The Satirical Message of Grand Theft Auto V: a critique on contemporary American society.

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2017-06-15
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en
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The aim of this bachelor thesis is to answer the question what kind of persuasive message about America is being expressed in the video game Grand Theft Auto V. The video game Grand Theft Auto V contains many controversial characters and features that criticize American society. To analyze the way in which Grand Theft Auto V enables this critique on American society, I have used the theory of Jesse Schell on game mechanisms and the theory of Ian Bogost on the procedural rhetoric of video games. In order to analyze specifically the critique, I have used the theory of Test on satire. The research is divided into two parts; a first chapter on the game mechanisms and procedural rhetoric of Grand Theft Auto V and a second chapter on the satirical messages of the video game. The game mechanisms of Grand Theft Auto V play a crucial role in creating its rhetorical messages. The interactions between game mechanisms create procedural rhetoric that enables the use of satire in a video game. The results suggest that through the use of satire, Grand Theft Auto V creates a critique on not only the American government, but also on the American media industry, the cliché LA lifestyle, and American race issues.
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