When Disaster Strikes Will We Be Ready?

RUNNING HEAD : Disaster Films

Disaster Films and the Zeitgeist

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While the representation of disaster is not entirely new to cinema and other forms of popular culture , there has been , in the years following the 20th century , an increase in its ubiquity . Speaking generally , it would be unwise to discount the ability of popular culture 's potential to draw attention , or at the very least publicity , by way of sensationalism and drama to the increasing alarm raised by the scientific community about imminent threats to

human existence on our planet . Still , these realistic portrayals of disaster have also disconnected our sensitivity and ability to realistically perceive such situations

Such a thesis is not entirely novel and without precedent . Media activist Kalle Lasn (12-23 ) reports that an increasing amount of research findings present correlations between apathy and awareness of current events . Reportage of ethnic violence in the Middle East , civil rights violations in Southeast Asia and starvation in Africa have , over the decades , desensitized us collectively to the human tragedies of the world . Similarly , depictions of environmental catastrophe , whether or not they involve dramatic loss of human life , erode our sensitivity towards the potentiality of real life catastrophes

It is only when real life catastrophes hit us personally that our sensitivities are rekindled . This is not a point to take comfort in , for the sentiment that we need to develop is not sensitivity in the aftermath of disaster but rather , sensitivity which permits us to take steps towards the prevention of disaster . Shockers like 9 /11 and Hurricane Katrina gave us insights into the heroic possibilities of the human race , but at the same time , these came at the cost of human life Even then , these shockers had little effect on those who were not personally impacted by them or experienced it remotely through media

Therefore , even without making light of disasters and attempting to take them very seriously in the form of a dramatic narrative , disaster films are inadvertently trivializing their implications . Ray Hammond summarizes the gravity of imminent global threats in the 21st century

Only one quarter into the 21st century and our planet is displaying disturbing symptoms : storms , floods , mud-slides , tornadoes and blizzards afflict the globes surface , while heat waves , droughts and deep-freeze are regular occurrences . Not to mention volcanoes and earthquakes . Many believe that mankinds consuming lust for economic growth is fast wrecking the world , while others insist these changes are all part of the planets natural cycle . Whatever the truth , the most alarming factor is that the Earth is beginning to tilt on its axis .and worldwide panic is looming . As governments , experts , corporations and disruptive forces squabble to be heard , it is up to individuals to seek a solution to the most horrifying geophysical scenario we have ever faced

But what Hammond fails to mention is that ignorance and negligence can be just as dangerous as these `disturbing symptoms ' By dulling our wits through repetitive dramatizations of disaster , we as...