Tension And Paranoia In Dr. Strangelove

“Dr. Strangelove” is satirical movie about the Cold War. It displays the fear of a nuclear holocaust between the US and the USSR. I have chosen cultural criticism for this movie. Cultural criticism “focuses on the elements of culture and how they affect one's perceptions and understanding of texts” (Springboard). In Dr. Strangelove, the cold war culture is represented by the display of tension, paranoia, and the fear of mutual destruction. Because "Dr. Strangelove" features tension, paranoia, and the fear of mutual destruction, it is vital that the viewer has an understanding of Cold War culture. Tension is a key point in this movie. It has been described as “the same tension that gripped the nation during the days of the Cuban Missile
This is different compared to tension, or paranoia. Tension is the balance between war and peace. Paranoia is an extreme feeling of fear caused by the true and untrue information that one takes in. The fear of mutual destruction was very much present during the cold war. This fear was at its peak during the 60s. At the time the “destructive power possessed by the U. S. simply beggars imagination” (Boxen). To be fair, one could only assume the same for Russia. Grasping the destructive power of nuclear weapons was a difficult task, even in the 60s. Today, it is even harder – we simply did not grow up with it. Having prior education on the cold war culture is once again, essential to the comprehension of the concept of nuclear weapons. Another example of why there was such a big fear of mutual destruction was that “the U. S. arsenal estimated that there were 33, 000 warheads on hand for launching” (Boxen.) According to the movie, If the Russians detected even one launch (even an accidental one), the chance of retaliatory fire was near 100% (thanks to the automated launch computer). People today cannot relate to that feeling. This is where cultural criticism comes in – again. Knowing this information, the general public was scared out of their minds. The people of the 60s had to deal with the United States and its 33,000 missiles, the crazy Russians, and the fear of some lunatic hitting the launch button. The result was death for everyone. The fear of mutual destruction was a result of the nuclear bomb being used to end WW2. It had progressed to the point where the U.S. had a “large force of B-52 bombers airborne 24 hours a day” (Boxen). At the time, the only way to feel safe was to add more weapons to the national collection, this really just made things