General Hospital's compelling, informative story about the reality of relationship abuse among teens took a different direction this week. This storyline should have focused on one single victim of abuse, Kristina. That is the only way to present a story of this nature if the motive is to educate and raise awareness. Instead there are too many other victims involved in Kristina's situation for it to be much more than background for the other aspects of this storyline. First of all too much focus is being placed on how this situation affects Sonny and Sam, not to mention Ethan. Obviously there needs to be some mention of Sonny and Sam's past abuse otherwise that would be ignoring history, but their painful memories should not be the primary focus unless the overall goal is to garner sympathy for Sonny. I certainly hope this is not the case.
I am pleased that there have been references to the fact that it is normal for victims of abuse to protect their abuser because I am not sure how much longer viewers will sympathize with Kristina while she is protecting Kiefer. In fact at times I feel that the show may be effectively villainizing her through their attempts to make viewers feel sorry for Ethan, yet another reason he should have never been a major factor in this storyline.
Furthermore I think General Hospital may have made a mistake when they allowed Kristina to become so interested in Ethan that she was willing to break dates with Kiefer to see him. I'm assuming the show wanted to create a situation that would explain Kiefer's attack, but this particular situation sends the message that Kristina really wasn't that in love with Kiefer. As a result viewers may begin asking the question, "if Kristina doesn't care that much about Kiefer then why is she protecting him?"
The answer may lie in Ethan's rejection. Kristina may feel that because Ethan rejected her no one but Kiefer will ever want her. This is something the show really needs to address soon. Often times in abusive relationships the victim is made to feel that their abuser is the only one who will ever love them. This is all a part of the psychology of abuse. The abuser will gradually break down the victim's self-confidence over time until the victim feels worthless and becomes completely dependent on their abuser. This is why it is so easy for people to stay in abusive relationships once the physical abuse begins. I hope this is something the show plans to explore, particularly if Kristina's protection of Kiefer will be an ongoing factor in this storyline. Viewers should sympathize with Kristina, but they will be less inclined to do so unless the show acknowledges the reasoning behind her lies.
I am pleased that there have been references to the fact that it is normal for victims of abuse to protect their abuser because I am not sure how much longer viewers will sympathize with Kristina while she is protecting Kiefer. In fact at times I feel that the show may be effectively villainizing her through their attempts to make viewers feel sorry for Ethan, yet another reason he should have never been a major factor in this storyline.
Furthermore I think General Hospital may have made a mistake when they allowed Kristina to become so interested in Ethan that she was willing to break dates with Kiefer to see him. I'm assuming the show wanted to create a situation that would explain Kiefer's attack, but this particular situation sends the message that Kristina really wasn't that in love with Kiefer. As a result viewers may begin asking the question, "if Kristina doesn't care that much about Kiefer then why is she protecting him?"
The answer may lie in Ethan's rejection. Kristina may feel that because Ethan rejected her no one but Kiefer will ever want her. This is something the show really needs to address soon. Often times in abusive relationships the victim is made to feel that their abuser is the only one who will ever love them. This is all a part of the psychology of abuse. The abuser will gradually break down the victim's self-confidence over time until the victim feels worthless and becomes completely dependent on their abuser. This is why it is so easy for people to stay in abusive relationships once the physical abuse begins. I hope this is something the show plans to explore, particularly if Kristina's protection of Kiefer will be an ongoing factor in this storyline. Viewers should sympathize with Kristina, but they will be less inclined to do so unless the show acknowledges the reasoning behind her lies.
Paula,
ReplyDeleteI agree 110%! You know, it took so long for Kristina to admit she ran Claudia off the road, so I'm hoping they don't drag this story line out too long.
Peggy
Hi Peggy!
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting! Yes, that took way too long! And that incident just indicates Kristina's history for lying. That alone will test viewers' patience.
Paula
Hi Paula!
ReplyDeleteAll I can say is - I agree, I agree, I agree!!!
Your point about focusing so much on Sonny and Sam's abuse history is sooo on the mark! They should def mention it, but it is way too much at this point.
Another good point is the fact that how much did she really love Kiefer if she was so into Ethan?
This whole Kristina protecting Kiefer has already gone on WAY too long for me.
It's making me really uncomfortable watching all of these people - Sonny, Alexis, Sam, etc, etc - tear into Ethan and call him all these terrible names over and over and over.
I really hope they don't drag this on for a long time, but, unfortunately, in a soap opera s/l's go on forever.
And your final graph is right on target - if they don't do a good job of explaining why she's doing all this, it will elicit disdain rather than empathy for Kristina.
A thought-provoking post!
Michele
Hi Michele!
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting! Yes, the constant parade of people tearing into Ethan for the attack is beginning to get on my nerves. It just makes them all seem stupid. As much as Michael has talked to everyone about how Kiefer treats Kristina I can't believe no one has even suspected him, especially since they all keep making the point that victims of abuse protect their abuser. Do they not think that maybe Kristina could be protecting Kiefer by lying about who attacked her? I also thought Sam going in and trying to pick a fight with Ethan was over the top. Again, just another way that the focus is being taken off Kristina.
Paula
Paula,
ReplyDeleteNot only was Sam's fight scene a little silly as if those were karate moves they were not only wimpy but off the mark (I have a brown belt in karate, I should know), but also, Ethan could certainly call the police for Sam assaulting him. Just the fact that he didn't should have given her a clue.
At least, on Friday, Sam tried to put some makeup on Kristina to make her feel better. I just hope the GH writers do a little work on Kristina's lying issues.
Peggy
Hi Peggy!
ReplyDeleteGood point about Ethan being able to press charges for Sam assaulting him. I hadn't thought of that. Anyone who would have beaten up a woman, or more accurately in this situation a 17 year old girl, would likely jump at the chance to press charges against her sister because they would be just that arrogant.
I agree, they need to decide who they want to be the victim in this storyline.
Paula