy End. It also happens that the positive character is absent altogether or completely discredits himself during the development of the script.
Such a plot has now become very popular, but not because all women and girls really have masochistic inclinations in themselves, as Sigmund Freud argued, who lowered a person to the level of an animal, but because these plots are very professional, bright and seductively presented. Moreover, this know-how has certain features that give out that everything was filmed and written according to certain patterns, each of which gives an unambiguous message to the reader-spectator:
Love
Absolutely no one and nothing disputes the fact that the Villain in various variations is capable of even murder and any other atrocities, completely and completely absolutely loves the Heroine.
Here it is necessary to say a few words about the concept of "Hollywood love" - this is a kind of mythical feeling that arises at first sight and, since it is nothing less than a "Divine miracle", then under the pretext "this is love" you can justify absolutely all sins, vices, base deeds of heroes, etc.
The thesis "this is love" in the minds of the audience justifies the stupidity of the heroines, who got into relationships with those who pose a danger to themselves and those around them. The authors of such works clearly deliberately overlook the fact that love, even in the official psychological theory, consists of three components - attraction, friendly feelings and responsibility for relationships. The character of the image "Villain" or "Bad guy" cannot truly love, be faithful, be responsible, have respect for his beloved. So, through such works, an image of love that does not really exist is laid, which cannot be given by a person with such a character and worldview.
A striking example is the film "Twilight". A hundred-year-old vampire falls in love with a simple and sweet girl so much that for her sake he exposes his family and risks his life several times, and also tries to commit suicide, thinking that she is dead.
obraz ploxogo parnya kak lejtmotiv v kinematografe The image of the "bad guy" as a leitmotif in cinema
Message to the reader-spectator:
The heroine is so beautiful, sweet and beautiful as a woman that she made even someone who cannot love fall in love with herself - a Villain, a murderer, a monster for others. He harms others, and only to her, so beautiful, did he submit and talk about love, seeking its reciprocity, etc. Naturally, the reader is flattered by such a story about the power of female (her) beauty, and she begins to like this scenario for the development of relationships.
The rescue
With her love, the Heroine saves the Villain, sometimes makes him kinder, sometimes just influences him for her own purposes.
A striking example is the film "Hulk". Just a glance at the beloved is enough for the monster, which until then crushed and broke everything in order to return to the human form of an intellectual-scientist.
Message to the reader-spectator:
The heroine is so beautiful as a person that she was able to re-educate the villain, turn him from a Monster into a Prince. This is also very flattering to the reader.
Abyuz
In such scenarios, there are almost always episodes when the Villain harms the Heroine. He can offend her, he can hit her, he can beat her or cause moral pain. After that, he immediately takes care of her, turns out to be gentle and kind (without asking for forgiveness!). Despite such "breakdowns", everything ends with a Happy End. And if we are talking about a franchise or a TV series, then the circle "pain-romantic-pain-romantic" is repeated several times, specifically to consolidate the material in the mind of the viewer.
It is important to clarify one point: in foreign psychology such a phenomenon as "abuse" has long been identified. “Abuser” is a person who commits psychological and / or physical violence with a person whom he supposedly loves. Moreover, for the abuser himself, it really is love in his understanding.
A similar feature - the alternation of violence and courtship - is precisely what the classic manifestation of abusing, abusive relationships. It is known that such a person cannot be easily corrected, he does not have a defect, he is mentally ill. All that can be done in a relationship with an abuser is to end all relationships with him. All care, as well as all the harm that he causes to the object of "love", for him are a manifestation of his feelings. This is a mentally unbalanced person, and a relationship with such cannot lead to a happy or even calm family life. At best, divorce and a crippled psyche, at worst, even a lethal outcome may await the abuser's victim.
A striking example is the series "The Vampire Diaries": the dynamics of the relationship between heroines and their lovers all the time jumps from episodes of harm to their chosen ones from vampire heroes to romantic scenes and the manifestation of care for them. Moreover, since we are talking about the living dead, the authors boldly show how men in love can even kill their beloved, knowing that they will come to life in a few hours.
Message to the reader-spectator:
Abyuz in the minds of the audience begins to be perceived as a norm and acquires romantic features. If a girl grows up on such “romantic examples” (and modern mass culture practically does not show others), then she will look for a man who will also “passionately” tell her about his feelings. Normal, healthy manifestations of sympathy from young people will simply not be perceived by her as a manifestation of feelings, they will not "touch her heart", she will subconsciously look for something "hotter".
Power
Oddly enough, but the Villain in all respects, except for his behavior, is clearly similar not even to the Hero, but to the Prince Charming: despite, and sometimes thanks to his antisocial behavior, he is either super stylish, or very rich, or both at the same time. His villainy gives him tremendous power and power.
