Film Analysis: Sesame Street

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Let me take you back to 2002. The setting is a large room, filled with stern faced men in suits. Sitting in front of them is a bright red, fuzzy puppet, named Elmo. This may seem silly, but there was a purpose behind this. Elmo was in front of congress in order to talk about music education in schools. By doing so, Elmo became the only non-human to testify before congress. Sesame Street uses songs and colorful puppets, to tackle tough issues, and to teach a message of tolerance and acceptance to people across the world. To start with, Sesame Street has not been shy when presented with difficult topics. In 1982, the actor who played the beloved Mr. Hooper died, and instead of recasting him, they decided to tackle death of the actor in a …show more content…

By doing this, it allows the show to speak about pertinent problems facing those countries. Takalani Sesame, is the South African version of the show. On Takalani, there is a furry, yellow puppet named Kami. Kami is HIV positive. Along with being HIV positive, Kami loves to play with the other puppets and children. Through Kami, show writers are able to speak about the disease in a way that resonates with children. The goal of Kami is to make HIV positive children feel less alone, and to teach others to be more understanding of them. She has worked at this goal by teaching people how the disease spreads, and how she is just like everybody else. This goal is shown through her name, as Kami means acceptance in Tswana. She has talked to many celebrities, including Bill Clinton, Laura Bush, Oprah Winfrey, and Whoopi Goldberg. Kami also appears in the Nigerian version of the show, Sesame Square. Another character on the show is Zobi. Zobi teaches children about malaria …show more content…

In Egypt, there is Alam Simsim. Children who watch Alam Simsim have reportedly done better on gender equality tests, then those who do not watch it. One of the contributors to this is Khoka. The four year old wants to be a lawyer, doctor, and an engineer. Khoka is a positive role model for young girls. Simsipur is the Bangladesh version of the show. Tutuki, a purple puppet with long braids, is trying to teach a beneficial message to children everywhere. In Bangladesh, where 42 million out of the 67 million, illiterate people are women, she is trying to get girls to be able to read and write, just as well as others do (Sesame Workshop). Baghch-e-Simsim is the version from Afghanistan. There is a character on Baghch-e-Simsim named Zari. Zari is the first muppet of Afghan descent. She was created to tackle women’s rights, in a country that so desperately needs it (Stezano).Through these puppets, the different versions of Sesame Street are able to teach young children about equality, in a fun and entertaining

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