Mike Teavee

The song 'Mike Teavee' from 'A Fantástica Fábrica de Chocolate' serves as a cautionary tale about the detrimental effects of excessive television watching on children. The lyrics emphasize the importance of keeping children away from television sets, suggesting that the device has a profoundly negative impact on their cognitive and imaginative abilities. The repeated advice to 'never, never let them near a television set' underscores the urgency and seriousness of this warning.

The song paints a vivid picture of the consequences of too much screen time. It describes how television 'rots the senses in the head' and 'kills imagination dead,' leading to a cluttered mind and a dull, blind child. The imagery of a child's brain becoming 'as soft as cheese' and their thinking powers rusting and freezing is particularly striking, highlighting the irreversible damage that can occur. The lyrics suggest that children who watch too much television lose their ability to understand and appreciate fairytales and other imaginative stories, becoming passive consumers who 'only see' rather than think.

The character of Mike Teavee is used as a specific example of these negative effects. The song expresses regret over Mike's condition, indicating that his excessive television watching has led to severe consequences. The line 'we shall simply have to wait and see if we can get him back to size' implies that Mike's situation is dire and possibly irreversible. The final sentiment, 'if we can't... it serves him right,' adds a moralistic tone, suggesting that Mike's fate is a direct result of his own actions and serves as a warning to others.