Poverty s Contribution Towards Mental Demise
Jordan Meisles
Waggoner
W170 21773
5 December 2012
Poverty’s Contribution Towards Mental Demise
Poverty is a struggle for anyone to withhold their sanity, however, it slips under one’s radar and steers them to become mentally ill. As the lengthy music video for “Desert Song” performed by Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros opens, an impoverished yet innocent child is seen stranded in the desert. As the video draws a close, the little boy had been transformed into a troubled poor man who was clearly struggling to find his identity, resulting in his mental demise. The continuous rugged conditions forced upon Alex, the main character in the video, created a stressful environment, which defeated all hopes of Alex being rational. The video focuses on the continuously increasing mental effects that corrupt the brain because of such difficult living conditions. Alex initially attempts to concur his mind by not thinking about his horrid living condition, but as everyday struggles erode his mind, he becomes mentally ill. The video “Desert Song” claims that being indefinitely alone can cause a person to become mentally ill, as a direct result to the lack of social ‘norms’.
Throughout various methods used in the video we are able to see how the numerous years that Alex Ebert is exposed to such rugged conditions, take a toll on his mind. By examining the usage of camera angles, music, and costuming, we can see the demise of Alex throughout the progression of the video. As the video opens, a father figure holds a young toddler, however the father figure seems deranged due to his meaningless slurs, and disheveled clothing. Once that scene concludes, a young child is seen completely alone and away from any sort of society. Right as that scene begins, a drum starts playing in the background as a method of intensifying the child’s isolation. The harsh sounding drumbeat is concise and consistent while the child wanders alone. As the vocals chime into the
Waggoner
W170 21773
5 December 2012
Poverty’s Contribution Towards Mental Demise
Poverty is a struggle for anyone to withhold their sanity, however, it slips under one’s radar and steers them to become mentally ill. As the lengthy music video for “Desert Song” performed by Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros opens, an impoverished yet innocent child is seen stranded in the desert. As the video draws a close, the little boy had been transformed into a troubled poor man who was clearly struggling to find his identity, resulting in his mental demise. The continuous rugged conditions forced upon Alex, the main character in the video, created a stressful environment, which defeated all hopes of Alex being rational. The video focuses on the continuously increasing mental effects that corrupt the brain because of such difficult living conditions. Alex initially attempts to concur his mind by not thinking about his horrid living condition, but as everyday struggles erode his mind, he becomes mentally ill. The video “Desert Song” claims that being indefinitely alone can cause a person to become mentally ill, as a direct result to the lack of social ‘norms’.
Throughout various methods used in the video we are able to see how the numerous years that Alex Ebert is exposed to such rugged conditions, take a toll on his mind. By examining the usage of camera angles, music, and costuming, we can see the demise of Alex throughout the progression of the video. As the video opens, a father figure holds a young toddler, however the father figure seems deranged due to his meaningless slurs, and disheveled clothing. Once that scene concludes, a young child is seen completely alone and away from any sort of society. Right as that scene begins, a drum starts playing in the background as a method of intensifying the child’s isolation. The harsh sounding drumbeat is concise and consistent while the child wanders alone. As the vocals chime into the