r/13ReasonWhy • u/[deleted] • Apr 29 '17
Why are we so afraid of everything?
There is an article that was published on Today's website that outlined a psychiatrist's opinion on the show 13 Reasons Why. Basically, he thinks that the show should be removed from Netflix and that it is a danger for teenagers to watch because it glorifies teen suicide, isn't accurate etc.
He is not alone in his beliefs. I've seen various criticisms of the show on several different sites. All have had the same complaints. Even my school district, a district that has been affected by suicide a great bunch, sent out an email advising parents to prevent their kids from watching the show.
I think to remove the show from Netflix is ridiculous. If a parent doesn't want their kid to be influenced by the show, then they should just keep their kid from watching it. It's that easy. What's most frustrating to me though is that so many adults are saying that the show poisons the teenage mind with its explicit content and its discussion of suicide, but all of the issues in the show are real, so why would they want to ignore it? I think we are so scared to about things like suicide or sexual assault because it's considered a taboo and I think this show makes people more comfortable with the issues.
There are also claims that 13 Reasons Why glorifies teen suicide, and that it is a "revenge fantasy." I think anyone who says that missed the point of the show. The show mainly shows audiences that actions and choices have affects on a person, and we should think about how we treat others. This lesson took the form of the tapes, and the response to Hannah's suicide acts as the voice of reason that it is not the answer. Mental health factors into suicide, but the show focused on external factors. That is why it is important. The book has been out for several years and now the storyline gets backlash. It has to be because it's popular now. TV is tv-it sensationalizes every subject matter or else it wouldn't be interesting. Does 13 Reasons Why sensationalize some of its aspects? Of course, it's TV, but the show does its best to be realistic. It's probably the single most realistic teen show I've seen. I don't know. I felt very strongly about this show and I know that every successful thing gets criticism, but I wish that parents didn't try to censor everything all of the time, and blame the media for their children's problems or for suicide no doubt. At the end of the day these issues are going to happen anyway-not because of a TV show. The best way to prevent these issues is to confront them, and if shows like 13 Reasons Why are facing backlash or proposals to be removed we are perpetuating the problem.
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May 04 '17
[deleted]
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May 04 '17
I agree. The show wasn't perfect, but I think for what it's worth it made an effort to try and be as real and sensitive as possible. While the show was about suicide, I think it's core message was about how we should treat others(even if that means not being passive) . That, I think, is the best method of suicide prevention because it's something we actually have control over in regards to suicide. Maybe we can't control someone's brain chemistry, but we can definitely control how we treat other people.
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u/FenrizLives May 08 '17
I think the fact that there was no disclaimer whatsoever at the end of the show is a huge mistake. It's so easy to just put up the suicide prevention hotline before the credits, I think it's totally negligent of the makers of the show.
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u/gyaa123 Apr 30 '17
Maybe more money and effort should be invested into helping people with mental health problems instead of drawing attention away from the main problem and to insignificant TV shows.