Grey's Anatomy is a medical drama set in Seattle, Washington that in my opinion is very progressive in it's selection of doctor's in at the fictional hospital known as Seattle Grace. In the show, there is a wide selection of female surgeons and even a good number of minority surgeons. In a show like this where there is a wide range of people, this allows for a good representation for the viewers of the show which makes them feel comfortable about possibly seeing or becoming an individual in the medical field. In the show there are a few characters who represent a group of people that would mostly benefit from the representation in the show.
Dr. Bailey is an African American women in the show who is very important because of her strength that she exemplifies throughout the series. Bailey is looked up to by interns and even known around the hospital as the "heartbeat" and eventually made a partner of the hospital. Bailey begins the show married and the primary source of income in her family, but because of a heavy workload is forced to divorce her husband and become a single mother but doesn't miss a step when it comes to being a great surgeon. The effect that a character such as Dr. Bailey has on the viewer, especially young black women, is that it could possibly send the messages that women do not necessarily have to take the backseat when it comes to bringing in money for your family, women can be successful as single mothers if they show hard work and dedication, and also for young black women, it could infuse confidence into the demographic because of their representation in this show.
Dr. Christina Yang is vital to Grey's Anatomy because of her excellence in the medical field and her dedication to create new standards as a cardiologist at Seattle Grace. Yang is Asian American which alone is very important due to the lack of Asian Americans on TV in the first place. Yang is involved in a couple relationships with men throughout the show but never shows dependence on either of them when it comes to finances and being an excellent cardiologist. Like Bailey, Yang sends the message to young women that if you are dedicated to being great and really desire something in life it can be achieved through hard work, even in the medical field as a surgeon and not a nurse.
I love that you addressed Grey’s Anatomy. I agree with everything you’re are saying, Shonda Rhimes does an excellent job with having a wide range of diversity in her shows. From gender, race, sexual orientation, etc., she addresses just about everyone.
ReplyDeleteI do think that Bailey is an admirable character, however, Bailey’s representation in the first season enforced the stereotype that female leaders are “bitches”. Everyone referred to her as “The Nazi” because of her strict ways, whereas Dr. Burke for instance, was simply seen as a leader. This has changed over the years as we’ve come to know her more, we see that she is a strong, loving woman, who does not want to be messed with.
Also, I think that doctor Callie Torres is an exceptional character as well. Her character is rare- especially in 2006 when she first came to the show- because she is a Latino, bisexual female. Along with many of the other women in the show, she has romances, but they never interfere with her work. She represents a strong-minded and ambitious woman who gets her job done, so I think that having her represent both Latino women and bisexual women is significant.
My favorite thing about Shonda Rhimes is she creates these amazing shows with such great diversity, and then doesn’t acknowledge it as diversity, rather normality. During one of her shows, a viewer tweeted about how there were too many “gay” scenes in her shows, to which Rhimes simply stated, “There are no gay scenes. There are scenes with people in them”(-@shondarhimes). We need more Shonda’s in the business.
Yes I completely agree with this! I also am so happy you talked about Grey's Anatomy. Shonda isYes I clmetely agree with this! I also am so happy you talked about Grey's Anatomy. Shonda is amazing at what she does. Alley- I love that you mentioned Callie. I love that Shonda does that, tries to represent all these types of people without sort of acknowledging that it's any different than putting white people in every character slot. She doesn't make it a big deal that people are "different" because doesn't see it that way and neither should we. Everyone is a person no matter the sex, gender, sexuality, etc. Shonda exhibits this mindset in the show "How to Get Away with Murder" as well. Viola Davis plays the lead in this as a strong black woman who is a law professor. I think this sends a very important message to girls of all colors everywhere.
ReplyDeleteKayla- I’m glad you mentioned How to Get Away with Murder. Shonda has many diverse characters in that show as well. The character that I really like in this show is Conner. I love how he is a gay man, but no one knows that until later into the show because he is not the stereotypical flamboyant gay character a majority of shows have. Conner is portrayed exactly how he should be, just another person. There is no dramatic coming out scene or anything, he just randomly is shown hooking up with a guy, and then the show moves on. I came across an interesting article about Jack Falahee, which addressed the issue of people asking him if he is gay because his character in the show is. It made me think about Neil Patrick Harris, because no one really makes a big deal about him being a gay man playing a straight character, but once there is a man playing a gay character everyone begins to wonder about his sexuality. The article for Falahee is here- http://www.towleroad.com/2015/02/falahee.html
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