The Power Of Media In The Truman Show Essay

With effective literature, individuals can be transported into ordinary situations and challenged in their perceptions of themselves. In Peter Weir’s metatextual film The Truman Show (TTS) (1998), he examines the juxtaposition between utopia and dystopia. Weir’s use of satire seeks to highlight the pervasive nature of media control and intrusive advertising in our lives. Through presenting the protagonist, Truman Burbank slowly challenging his fake ‘reality’ in the film, Weir is challenging his viewers to question the complex and difficult issue of media control and advertisement in their own lives. Furthermore, Weir compares the way we are taught to conform to societal expectations to achieve the perfect fantasy. To elucidate how we, like Truman, must overcome them to become true to ourselves. The conflict between us and our society stems from a blurring of the distinction between realism and the misinterpreted truth. It is only when we overcome the conflict within ourselves that we can see the reality we create. Using Truman's struggles as an analogy to our own, Weir challenges us to consider the realities of contemporary culture.

Media manipulates one’s perception of an ideal society, which is discovered through literature, allowing them to see the fabricated truth. In ‘The Truman Show’ Weir satirizes media manipulation, through the depiction of Christof's atrocious character as the "man of Christ" within the opening scene creating a deception of an idyllic society embedded by the media. Truman is discredited by Christoph's paradoxical comment "There's nothing fake about Truman." The extreme close-up of his face displays a façade as an intellectual figure, bolstered by the traditional black clothing of the turtle neck, baret, and round spectacles - one of the creators of "beautiful things.", this explored the unique qualities of the film. Furthermore, the Director focuses on the media’s economic imperatives as opposed to societal oppression. In satirising the media, he exposes the advancing influence of technology on society. The financial imperative is illustrated in the interview scene where Christof, the producer of the Truman Show, is interviewed. He states, “The show has produced enormous revenues similar to the Gross National Product of a small country”. The dialogue and mnemonic are interspersed with shots that coincide with hidden cameras and product placements. Highlighting how the media valorises individuals and focuses on financial gains, exemplifies the absurdity of the situation. Christof's ulterior motives are exposed again when he refers to the 'Truman catalog,' which serves as a revenue generator for the show. This is further reinforced through Christof, as a personification of the media, who has ultimate control over Truman and the world he lives in. Christof's absolute power is demonstrated throughout the film and is virtually unchallenged. Moreover, his name is a symbol of this, alluding to the fact he plays God. This power is highlighted in the scene "Memories of Dad" where we as the audience see that Christof designs a scene where Truman's father drowns, which he then uses as a ploy to instill a fear of water in Truman. This fear then becomes another means of control for Christof as he uses it to ensure Truman doesn't leave his Island home. Hence, Weir highlights the flaw within his society. This is because he emphasizes the control inherent within it.

Illusion cannot exist independently of reality. Rather, an illusion is a phenomenon involving an individual’s acuity of reality, whether it is a ‘true’ representation of that reality or not. The Truman Show explores this effect in its portrayal of the idea of reality and illusion through the distinctive qualities utilized in the film. This is done through the context of how it is rare to experience unaltered reality in society, as presented by Peter Weir. Weir uses the contrasting settings of the different worlds to develop the concept of the construction of reality within the Truman Show. This is shown by the distinct sets and costumes in the three worlds: Seahaven, The Moon Room, and the real world. The differences between these worlds are explored through aspects of mise en scene. Furthermore, the costumes used in Seahaven also reflect the manicured world, as actors are wearing brightly coloured clothes loosely based on 1950s fashion trends. This setting can be juxtaposed with The Moon Room, a dark environment always presented to the audience in low lighting. The production team are consistently dressed in dark colors, accentuating the analogy between the two worlds. The name Truman itself is an allusion, but the irony lies in the world being surrounded by lies. Likewise, Peter Weir utilizes Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" to illustrate our entrapment in caves and the difficulty of finding the truth, the transformation of the truth being far more than our perception and escaping the cave eventually leads to the discovery of a deeper truth that is just as philosophically compelling. This is directly used in The Truman Show, as Truman attempts to uncover the truth about his life people begin to tell him that he’s “crazy”, and he begins to "feel like the whole world revolves around [him]" and he tries to leave. According to Plato, once a philosopher sees the light of truth, he will act in ways that make others, who have not seen the light, think he is crazy. Upon escaping he exits the empirical world he lived in and enters the world of forms. He finally gains the knowledge of knowing that his entire life was a TV show and everything that he had lived through before was a false reality. Therefore, using visual images, Peter Weir discusses the conceptual idea of reality versus illusion.

Ultimately, The Truman Show effectively takes the reader into ordinary situations and challenges their perception of them. Through the manipulation of Christof, entertainment is achieved through the authenticity and innocence of Truman. By choreographing Truman’s life, Peter Weir depicts how false and constructed images can confuse people with reality. Without any doubt, Truman is the only genuine element in the show.