Social Issues in Charlie Chaplin's "Modern Times"

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Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. KBE (16 April 1889 – 25 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame within the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is taken into account one in every of the film industry's most vital figures. His career spanned over 75 years, from childhood which emerged in the Victorian era until a year before his death in 1977, and encompassed both adulation and controversy.



Modern Times was a 1936 American silent comedy film written and directed by Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin during which his iconic Little Tramp character struggles to survive within the modern, industrialized world. The film could be considered a commentary on the desperate employment and financial conditions which people faced during the 1936 Great Depression — conditions created, in Chaplin's view, by the efficiencies of recent industrialization. The movie stars Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Henry Bergman, Tiny Sandford and Chester Conklin. It's notable for being the last time that Chaplin portrayed the Tramp character and for being the first movie in which Chaplin's voice was heard.




The movie highlights many social issues which are majorly faced by the underprivileged sections of the society. Some of these issues are listed below:

- The hardships faced by the underprivileged sections of the society at the time of first world war

A war is fought between two leaders, but its ill effects are faced by the entire population of the country and specially the underprivileged sections.
Afghanistan, Iran, Sub-Saharan Africa, Syria etc. are still plagued with war and violence, and plenty of individuals face something called a “poverty trap.” While peaceful countries are escaping poverty and violence, corrupt government leadership often ends up in war which pushes societies into poverty and contributes to poor being poorer.




- America's Great Depression

The Great Depression in America led to skyrocketing of unemployment due to massive preference given to idustrial production. The machinery which was expected to help mankind was throwing people out of their jobs. The only jobs left for mankind was of operating machines.
Even in the film, Chaplin's character was first seen as a worker being driven crazy by his monotonous inhuman work on a conveyor belt and being used as a guinea pig to test a machine to feed workers as they work.



- Unequal distribution of wealth

Chaplin was extremely disturbed to see all these effects of depression, unemployment and automation in Europe. Thus, he formulated his own economic solution which he imagined to be the perfect one. This solution focused on equitable distribution of work rather than wealth. He believed that equitable distribution of work will automatically lead to equitable distribution of wealth. In the film "Modern Times" all these issues were discussed in a humorous way. 




- Poverty and Unemployment 

In the film, some of the most common issues discussed included poverty, unemployment, strikes and strike breakers, political intolerance, economic inequalities, tyranny of machine and narcotics.



Though the film itself was made in 1930s, the issues it raised are the ones which are relevant even in the today's modern world. However, the sad reality remains in the fact that even today little attention is paid to these issues. 






















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