In such films or books, the Villain is always stronger than the Hero, if such is still present there. Even if the Hero still wins (which has been happening less and less lately), then the Villain, at least in front of the audience, or rather the spectators, still looks much more interesting and attractive against the background of the Hero: he is stronger than the Hero, smarter, deeper as a character, because on he often spent more screen time than the hero.
A striking example is the film "50 Shades of Gray". Here, the object of love of a young innocent heroine is a 27-year-old sadist who is fabulously rich (and achieved everything himself), is fond of sports, fights well, looks good, spends a lot of time and money on the heroine, protects her from various dangers.
Message to the reader-spectator:
Power, influence, social status are portrayed as something more important than moral and moral qualities. A criminal, a thief, a criminal personality acquire a romantic positive image, which leads to the fact that it is these characters that will attract the attention of girls, and therefore serve as a role model for many young men. Naturally, all this happens on a subconscious level.
You don't have to look far for examples of such "cultural propaganda": a huge number of films, books, TV series and even music videos advertised today carry this very program.
Often, even the filmed classics carry changes in the concept of the Hero-Heroine-Villain plot. For example, in the most recent Dracula movie, the monster becomes romantically involved and even becomes a goodie. And the musical and the film The Phantom of the Opera turned the dark detective story into a beautiful melodrama. It is worth telling about them in more detail.
In the novel "The Phantom of the Opera": there is a Hero - Raul, who has been in love with the Heroine - Christina all his life. He follows the heroine and learns the secret of the Phantom of the Opera, the Villain - an old freak with a sunken nose, yellow bumpy skin and eyes glowing in the night, who keeps the whole theater in fear with murders and machinations.
In the book, the main role of focal characters belongs to Raoul and Christina, the Phantom himself rarely appears and is simply a terrifying character, a villain. Christina, having learned that the Phantom intends to make her his wife, asks to see the light for the last time and intimidated tells everything to Raul, who promises to save her and offers to run away. The Ghost, since he knew how to be unnoticed, overheard their conversation and kidnapped Christina, and Raoul, having clarified the history of the Ghost, goes to save his beloved. The oath of allegiance from Christina to the Ghost in exchange for Raoul's life impresses the Ghost so much that he lets the lovers go home and soon dies. Christina buries him.
In the musical and the film:The role of Raoul from the main character was shifted. He doesn't have a single song of his own. All the main beautiful songs, including the main theme of the musical, are sung by the Phantom. Raul sings only in a duet with someone. Outwardly, "The Ghost" has changed dramatically: the actors playing the Ghosts are no more than 40 years old, they are stately and often taller than Raoul, the Phantom's face is disfigured either by half or by a quarter. Moreover, Raoul declares war on the Phantom openly and asks Christine to be the bait; thanks to this action of the Hero, the Ghost kidnaps Christina, and also kills several people and sets the theater on fire. The climactic scene repeats the book scene, but in the final of the musical, the Ghost simply disappears. And at the end of the film, the viewer learns that Christina lived a long life … and the Phantom even longer, since he (despite the fact that he was at least 10-15 years older than both characters) outlived Christina,and in the final shots, old Raoul, as proof of this, discovers a rose from the Ghost on his wife's grave …
Another point from the innovations that negatively characterizes Raoul: in the book, the whole action began with a play where Christina performed, where Raoul recognized his beloved. The film also adds a scene before this period, where Raoul walks past Christina, when she is an ordinary ballerina, and does not notice her. Raoul recognized in her the love of his life only when he saw her as the diva of the opera house, which is why he was accused by the Phantom that his "love" was just an attempt to bathe in the glory of the newly-minted prima donna.
Thus, in the film and the musical, the goodie Raoul was relegated to the background, and all attention shifted to the former Villain, who now took center stage in the plot, while becoming much more attractive and romantic.
Separately, it is worth mentioning that a similar concept, when a girl chooses some villain as a lover, or friend, or support is present not only in modern books and films, but also in music:
Britney Spears' song "Criminal"
He's a crook
He's no good.
He's a loser, a worthless person.
He lies, he bluffs
He's unreliable
He's a loser with a gun.
I know you told me
That I need to stay away from him.
I know you said
That he's just a lost dog.
He's a bad guy with a wicked heart
And even I know it's stupid.
He's the villain of the devil's law
He's a killer just for fun.
He is a snitch and unpredictable
He is not aware of anything
I only know that I must forget him, but no …
Because he's a bad guy with a wicked heart
And even I know it's stupid …
And he has a tattoo
With my name on my hand
His talisman, So I think it's okay
That we are together.
