The Meaning of the Truman Show

1. Write a personal response to having watched the film, your reflections, what it made you think about.


After watching the Truman Show some concepts and ideas that came to mind were the life of an ant and how you can live your whole life without knowing there is a whole other world around you. For Truman's whole life he is unaware of all the cameras and the dome that surround his home and town because he can not see it much like the ant who doesn't understand their are people and buildings all around it even if it may be crawling on someones foot. This lead to thoughts of maybe their being a larger dimension around us and we may not even be aware of it. 

2. Summarize what the article, "The Meaning of the Truman Show" is saying.


The article, "The Meaning of the Truman Show" is saying that Truman's life is a metaphor in a way of our relationship with media today. Much like Truman's landscape, our landscape is also full of news, advertising, and theatrical illusions, they are realistic and believable until a flaw happens to give away the illusion. Also Truman's reluctance to leave his town represents our unwillingness to break up with the media. All in all, the author is saying in his article that "like Truman, we are manipulated and entertained by its lifelike simulations and story line.". 

3. Do you agree with the writer's opinion? Justify your answer with valid reasons.


I do agree with the author's opinion in the article "The Meaning of the Truman Show". After i finished reading this article I was purseuded by the ideas of our relationship with the media and  also showed me how the media can control your thoughts towards something by being biased. In the article it only talks about the power and dominance media has over our lives to get you to believe his point instead of talking about good things in the media to keep you fully informed on the whole situation instead of just knowing one side. By showing a biased side of the story in your article you are setting up an illusion for the public to believe in until like Truman, they see a flaw and the illusion begins to break. 

4. How long has Truman been led to believe that he has been living a "Real Life"?


Truman has been led to lead a normal life until he is a student and dating his future wife Merill. This is when he and another actor named Lauren sneak away from the cameras to be together because Lauren has been told not to talk to Truman by the people running the show. When one of the crew comes claiming to be Lauren's farther and pulls her away she begins to tell him about his world. He's skeptical but doesn't believe her until things start to fall apart on set and Truman's forced to see through the illusion.  

5. What film genre is The Truman Show?


The Truman Show would fall under the genre Fantasy Drama because the idea if living a life in a dome and not realizing it is unrealistic but at the same time the movie shows the dramatic side of Truman trying to escape. 

6. Does this movie act as a metaphor for our own lives. Justify your answer with valid reasons.


I believe the movie does represent our own lives because we too are trapped behind the metaphorical dome that is todays media. And, just like the director in the Truman show, the media knows how to manipulate your mind into seeing what it wants you to see and controlling your emotions towards something.