One in three adolescents in America fall victim to sexual, physical, verbal or emotional dating abuse, according to Do Something. This abusive behavior can be a result of a few different circumstances, including children seeing abuse in their homes, being abused themselves or even absorbing media that promotes and normalizes abuse in relationships.
In recent years, popular books and movies have been receiving backlash for doing just that: normalizing abuse.
Back in 2015, when the film adaptation of E.L James’ novel "Fifty Shades of Grey" was released in theaters, many were intrigued by the premise and the film gained an overwhelming amount of attention. Some couldn’t help but notice the two main characters of James’ novel had a tumultuous and emotionally abusive relationship and were not so pleased with the film’s supposed glorification of domestic abuse.
In a 2015 article from Collegian, Michelle Fredrickson said films like "Fifty Shades" promote the unhealthy idea that the themes present throughout the novel such as stalking, violence and abuse are "equivalent to love".
Fredrickson also makes a connection to the impact fictional media has on our real lives.
“Fiction matters. Research has long established that the stories we see in TV, books and movies influence how we live our lives, make decisions and relate to others," said Fredrickson.
According to Self Growth Community, glamorized versions of domestic violence can confuse teens and “can actually encourage them to seek out relationships in an effort to model these behaviors”.
Most recently, in November of 2018, a trailer for the teen-romance movie, "After", was released. The trailer garnered a lot of attention since the film is adapted from a One Direction fanfiction that became viral in 2013 on the app Wattpad.
Despite the fanfiction's-- and consequently the film’s--large fan base, many previous readers have grown and learned that the movie promotes unhealthy and abusive relationships.
"After" is facing more backlash because it's geared specifically toward adolescents, giving it the potential to make a much bigger impact on their views of what relationships should be.
Those who have read the fanfiction and have seen the trailer point out key moments where abuse takes place between the two characters, Tessa Young and Hardin Scott - Scott is loosely modeled after the former One Direction member, Harry Styles.
Specific points of the novel include manipulation and hints of physical abuse, such as when Scott coerces Young into partaking in illegal activities or when Young says, “for a second I think (Hardin) could slap me.”
What many of these books and movies tend to do is utilize the “bad-boy” trope and the “good-girl” stereotype as a means for the main female character to change the main male character’s abusive or manipulative actions.
It may not seem like the entertainment industry plays an important role in the relationships of adolescents, but organizations like the Austin Publishing Group have found behaviors that perpetuate domestic violence are portrayed as "romantic gestures rather than dangerous and ominous behaviors” which impacts public audiences, specifically teenagers.
Of course, songs, books, shows and films are completely up to the interpretation of the listener, reader or viewer, but when a novel or film is geared towards an impressionable teen audience, it’s essential that what is being presented has a positive impact on teens and showcases the proper way to function in a relationship that doesn’t involve physical or emotional abuse and manipulation.
Entertainment outlets have way more of an impact on the future generation than they realize.
What they need to start doing is advocating for more books and films that present relationships in a healthy way to avoid the trickle down effect of abuse and domestic violence.
