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Screenshot of Hannah and Clay from TV Series |
The hype over 13 Reasons Why has been insanely overwhelming. I feel like the only people left in this planet who haven’t seen this series yet are the ones living under bedsheets. Based on what people have seen in this series, it's pretty much evident that every human being wandering in the online stratosphere have already shared their fair view towards the domino effect of teenage depression and suicide.
I’m
both happy and sad about the response 13 Reasons Why has been receiving from
its viewers. I read this book when I was in high school and honestly speaking I
definitely had a different perspective towards teenage depression, mental
health and suicide back in those years. When I first read this, I thought Hannah and the reasons why she took her own life a little bit pathetic and
childish. The intensity this book gave me was only 4 out of 10. It didn’t give
me a clearer grasp and understanding about what Hannah was trying to imply or
whatever she'sis facing through. The exchange of POV of both Clay and
Hannah in the book was a bit vague as there were proper introduction of such. In short, I did not like it. Both
Hannah and Clay’s characters were paper flat to me.
When
I heard that Netflix is bringing 13 Reasons Why into life, I thought I might
give it a shot. And I did give it a shot… long before the 13RW bandwagon
invaded Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr. It’s good but kind of eccentric to see these people finally
opening up their eyes towards this timely, relevant, and sensitive issue. But
unlike them, I am not going to go where the currents are heading. Here are my
thoughts towards 13 Reasons Why.
Trigger Warning: My opinion is part of the minority but I stand
by it.
Unapologetic — that is how I can describe Hannah Baker when she came up with this idea of
listing down the names of the people who caused her to do what she did; personalizing
each audio tapes to its rightful owner, and anonymously sending out a shoebox filled
with tape. This scheme would eventually torture “the reasons” and make them feel the
guilt they deserve for what they did to her.
Hannah reached the tip of the iceberg; a point in her life where she has completely lost her mindfulness. She did what she think was right without even knowing the
consequences — or maybe she did know the consequences. I am not sure. But I’m
sure enough to say that Hannah Baker was sad… more than sad to be precise. She
was depressed — not the kind of depressed that people mistakenly use to
describe what they are feeling when they are typically having a terrible day.
Hannah Baker was mentally-ill. She
wasn’t in her sound mind to even think that doing those audiotapes could lead
to another lost lives. She just doesn’t care anymore. I feel like somehow
for someone who has been tremendously broken and bruised by the universe, that’s
just the way it really goes.
Although,
“the reasons” deserved to be able to feel the guilt for what they did, “the
reasons” also deserve to have a second chance. I know saying this would make
you think that I’m the type of person who chooses to live in fantasy filled
with happy endings and second chances but this is how I see life. You make them
realize their mistake, they learn from it. There is no need to make them feel
like there’s a ghost from their past that will always keep them haunted.
As
much as I hate “the reasons”, I also pity them for being tortured by the memory
of Hannah Baker because of the audio tapes. Let the higher power avenge for what they
did. I may be wrong with this but that’s how I see things now. Some people say
that the series made Hannah a villain when in fact people should be
compassionate on what happened to her. Yes, I am sad that Hannah’s life ended
that way. She deserved nothing but pure love and happiness. She deserved the
world. Yes, she is the protagonist of the series but don’t the other kids
deserve the same amount of compassion as well? I’m not stupid. I know that they
were all assholes for what they did to Hannah. But let’s look at the other
perspective that people often refuse to put their eyes on. They are all lost
and messed up kids who also need professional help like Hannah. There’s a
reason behind why those kids, “the reasons” acted the way they do towards other
people, towards Hannah. THEY ARE HUMAN BEINGS LIKE HANNAH BAKER. They are on
the stage of their lives where they are in great turmoil with their internal
self. The series is so focused on Hannah
Baker that we ALL failed to see that it’s not just Hannah Baker who needed
HELP. All of them needed that. If a mental health care professional were only
there to guide them on how they should’ve lived their life, things would’ve not
turned out to be like this.
And
YES! That is what I wanted this series to send out to many teenagers out there,
even adults. If you think that there are just so many reasons that are dragging
you down a hell hole, don’t be afraid to seek professional help. However,
in the series, Mr. Porter was wildly foolish as well, so Hannah really had no choice. Hannah showed him how she feels lost and empty. These are crystal clear signals of depression that she's never told anyone, but someone who specialized in Psychology should've known. But instead of actually helping her, Mr. Porter just gave her box of tissues and asked her to just move on. Really. now?
Executive
Producer Selena Gomez said in her interview for 13 Reasons Why: Beyond the
Reasons that they wanted to show the viewers that suicide is NEVER an option.
But isn’t that what they failed to portray in the series? If that is what they
wanted, they should’ve built up a mental health care professional character
that could’ve helped Hannah realize that SUICIDE IS NEVER AN OPTION. But they’ve
given Hannah no choice, nothing at all but suicide. They showed the viewers
that having a list of reasons is enough proof to dictate if it’s time for us to
head over the great unknown. In contrary to what they thought, this series
encourages suicide. However, if they wanted to create an awareness and
conversation about how we should be careful on treating other people and how
one simple act can inflict a tremendous effect on other people's lives, I guess they succeeded
on it.
