> Much of the common violence and atrocities of the past when portrayed in movies and other forms of entertainment
To be fair, they are never portrayed in a very realistic way. Or at least not in a way in which you care about the characters dying on screen.
As to the claim of "less violence", let's rather say "violence in number is decreasing", but there are still very violent AND cruel acts being carried as we speak in many parts of the world. And let's not forget there are still many places as well where people are enslaved - the fact that these behaviors are resilient does not say lots of good things about humanity.
> To be fair, they are never portrayed in a very realistic way. Or at least not in a way in which you care about the characters dying on screen.
I'm not sure I agree. Usually they are not, but perhaps you might re-watch Saving Private Ryan. It's not the only gory war movie, but it does a remarkable job of showcasing horrific things we humans do to each other. The knife fight scene is especially disturbing.
"The Tudors" also had some pretty cruel punishments, though often it's not carried off on-screen. Even when the people being tortured are not protagonists, it's hard not to empathize in the "oh god that's just not right" way.
You make a good point though about there still being terrible things going on in other parts of the globe.
To be fair, they are never portrayed in a very realistic way. Or at least not in a way in which you care about the characters dying on screen.
As to the claim of "less violence", let's rather say "violence in number is decreasing", but there are still very violent AND cruel acts being carried as we speak in many parts of the world. And let's not forget there are still many places as well where people are enslaved - the fact that these behaviors are resilient does not say lots of good things about humanity.