The Dangers of ‘13 Reasons Why’
There is a line, Netflix
A new Netflix series explores the thought process of a young girl before committing suicide. A dark tale that, next to suicide, discusses depression, cyber-bullying, substance abuse, and sexual assault. The story is based on the young adult novel ‘Thirteen Reasons Why’ by Jay Asher, yet the Netflix adaptation seems far less suitable for the same audience. The series has been surrounded with controversy, though its instant cult following still leaves many susceptible to the risky story.
Despite its good intentions, the show presents an unhealthy image of the issues it’s trying to fight. It indulges the main character by justifying the motives behind her actions — ‘her actions’ of course meaning committing suicide — in a romanticized, yet realistic setting that makes the audience relate to Hannah Baker... and want to be like her… It’s not difficult to see why this worries me.
SPOILER WARNING: minor spoilers for ‘13 Reasons Why’ season 1 ahead.
Now I must admit the focus lies not with Hannah, but the people who hurt her. They are the ones confronted with the consequences of their actions, and they are the ones that are supposed to carry the message of much-needed change to the audience. These characters are introduced as regular teenagers (much like the audience) before they come to realize their faults… Except they aren’t. Most are introduced through Hannah’s perspective, who antagonizes them from the start, or through Clay, who is socially awkward and who blindly believes Hannah’s every word. This way the audience never gets a chance to positively connect with the characters, thus feel less responsible when those characters are accused. The one tape that affected me most is Clay’s own, seeing that we know him positively and truly feel for him as he uncovers what he did to hurt Hannah, even when he did nothing. Instead of learning from the character’s mistake as seen in their tape, Hannah is put on a higher pedestal with each tape. Each reason validating her decision to end her life a little more.
Another danger lies in the moments of levity and the normality. Clay and Hannah’s love story comes to mind in particular. The two smitten teenagers are presented in such a real yet romantic way that their high points (flashback to the scene looking at the moon on the roof of the movie theater) become our high points. It’s very easy for the audience to relate to these completely ordinary characters, to be invested in them, to see themselves in them and to want to be like them. Especially the last is troubling, caused by the slightly romanticized view on a scarily realistic story.
As for the realistic, explicit, uncomfortable nature of the visuals, my familiarity with gore and violence might have made me numb to its effects. The explicit scenes of assault sure are intense. Very intense. However not off-putting in the way it was shot (as is my own amateur opinion), but rather intense character wise. We care about what happens because we care about the characters it happens to. So what are we supposed to feel when Hannah steps in the bath tub, ready and committed?
In short, ‘13 Reasons Why’ raises all the right questions and all the wrong ideas. While the concept is dark and the message strong, good intentions got lost in flawed execution. Hannah Baker killed herself, yet she is glorified more than she is victimized, creating a risky audience-character relationship. The subject matter should be handled with care. Boundaries were crossed in presenting this story in the way they did.
Finally, I want to follow the example of another article on this subject, and mention the suicide prevention lifeline. For the Netherlands this number is 0900–0113. The US lifeline can be reached at 1–800–273–8255. More countries have hotlines that can easily be found on Wikipedia. Whatever this series may amount to, it does stir up a fuzz about an issue that needs to be addressed. Whatever someone is struggling with, their feelings are valid and they should get the help they deserve. If anyone is contemplating suicide, having bad thoughts, don’t see a way out, don’t hesitate to call.
