Representation

     
Representation in Alice Boseman's, "Heartstopper":

    Netflix’s “Heartstopper” is a coming-of-age show based in the UK, revolving around a group of friends as they discover their sexuality and feelings for one another. The show represents the LGBTQIA+ community, along with representation of race, and the impact of mental-health issues.

    The story primarily follows the growing connection between Charlie Spring, an openly gay man, and Nick Nelson, a seem-to-be “straight,” guy. These two are both students at the Truham Grammar School for boys. At the beginning of the show, Charlie is currently in a toxic relationship. The show depicts the level of discomfort a toxic relationship may lead to, and how even in LGBTQ+ relationships, this is still a genuine problem. Charlie ends up breaking away from this person, and develops a crush on Nick Nelson, a boy who has never experienced any queer attraction to another person before. As time goes on, the show blossoms into a journey of self-discovery with an array of difficulties. The scenes that show the shared interest the two boys have in one another are constructed using visual* and auditory cues that the director uses. The ownership choices may be tainted with creator bias, as Alice Oseman, the writer of the series, is queer herself. Even with this, the show itself dives away from stereotypes that are typically made on people in queer relationships, and instead shows in honesty the joys of being in the community, along with the complications of being a part of a minority. Furthermore, scenes that may depict real-life bullying against the LGBTQ+ community have been seen in the show. These scenes represent the real events that do happen against the queer community, and the trauma that may come out of them. In this link, it shows Nick standing up for Charlie against his toxic friends, and how he reflects on what had happened. Bullying Scene




*As seen in this image, the high-key lighting in the shot gives a sense of warmth to the scene.

    The production also develops the narrative of gender orientation and the struggles of identifying out of the standards. Elle Argent is a black transgender woman who previously attended the Truham Grammar School for boys, where she received immense amounts of bullying for her transition. The show openly shows the number of hardships that Elle had to go through before she transferred to Higgs, an all-girls school. Elle is trying to apply for an art school, where she has had trouble due to racial and homophobic roadblocks. Like Elle’s situation, Darcy, a non-binary lesbian, struggles with the difficulties of being queer at home, where she does not have as supportive parents as the other characters in the story. This represents the fact that not all people come from the same amount of support as others might. Alike Darcy, Nick does not have a supportive brother, who thinks that being a part of the community is a sign of “weakness.” Even though Nick’s mother is completely fine with Nick being himself, this still shows how some people are in families that don't fully accept them for not fulfilling society’s standards.


    On another note, the show also dives deep into the struggles of having a mental illness. In the past, Charlie Spring had some issues with an eating disorder, where he refused to eat at all. This illness resurfaces while Nick and Charlie are happily together in their relationship. The show illustrates that even though someone might look happy from the outside, they still could be seriously struggling on the inside.


    The show overall has a wide variety of characters from all different sexual orientations, representing all sides of the LGBTQIA+ community. The show clearly represents both the good and the bad about being a part of this community and gives a realistic approach to how queer people explore themselves outside of societies bubble.