Why 13 Reasons Why is Stupid (With Proofs)
- Paras
- Nov 28, 2023
- 4 min read
Articles that prove that this show did ACTUAL, REAL harm to teenage girls:
Proof 1:
Proof 2:
Poof 3:
Proof 4:
These are just a few of the top search results on Google I found.
Here's an article by NPR that says that 13 Reasons Why led to a spike in teen suicides after its release:
Link to the article:
If you're busy and want to skip this you can as I've already proved my point. If you want my analysis, read on.
Key point:
The show wants us to feel Hannah's pain but ends up glamorizing suicide: After Hannah has bad stuff happen to her she kept it mostly to herself, didn't get proper help and recorded 13 tapes which were delivered to the people responsible for her suffering. The people are shown suffering a lot due to the tapes. This just ends up glamorizing suicide!
13 Reasons Why got people talking about mental health just like the Bollywood movie Chori Chori Chupke Chupke got people talking about surrogacy. While people were criticizing the movie/show, they at least got to talking about the message! 🤣🤣🤣
The popular Netflix show 13 Reasons Why needs no introduction.
But in case you don't know, it's the story of Hannah Baker, a high school girl who records 13 tapes before she kills herself due to various reasons, and then blames people via the tapes. Each tape targets a particular person in her high school. The tapes are delivered after her death to a classmate Tony; he passes them on to the other '13 reasons'.
In my opinion, the show is stupid and doesn't deserve the recognition it deserved for being a hero for people suffering from bullying and mental disorders. Let me explain.
Here is a brief summary of what each of the 13 people did:
Justin Foley: Took a photo of Hannah and shared it with his friends, which led to rumors about Hannah.
Jessica Davis: Became distant from Hannah after starting to date Alex Standall.
Alex Standall: Created a list ranking the body parts of girls in school and gave Hannah the distinction of “Best Ass.”
Tyler Down: Stalked Hannah and took pictures of her through her window.
Courtney Crimsen: Spread rumors about Hannah’s sexuality.
Marcus Cole: Tried to take advantage of Hannah on a date.
Zach Dempsey: Stole compliments from Hannah’s anonymous notes in class.
Ryan Shaver: Published one of Hannah’s poems without her permission.
Clay Jensen: Was included on the tapes because he didn’t do enough to help Hannah when she was alive.
Sheri Holland: Knocked down a stop sign while driving, which led to a fatal accident.
Bryce Walker: Raped both Jessica and Hannah.
Kevin Porter: Did not take Hannah’s complaints about bullying seriously.
Montgomery de la Cruz: Bullied several students, including Tyler.
Here are some scenes that'll help me make my point:
Problematic Scene 1:
Hannah is seen walking out of the school via a corridor and we hear her voice on the tape. Notice what she says: "...Some of you care. None of you cared enough." She is blaming people for not caring for her A LOT for her while she was alive. She says this in expectation that people will love her more after her death, that they will suffer not caring about her enough. There is a subtle enjoyment in her voice thinking how agonized everyone will be.
Hannah is shown almost like a hero walking into the distance after he succeeds in his quest, while delivering some grand dialogue. She's almost shown to be brave for doing what she did cinematographically. Also these are her last words before she slits her wrist.
Absolute worst storytelling if you're a series about seeking help for bullying and poor mental health.
People can help you only if you reach out to them. You can't blame them for not caring A LOT after they cared enough.
Problematic Scene 2:
Clay loved Hannah romantically and missed her. He sees Hannah after her death! One scene goes like this:
Clay expresses his feelings to a hallucination he has of Hannah after her death. The scene subtly gives off the false impression that your crush will confess their feelings to you after you die, which is total garbage.
Moreover, Hannah's constant presence after her demise makes us feel as though we will be there to witness people suffering for not caring about us enough!
If a girl has a guy who doesn't love her back, this scene might give the WORST kind of advice!
There's always a lot of fish in the sea. There's no reason to even cry after someone rejects you.
Problematic Scene 3:
Clay's tape has the following dialogue:
Clay is not responsible for Hannah's death by any means, but is included because he led to Jessica's rape!
Clay and Hannah were at a party along with the rest of the schoolmates. They decided to get intimate and find a bedroom. While kissing Hannah remembers all the trauma she had faced until the moment and stops kissing. In her frustration she yells at Clay asking him to leave. Confused, Clay leaves.
Screenrant's article states: It's revealed in the tape that Clay is the reason Hannah had been in Jessica's room at the party. Having been at the event together and grown closer, they went to the bedroom to escape the crowd. Though they initially begin taking their relationship to the next level, Hannah ultimately has a breakdown caused by the trauma she'd suffered across the season 1 so far.
In her distress, she yells at Clay to leave. Confused and scared, Clay does as she demanded – and accordingly faces a lifetime of guilt. 13 Reasons Why's Hannah Baker states on the tape that a part of her had wanted Clay to stay, but that she doesn't blame him for leaving. Equally, Hannah said that Clay didn't deserve to be on the list like the others, but that he needed to be there since he was part of her story. Clay, however, couldn't help but take some level of responsibility - believing that his decision to leave is what led to the subsequent events of Jessica's rape and Jeff's death.
In Conclusion:
After all is said, giving credit to the show where it is due; the show made people somewhat aware of suicide, depression, bullying, rape, harassment, toxic behaviors (both male and female) and mental problems and got them talking. That's a tiny win nonetheless. Just like the Bollywood movie Chori Chori Chupke Chupke made people aware about surrogacy, while teaching everything wrong about it! I mean, at least people got talking about surrogacy while cursing the movie!
And this is just a tip of the iceberg!
Let me know your thoughts below.
Sources:
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