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  • Essay / Controversial Topics in the South Park Sitcom

    Comedy Central's South Park is an animated comedy sitcom that uses surreal humor to ridicule a wide range of topics, many of which are controversial in society.Say No to Plagiarism . Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned"?Get the original essaySchulzke's (2012) article "Controversial Language: South Park and the Transformation of Meaning" examines the episode "The F Word” from South Park and its attempt to challenge linguistic conventions. The episode "The F Word" revolves around the derogatory term faggot and the connotation and denotation behind the word. In the episode, a gang of excessively obnoxious and selfish bikers constantly interrupt events in town as they desperately seek attention. The film shows four main characters and other young students explicitly harassing bikers by calling them fags. When young students paint "Faggots, Come Out" on a billboard, conflict arises as homosexuals see it as an attack on them. The rest of the episode focuses on deliberation over how a word's meaning is determined. Many controversies have arisen regarding this episode. While some activist groups such as the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) believe that the South Park episode "The F-word" is more harmful to LGBTQ people because it popularizes the word, others, including Schulzke, believe that episodes like "The F-word" can serve to change the meaning of queer. Schulzke attempts to make the point that satirical shows like South Park with large audiences can promote linguistic change to transform the meaning of certain derogatory words. I agree with Schulzke's argument because the explicit satire and dark humor of South Park can bring controversial social and linguistic issues into the spotlight that need to be analyzed and potentially changed. Schulzke begins his argument by emphasizing that South Park has established itself as a platform for awareness. to a wide audience about certain social groups and certain norms through a unique approach to satire and surreal humor. I agree with his argument and believe that South Park's ability to use a more unique comedic appeal to satirize social issues rather than releasing an instructional article or documentary is what allows them to gain a wide audience. In fact, Schulzke's article mentions that approximately 2.8 million people watched the episode "The F-Word." Organizations like GLAAD believe that intentional efforts to dissociate the word queer from the gay community were futile and popularized the word, which "remains a hateful slur that is often part of harassment." South Park receives harsh criticism from social groups like GLAAD and others. organizations, but I believe explicit language receives a lot of attention on different media platforms, allowing social groups to be spotlighted and inform the community about issues at hand. In fact, many issues are analyzed for their effects and debated among many platforms that can lead to potential reforms. Furthermore, I also agree with Schulzke's belief that "South Park systematically promotes the elimination of categories that can be used as a basis for discrimination while opposing it." the elimination of difference. Viewers who have watched more than the episode "The F Word" will understand that the South Park writers take a more liberal approach and.