MAD AS HELL

Mad as Hell is an occasional feature, starting with this issue, in which readers may express their views on issues related to the arts and entertainment. Let the phrase uttered by Howard Beale (as portrayed by Peter Finch, left, in the movie “Network”) be your guide: “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take it anymore!”

Violence Against Women

It is estimated that four of every 10 children in America are being sexually molested. Every five minutes a woman in the United States is raped; 16% of these women are over 60 years old. In one week the number of women portrayed on TV who are murdered, raped and dismembered is staggering.

I cannot but conclude that life imitates art, that violence against women in the media is so commonplace that it is proffered even by the women who write for TV.

And in films--such as those critical favorites “Silence of the Lambs” (a prophetic title indeed) and “Cape Fear”--the message is undeniable: If a woman is sexual, she is at risk of being brutalized, raped or murdered. Alfred Hitchcock was not referring to the male of the species when he said: “Blondes make the best victims; the blood is tracked so well on them.”

What is so frightening is that we all buy it. You’ve heard this before, but I merely wish to suggest that we think twice before we blandly accept the barrage of violence against women as “entertainment.” We pay such an enormous price for it.

NANCY ZALA

Santa Monica

Zala is a screenwriter and actress.