And please... just please stop romanticizing everything! “I
cost a girl her life because I was afraid to love her.”??? Yes. You can
definitely try, but in actuality love ALONE can’t save someone from a serious
problem or a serious mental health illness. It can help. However, if there’s a
large mass stuck inside of your head or there’s a massive black hole in your
heart sucking what’s left of your energy, your relationship with other people; their
love for you will never be enough to fix you. It can, maybe. But it’s just
never enough.
Despite having a loving family, best medical care, and endless wealth; did
fictional William Traynor choose Louisa Clark over his arranged suicide? No. Did Theodore Finch choose Violet Markey
over his mental illness? No. Take note, Hannah’s parents loved her so much. It
was an unconditional love that not all of the kids in that series received from
their parents. They gave Hannah what she deserved, but did that stop Hannah
from taking her own life? Do you really think that if Clay confessed his love
for Hannah, all of those nightmares that she experienced with the other “reasons”
would eradicate immediately? NO. But if you would argue, I could also say
somehow yes. Only if Hannah would open up to Clay about all her struggles, all her pain. Only if Clay would help Hannah seek a mental health professional. But sometimes teenagers like Hannah, they just refuse to open up to some people, especially to adults.
Here’s
another point that 13 Reasons Why should’ve highlighted in their story; it’s
okay to open up to adults. On the other hand, I want them to portray the “adults”
as understanding and compassionate human beings. In reality, not all adults,
especially parents, are open in accepting the fact that their children could be depressed; mentally-ill. I feel like they disgust the word “depressed”. Maybe it just officially lost its true meaning because it always gets mistakenly used. It
would’ve been great if the series showed the adults that the stigma over mental illnesses is the one of the reasons why teenagers nowadays refuse to open up to
anyone, even their parents. I want teenagers and the adults as well to be open to the fact that there is no shame in having a mental illness. There's definitely no shame in seeking professional help.
I really want to end this post now but it just came to my senses just now how poorly mental illness and depression was portrayed in the series. I've been talking a lot about how Hannah Baker was depressed throughout this post (My logic: because having reasons will make you depressed and depression can lead to suicide). But as a viewer and so called "fan" of 13 Reasons Why, have you ever wondered; Did Hannah take her own life only because she had "reasons" to do so or Did Hannah take her own life because these "reasons" have made her depressed? (I have always said this but i'm going to say it again yung simpleng sadness po ay hindi depression. Check online to know more about depression) Because based on my research, the National Alliance on Mental Illness describes the word suicide as "a decision made due to a battle with depression or another mental illness". And it's not only me that agrees with this. Serena Smith says in her article in The Tab that:
"Suicide is caused by mental illness, not (merely) bullying; but is Hannah Baker portrayed as mentally ill?... Not everyone who commits suicides shows signs, granted. Almost all suicides are described as ‘shocking’. But is the word ‘depression’ ever uttered once in all 13 episodes? It’s unrealistic. The mental health narrative is as pushed under the rug as ever..."
Based on what I can remember, the only signs of depression that Hannah Baker has shown in the series were her cry for help through her beautifully-written poetry, her cutting of hair, and her often weeping. Aside from that, her narration of her situation through the audio tapes were signs of depression that was only heard when she had already died. Now tell me, how can a parent who wishes to watch this series identify if her child is depressed if this is how they have portrayed depression? Television is a medium that can change perceptions and bring awareness to people. Show a kid who withdraws from family and friends, from his or her daily activities and hobbies. Show a kid who has difficulty in sleeping, decision-making, and focusing. Show a kid that who's losing or gaining weight that is unrelated to diet. Show a kid who often gets irritated, mad, and sad, because these are some of the signs of depression that adults NEED TO KNOW. At least, in this way parents would be filled with awareness if their child's suffering from depression."Suicide is caused by mental illness, not (merely) bullying; but is Hannah Baker portrayed as mentally ill?... Not everyone who commits suicides shows signs, granted. Almost all suicides are described as ‘shocking’. But is the word ‘depression’ ever uttered once in all 13 episodes? It’s unrealistic. The mental health narrative is as pushed under the rug as ever..."
In
contrary to all of my opinions, I think maybe that 13 Reasons Why series wanted
the moral of the story to be highlighted at the end of the season. Thus, the
episodes just wanted to show the reality of bullying, sexual assault, and its
consequences. On the other hand, what I somehow wanted 13 Reasons Why to show
is the reality of bullying, sexual assault and its consequences plus the ACTUAL
KIND OF SALVATION DEPRESSED AND SUICIDAL TEENAGERS COULD GET IF THEY HAVE UNDERSTANDING PEERS, ADULTS AND MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONAL AROUND TO SUPPORT THEM. Because to
be honest, if someone depressed and suicidal watched this series, it could just
trigger them. Seriously. It does open the eyes of bullies and people living on the sidelines, but how about those people suffering from suicidal thoughts, those teenagers who are battling from mental health issues? Witnessing how Hannah so easily ended her life could definitely help desensitize teenagers to this serious matter.
You
can cancel me all you want but these are my opinions. I’m open with arguments. I care about mental health and LIFE so much that it caused me to do a review of this series. If my opinions may not be aligned with yours, my mind is open to a different perspective. :)
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| Words and main artwork by collene. |
collene is 24-year-old self-proclaimed creative old soul who is deeply fascinated by the beauty of music, arts, books and poetry. Catch her wearing her bluetooth earphones on with either a phone or book on hand.