I hear what others say
Trying to make comments
To tear us apart
But I can't even hear them
I do not care…
Chorus:
But mama I'm in love with a criminal
And this love
Out of the mind, it's physical.
Mom please don't cry
Everything will be fine with me.
All reasons away
I cannot deny that
I love this guy.
The song of the singer Maksim “God” (Vampire)
He is my happiness and sorrow, he is my tenderness and pain.
I am his charm, salt and flesh.
He composes desires to overcome everything with him.
We measure our goodbyes by centimeters into the night.
Where are you, my guardian angel, where is common sense in your head?
He is my perverted spectator, my vampire.
After all, he is already a winner in the "Russian Cumir" competition.
Disappointed critic, my world.
He is not my adventure, he won - a genius strategist.
Confuse so frankly, I'm his priority.
How true the actions are, hands off, I will scream.
How confident he is, I breathe.
Where is his conscience, where is loyalty, where is common sense in his head?
He is my perverted spectator, my vampire.
After all, he is already a winner in the "Russian Cumir" competition.
Chorus:
It's stronger than me, stop time.
It's not me, but the body groans, screams.
He does not pity me, destroys, molds.
Devil's gaze, and whispers dreams at random, bastard, bastard, bastard …
Karpman's dramatic triangle
In psychology, there is such a concept as "Karpman's Triangle" - its meaning is that there are codependent models of relationships built according to the scenario "victim - persecutor - savior". The victim seeks a Savior to be saved from the Persecutor, although in fact, in most cases, there is no “persecution”, and the “victim” is not innocent, and the “savior” could just pass by. But, despite the absence of visible prerequisites for the occurrence of such situations, people enthusiastically live these roles, not even realizing that such relationships are dysfunctional and cannot bear good fruit.
The reason for the spread of the "Karpman triangle" is that modern culture exalts this relationship, especially with the help of TV shows or franchises, when the conflict between the Hero and the Villain over the possession of the Heroine stretches over many seasons, and is not cut by the will of the Heroine and at the same time the determination of the Hero. Thus, the viewers think that they are in a situation of eternal scandals, showdowns and intrigues, not only normal, but even beautiful and romantic.
Where does this fashion lead?
Girls will absorb such an image of "romance" that in the future will naturally entail unpleasant consequences in relationships with men or in family life.
a) girls will associate evil with romance and male power. The villain who has become the romantic image of childhood will also become the romantic image of the "ideal man." Such girls will subconsciously reach out to criminals, antisocial personalities, or just immoral guys. All the time, subconsciously hoping that they can also save this "Monster" with their love. “Certain social institutions often create a cult of martyrdom and torture. Among the mass media, the image of a woman whose love, devotion and strong affection help her dependent partner to recover and find happiness is enduringly popular. Unfortunately, this is one of the most destructive beliefs with which women enter into relationships: I will save (change) him with my love (intelligence, cunning, devotion, etc.) "© Lilia Grace, Christina Kudryavtseva
But in fact, in the vast majority of cases, this is impossible. And such an addiction can do nothing but harm the girl.
b) girls will not recognize calm and adequate guys as possible partners for building a family, looking for emotionally unstable or abusive young people.
This fashion also works for guys, but more motivating:
a) guys will be sure that in order to win the heart of a beloved girl, you need to be a "bad guy", which means evil, disrespectful, asocial behavior, both towards girls and towards the world around them, will be a sign of coolness and strength for these young men.
b) as well as girls, impressionable young men will be sure that such relationships, which include beating, humiliation of a partner, are a romantic image and a norm in relationships, that women like it. And this thought will whip up their sadistic or abusive tendencies, if they have any.
It is also worth mentioning that most gangster action movies, robbery films and even Disney cartoons work for the same purposes - when the criminal, asocial, immoral lifestyle of the protagonist is rewarded with money, some kind of benefits and, without fail, a beautiful beloved.
How can we protect our children from a virus of this kind of "romance" spreading through popular culture?
First of all, by my own example. A strong family, a sober lifestyle, warm relationships with relatives and friends will give the child the right model for building relationships with people around him and will help him find his way in life in the future. But besides a personal example, you need to try to create a favorable information environment around the child and you need to start with two things:
First, remove the TV from the house, as it is in it that most of the propaganda of unhealthy relationships.
Second: create your own video library of good movies, books and music showing normal, healthy relationships between people. And do not forget to sometimes find time to discuss what you have seen or read. Thus, you will lay in the child's subconsciousness models of correct, normal, healthy relationships and teach him to analyze the information coming to him.
Author: Elizaveta Kvasnyuk
