Task #5- Essay plan

Critical Investigation:  How does "13 Reasons Why" represent mental health issues and can it be argued that it glorifies suicide?

Introduction

  • briefly mention mental health and suicide in the media- issues with glorifying suicide
  • Introduce texts- debates and issues
Quotes

Section 1 - Primary text (13 Reasons Why)
  • Institutional Information- Netflix and Background Info on 13 Reasons Why
  • Textual Analysis- Suicide Scene (MIGRAIN)
  • Issues and Debates- glorification, "vulnerable youth", theme of suicide in tv shows
Quotes 
Theories and Key Words 
  • identification 
  • iconography/ generic conventions
  • target demographic
  • Dyer- ''those with power stereotype the less powerful''
  • dominant ideology 
  • Blumler and Katz- Uses and Gratifications- entertainment/surveillance
  • preferred/oppositional reading 
Issues and Debates 
  • Representation and stereotyping- stereotypes younger demographic, assumes all teenagers go through psychological issues and suicidal thoughts. Also portrays them as ''marginalised'' 
  • Moral Panics - involves violent/ sexually explicit scenes which may cause moral panic amongst the older generation (especially parents) 
  • Ownership and control- Netflix is an increasingly popular platform amongst the younger demographic. Includes controversial shows such as Narcos which also has some explicit themes and imagery e.g use of drugs , sex scenes. Shows are extremely influential and easily accessible. 
  • Regulation and censorship- The show includes some explicit scenes, some places shown warning. Debate over whether they should have shown it.
  • Media technology and the digital revolution – changing technologies in the 21st century- The show was available on Netflix, which could be used on any device- phone, TV, tablet etc. 
Section 2a- Representation of suicide and mental health in media
  • Is it being taken seriously? 
  • Bullying in high school- leads to depression and mental health issues 
  • Talk about genre of teen dramas
  • Textual Analysis of Hallway Scene- Media Lang and Forms
Quotes 
Theories/ Key Words 
  • densensitisation
  • contagion theories
  • sensationalism
Issues and Debates
  • Representation and stereotyping
  • Media effects
  • Regulation 
Section 2b- Historical Context- The Breakfast Club 
  • link- both teen dramas, both involve some element of suicide and metal health 
  • Textual Analysis of Group Therapy Scene
  • Discuss issues on suicide awareness- is there less stigma- are we a more "emotionally literate society,
  •  peer pressure in both extracts- link it back to 13 Reasons Why and question 
Key words/ Theory 
  • medium close up
  • medium long shot
  • Barthes- action code
  • iconography 
Quotes
  • "persons who have attempted suicide has found that 77 percent reported getting their information on methods of suicide from the movies"- Niederkrotenthaler, T., & Stack, S. (2017). Media and suicide: international perspectives on research, theory, and policy. New Brunswick: Transaction .
  • community’s interest in the subject is an important opportunity to educate people about suicide."- Polanczyk, GV (2017). Many reasons to talk about suicide. Journal of the Brazilian Medical Association, 63 (7), 557-558. doi: 10.1590 / 1806-9282.63.07.557 
Section 3a- The controversy behind 13 Reasons Why
  • Beyond the Reasons documentary- include reviews 
  • Letters to parents concerning show
Quotes
Section 3b- Media Effects Debate- Include Netflix issue
  • Audience responses to text 
  • How can audiences be influenced? 
  • By showing someone committing suicide, some audiences may be tempted to see that "suicide" is a reasonable solution to mental health issues and depression.
  • The vast amount of explicit scenes in the show (especially for a teen drama) is one of the reasons why the show had a large impact on the audience. The exposure to scenes such as rape, suicide, and violence, leads to audiences finding that sort of behaviour acceptable in the real world.  
  • various audiences may interpret the key messages of the show in a different way. Older and mature audience members may use the show for surveillance
  • younger audiences may see the show  as a form of entertainment/diversion- which diverts them from the real meaning of suicide being an unacceptable choice for victims of mental health issues. 
Key words/ Theories
  • hypodermic needle theory
  • contagion theory
  • Desensitisation
  • Imitation or copycat violence
  • Cohen- Moral panic
Quotes

Section 4a- Wider Contexts - Mental Health in the UK and US
  • Refer to issues and debates about mental health in the UK 
  • Funding NHS- are there enough mental health facilities
  • Statistics
Quotes
Section 4b- Wider Contexts- Mental health, women and social media 
  • Representation of women in the media
  • Social media- body image and peer pressure
  • Also link to depression/suicide stats in US 
Quotes 
Section 5a- Mental health and high school shootings
  • Link high school shooting with mental health stats
  • TEDx Lecture- "My son was a Columbine Shooter. This is my story"
  • Bowling for Columbine (2002) - Comment on extract link it to "13 Reasons Why" and "Beyond the Reasons 
  • Textual Analysis of scene in Elephant (2003) 
Quotes

  • Elephant- "Get the fuck out and don't come back! Some heavy shit's going down!"
  • "...I should shoot you right now for it, you know I should. But I think I just might let you live, maybe, because I want you to know this... and the next kids that come up to you with their problems... that they're being picked on, you should listen to them... no matter what twisted shit they say."
  • Bowling for Columbine-  "Oh, with a crime. Okay, so if I'm just normally mentally defective but not criminal..."- 
  • "Our children get turned into little monsters, but who's to blame?"
  • "Between 1966 and 2012, there were 90 mass shootings in the United States."- http://edition.cnn.com/2015/08/27/health/u-s-most-mass-shootings/index.html
  • "Mass shootings by people with serious mental illness represent less than 1% of all yearly gun-related homicides. In contrast, deaths by suicide using firearms account for the majority of yearly gun-related deaths."- https://psychiatryonline.org/doi/pdf/10.5555/appi.books.9781615371099
Conclusion
  • Sum up argument
  • How has the representation of mental health and suicide in the media affected society
  • Significance of the issue

















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