Representation of Teens

Representation of teenagers in TV Dramas

The representation of teenagers in TV dramas appears to be stereotypical and relatively predictable. I have researched into many different teenage dramas and each subgenre seems to have a different take on the characteristics of teens. For example, soaps such as Eastenders use the typical stereotype of a teen; moody, aggressive, distant in conversation to their elders and generally rude and unobservant. Take ‘Lucy Beale’ from Eastenders. She comes across as though she doesn’t care what people think of her. She has all the problems that a normal teenager goes through, boy troubles, finding school work hard and fitting in with her peers. As an extreme case Lucy runs away and lives on the streets and begs for anything she can get off of people. Obviously, this is a vast exaggeration, but this is how most are represented. Conveying teens in this way makes TV dramas seem much more exciting, and backs up the view that a lot of the older generation believe to be true about teenagers. It’s installing that belief that they are troublemakers that are rude to everyone and gang up on people for unnecessary reasons. Lucy is seen as unstable and unable to make decisions for herself. She is swayed by people she meets on the streets and builds up strong relationships which develop throughout the episodes. Lucy acts as though she doesn’t need help, this representation shows that teenagers think they are independent but in fact are the complete opposite and when an adult figure is presented to Lucy as a form of help, she breaks down and succumbs to the situation, going back home and living with her family. This shows that TV dramas think that teenagers are very unstable, many having mixed emotions and unable to control them.
Period Dramas take on a similar view but represent it in a slightly different way. ‘Tess of the D’Urbervilles’ features and concentrates on one central character named Tess. Her life is full of tragedy, heartbreak and difficult decisions. Although this drama is set in the latter part of the 18th century, it still deals with issues we do today. For example, Tess is taken advantage of by a young man called Alec, who takes her into the woods and rapes her. The experience is obviously very traumatic and Tess, being young and naive, stays with Alec so she can make money to take back home to her family. Although the same situations happen nowadays in TV Dramas, they are without a doubt dealt with in a different way. In Hollyoaks, Luke is raped and this is quite shocking and different as the victim is in a fact a male. This representation shows that any teenagers, both male and female are victims of their age. This view is backed by most generations, including teenagers themselves who are represented as feeling sorry for themselves and thinking the world is against them. TV Dramas deal with many different issues for teenagers from sex to drinking and drugs to self harm and disorders. In soaps, teens are often used as focal points in storylines and other characters seem to revolve around them. A long running storyline in Hollyoaks was Hannah Ashworth attaining an eating disorder. She appeared to suffer from Anorexia and Bulimia. This storyline was both shocking and upsetting and represented teenagers in a negative way. It showed how they can be easily indoctrinated and made to believe that that this terrible disorder was not only acceptable, but was both positive and healthy to be that unhealthy and underweight. Hannah showed herself to be isolated from the world around her and the only ‘true’ friend she had was Melissa who was also suffering from the disorder. Shockingly Melissa died and this showed the true seriousness of the subject. The way in which this storyline was represented was both enlightening and truthful. It showed that teenagers were easy to influence from other teens. Although the subject was both negative and catastrophic – the two girls showed sisterhood and a strong bond right until Melissa’s demise. It is clear that TV Dramas represent teenagers in this way. In the teenage drama ‘Skins’ which revolves around of the lives of teenagers studying at school, strong bonds and relationships are shown and teenagers are generally represented as needing to depend upon someone to feel happy and secure. Teens that are ‘social recluses’ are shown as being very unhappy with her lives and often taking drastic measures such as Hannah Ashworth did in Hollyoaks.
As I have discovered from my research, different subgenres of TV Dramas represent teenagers in relatively similar ways. They are seen as being quite unstable and unsure of themselves. Teens are often shown as being unable to make their own decisions and depending upon their peers and figures around them. They find it hard to convey their emotions in healthy ways and as a result of this they take their emotions out in negative ways. This view is stereotypical and predictable. These representations could be seen as biased as the vast majority of writers of TV Dramas are adults, although once being teenagers, they are not fully clued up as society and trends are constantly changing and some views are outdated. The majority though, are accurate though highly exaggerated on account of making the programme seem more interesting to the viewer.