February 27, 2008
Hero    After 9/11, the country came together but still had a strong sense of insecurity. Things quickly changed and appeared they would not go back to normal for a long time. The sketch comedy show, Saturday Night Live, had to do a live show very shortly after the attacks on 9/11. The beginning of this show featured Rudy Giuliani and members of the New York City Fire Department and Police Department and the creator of SNL, Lorne Michaels. In this monologue, Rudy Giuliani wanted to express that it was okay to laugh and it was okay to be funny, even with the current circumstances. I feel the cast and writers of Saturday Night Live had a big responsibility to balance being funny with being sensitive. This is just one example of how I believe people in the spotlight, especially people whose profession is to make people laugh, are heroes. To me, this episode of Saturday Night Live represented that life could go on and could go back to normal. Entertainment is a large part of our society and it is something that is consistent. I believe in critical times, people look for consistency to comfort them that things aren’t going to completely change. Entertainment also serves as an escape or even an distraction in difficult times. Therefore, I believe that entertainers can serve has heroes in a time of need and a time where laughter can turn things around. 

Hero

    After 9/11, the country came together but still had a strong sense of insecurity. Things quickly changed and appeared they would not go back to normal for a long time. The sketch comedy show, Saturday Night Live, had to do a live show very shortly after the attacks on 9/11. The beginning of this show featured Rudy Giuliani and members of the New York City Fire Department and Police Department and the creator of SNL, Lorne Michaels. In this monologue, Rudy Giuliani wanted to express that it was okay to laugh and it was okay to be funny, even with the current circumstances. I feel the cast and writers of Saturday Night Live had a big responsibility to balance being funny with being sensitive. This is just one example of how I believe people in the spotlight, especially people whose profession is to make people laugh, are heroes. To me, this episode of Saturday Night Live represented that life could go on and could go back to normal. Entertainment is a large part of our society and it is something that is consistent. I believe in critical times, people look for consistency to comfort them that things aren’t going to completely change. Entertainment also serves as an escape or even an distraction in difficult times. Therefore, I believe that entertainers can serve has heroes in a time of need and a time where laughter can turn things around. 

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