OmniscientOnus
Blue Mage
Music, can, and has, contributed to a violent society. Maybe not in the way we're all thinking though.
Music is not going to make a perfectly well human being go out and commit a violent act. However, how many instances have we seen rappers taunt and poke each other with their music? And how often have we seen these same rappers make the decision that the songs are no longer enough, and that physical violence is now the only viable form of retaliation?
The fact is, if someone made a song about how my mother was common street trash, my brother a coke addicted fiend, and my daughter (should I ever have one) a whore, I wouldn't think twice about violent actions toward that person. That music would indeed contribute to me being a violent member of society.
Now, the real question at hand here is not if music can contribute to a violent society, but rather if people listen to music with violent lyrics, will that music cause, they, them selves, to become violent? And, in my opinion, the answer is debatable.
We know that, scientifically speaking, if we put violent images, words, ideas, etc, into our heads, that the average human being will begin to think more violently. This push, however slight it may be, into a violent direction may be the breaking point in which that person changes thoughts of violent behavior into actual violent behavior. It's common sense. If you surround yourself with gangsters, you're going to want to be at least a little bit "gangsta"; if you surround yourself with smokers, you're probably going to pick up a smoking addiction; if you surround yourself with drug addicts, you're probably going to smoke a little weed; and if you surround yourself with flowery love songs, boy bands, and the like, you're probably going to wanna be at least a little bit "gangsta".
The music itself is not going to be the only deciding factor of a violent act in any human being who is mentally stable, but it might be the last little nudge that turns thoughts into actions.
Overall, I would say that while music does contribute at least a little bit to a violent society, it does no more so than watching the news, living in a poor neighborhood, driving on the same roads as people with road rage, or having one too many pillow fights with that little seven year old neighbor girl who constantly whooped your 35 year old body building ass.
Music is not going to make a perfectly well human being go out and commit a violent act. However, how many instances have we seen rappers taunt and poke each other with their music? And how often have we seen these same rappers make the decision that the songs are no longer enough, and that physical violence is now the only viable form of retaliation?
The fact is, if someone made a song about how my mother was common street trash, my brother a coke addicted fiend, and my daughter (should I ever have one) a whore, I wouldn't think twice about violent actions toward that person. That music would indeed contribute to me being a violent member of society.
Now, the real question at hand here is not if music can contribute to a violent society, but rather if people listen to music with violent lyrics, will that music cause, they, them selves, to become violent? And, in my opinion, the answer is debatable.
We know that, scientifically speaking, if we put violent images, words, ideas, etc, into our heads, that the average human being will begin to think more violently. This push, however slight it may be, into a violent direction may be the breaking point in which that person changes thoughts of violent behavior into actual violent behavior. It's common sense. If you surround yourself with gangsters, you're going to want to be at least a little bit "gangsta"; if you surround yourself with smokers, you're probably going to pick up a smoking addiction; if you surround yourself with drug addicts, you're probably going to smoke a little weed; and if you surround yourself with flowery love songs, boy bands, and the like, you're probably going to wanna be at least a little bit "gangsta".
The music itself is not going to be the only deciding factor of a violent act in any human being who is mentally stable, but it might be the last little nudge that turns thoughts into actions.
Overall, I would say that while music does contribute at least a little bit to a violent society, it does no more so than watching the news, living in a poor neighborhood, driving on the same roads as people with road rage, or having one too many pillow fights with that little seven year old neighbor girl who constantly whooped your 35 year old body building ass.