Representation

 Eleven, a central figure of the tv show Stranger Things, embodies both empowerment and vulnerability, She is portrayed as a girl with super powers, but also a character who struggles with emotional expression and understanding human relationships due to her being isolated. This taps into the concept of construction, as her character is carefully shaped through the shows shots choices and editing to emphasize her otherness in comparison to her peers. This decision is to focus on her psychic abilities, rather than her childhood trauma, also demonstrates selection, the show chooses to highlight aspects of her identity that contribute to the plots suspense and mystery, while downplaying the real world implications of abuse and isolation. 

Sometimes, Elevens abilities are almost exoticized, especially when she is using her power in visually dramatic ways. Her powers become a spectacle which can be seen as an overphasis on her strangeness or uniqueness. This shows exoticzing a common use in media where individual with extraordinary traits or from different cultures are showed for their differences in ways that may seem strange or exaggerated to the audience. 

Lucas Sinclair is one of the few black characters in Stranger Things. While he is one of the key characters of the group of friends, his portrayal sometimes goes into stereotypes with African American male characters in mainstream media. Lucas is often the skeptic, the pragmatic one, and occasionally portrayed as more aggressive friend of the group, all his roles that align with traditional media of black men as tough or confrontational. These role illustrate the concept of stereotype, which simplifies his character in ways that may not always allow for a more nuanced portrayal of his identity. 

Lucas is part of a historically underrepresented group in media, know as people with color as stated in the notes. While in Stanger Things shows some of his complexity and heroism, his story sometimes feel like its compared to other, predominantly white characters. 

In Stanger Things the representation of both Eleven and Lucas Sinclair highlights both the progress and limitations of contemporary media in reflecting diverse experiences. The show does really good on complex characters it also falls into common patterns of stereotyping and exoticizing.