1 week Ago By Extra Reporter
Adolescence, the hit Netflix show, has sparked huge debate, with the UK’s prime minister, Keir Starmer meeting the creators and calls from politicians here for it to be shown in Irish schools. The show tells the story of a 13-year-old boy who stabs a girl to death, having been influenced by online content. But some experts are now questioning the initial media reaction to the series.
Here, bestselling author, podcaster, and leadership expert Síle Walsh explains how the show illustrates that ‘we are all part of the problem’ with five key lessons that can be learned from the series.Leadership Specialist Síle Walsh. Pic: Supplied1.
Confronting male violence We might not have noticed that the police had initially mentioned the stabbed girl, Katie, was bullying Jamie (the perpetrator), but then kind of left it, because there’s this idea about the perfect victim.In Ireland, echoing global trends, men are statistically the most likely to commit violent acts. CSO figures show over 87 per cent of homicides and 80 per cent of assaults are perpetrated by men.
The media’s focus on Jamie (Owen Cooper) reflects how society tends to react to male perpetrators.We know that we focus on the empathetic element of the perpetrator, and we see that in newspapers and reports all the time; or we might instead focus on the imperfection of the victim.In Adolescence, the audience is drawn into understanding Jamie’s motives rather than focusing on Katie’s suffering.
We often skip an emphasis on the victim because, well, that might be really uncomfortable to consider.Mark Stanley as Paulie Miller, Owen Cooper as Jamie Miller and Stephen Graham as Eddie Miller in Adolescence Pic: NetflixBut also, we might have some gender-based biases, and we know victims of violence then often find themselves not being the perfect victim, especially as women. Because Katie bullied him, it somehow made sense.
Of course, nobody should be bullied, but it was interesting how the response to the show replicated what happens frequently in real-life society.While conversations revolve around male identity, like ‘incel’ culture and boy self-esteem, there’s a noticeable silence around female victims. There’s much more talk about incels, red pilling, and self-esteem for boys than there was before.
However, we’re not hearing as much about girls who are victims of male violence, for instance.There’s this term, ‘femicide’. We know that that’s on the increase.
It’s interesting what resonates with people from watching a television show, and maybe how we don’t always pick up on some of the nuances.2. Anger is the only publicly acceptable emotion for men In episode four, Jamie’s father Eddie (Stephen Graham) lashes out after his son’s arrest.
This shows how men are allowed to express only certain emotions in public. Eddie’s anger was permitted to be seen, but when he was crying, he was in the room on his own, mirroring broader societal patterns, especially in the workplace.In workplaces, research suggests women are more emotional than men.
But that’s only if you don’t include anger as an emotion, which men typically don’t.When you do include that, there’s different pieces of research that suggest men are actually more emotional at work in their decision-making and their behaviour.Stephen Graham as Eddie Miller and Owen Cooper as Jamie Miller in Adolescence Pic: NetflixEddie’s emotional repression reflects how many men lack the tools or spaces to process feelings.
He didn’t get support, and he also felt he had to hide his emotions from his daughter and manage them with his wife.I think this tells us something about not just the kind of harm aimed towards women, but also how it’s held in place by things like men not knowing how to process their feelings, or lacking in safe spaces, then creating a misrepresentation of maleness to women.The young boy was leaning on his dad for emotional support, but his dad was himself struggling with gaining emotional support or accessing it, or even understanding what was happening.
3. The invisible labour of womenJamie’s mother, Manda (Christine Tremarco), is a quiet but powerful presence. While not central to the plot, she plays a vital emotional role.
She wasn’t a main character in a lot of ways, and yet was actually the main source of support to the main characters.Christine Tremarco as Manda Miller and Stephen Graham as Eddie Miller in Adolescence Pic: NetflixThis speaks to the invisible labour of women, especially mothers. I just thought it was a really good display of the invisible labour of motherhood and that of women generally.
4. Female inequality in work settings In episode two, a pair of police detectives visit Jamie’s school; a man and a woman. The female vice-principal introduces only the male detective to a class, omitting his colleague.
With a woman vice-principal featured in this scene, already we have an example of female staff doing a kind of extra labour.She was nearly overly helpful as well, which is quite interesting. I wonder, if they had cast that person as a man, would he have been so helpful and unsure?Erin Doherty as Briony Ariston in Adolescence Pic: Ben Blackall/NetflixThe thing that was really notable about that moment in particular – when she didn’t introduce the woman detective – was that the vice-principal knew to correct it, which means it was designed into the script in some way.
It was intentional that the woman was overlooked. It reflects real-world workplace dynamics, where women often go unacknowledged despite doing more.5.
We all play a role in perpetuating biasIn the series, there are many and varied layers to gender roles playing out.It’s not one-dimensional; we know that men also require effective emotional processing and help with how they manage their feelings and what’s appropriate and inappropriate behaviour.And if we’re not creating norms, people find spaces that have their own norms.
Netflix hit Adolescence almost looked very different reveals Stephen Graham.
