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Almost Perfect
Despite all of Sex Education’s successes in representation there are a few downfalls. As was mentioned in previous posts they propagated some harmful stereotypes about self-repression of queer identities leading to outward homophobia, and the main character expressed some beliefs about asexuality that are commonly espoused in media and society. However for both of these issues they eventually address the problems either by direct challenging of the belief or through developing a character from a homophobic closeted bisexual bully to a queer identifying young man who’s happy with who he is. The show also portrays various economic realities and family dynamics, from a wealthy nuclear family to a low income student living on her own in a mobile home park. However, the show does very little to address different experiences with gender and sexuality across racial groups and has no noticeable characters who do not conform to cisgender norms.
Despite its incredibly diverse cast Sex Education has only scraped at the surface of any type of racial differences in sexuality and the societal pressures that go with being a queer person of color. The little we do see is with Eric’s parents, who though supportive of him still are obviously concerned that his demeanor will bring negative attention to the family. In the first season it seems as though they’ve yet to come to terms with his sexuality but by the second season it appears as though the family fully accepts and supports him.
The one glaringly obvious omittance from such an incredibly queer show is the complete lack of trans characters. For a show that is as diverse as Sex Education it does itself a disservice by omitting these identities. With all of the different identities covered between the two seasons it is odd that trans students are left out. With as many as 2% of high school students identifying as trans (according to the CDC) it would be a wonderful step forward in representation for them to include not only a trans character in the next season, but one with a thoughtful and well fleshed out character.
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Next in line, how sex education deals with sexual assault.
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Everyone has bodies, right? It’s nothing to be ashamed of
Otis Milburn
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You can't choose who you're attracted to. You can't engineer a relationship.
Otis Milburn
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Asexuality in Sex Education
During Season two Netflix’s Sex Education addresses something that is nearly never talked about in popular media – Asexuality. During this episode one of the theatre students – Florence – approaches Otis with her concerns that she does not feel any sexual desire even though she feels pressure to *ahem* perform from the others in the theatre department. She then goes to visit Otis’s clinic to discuss how this makes her “feel like a freak”. Be it through a misunderstanding of what Florence means or through ignorance of asexuality Otis tells her that she may just not be ready yet and that she will “find the right person”. This dismissal of her sexuality, even if it is not intentional, is reflective of societal conceptions of asexuality. Many simply see it as immaturity or not yet being ready and that it can be cured when the right person comes along. But much akin to how one cannot change which gender(s) they are attracted to, it is equally impossible to force attraction to be there at all. Unsatisfied with Otis’s answer Florence later seeks out a more qualified individual to speak with, Otis’s mother. In their conversation Florence describes her feelings towards sex as being similar to being “surrounded by a huge feast with everything I could want to eat, but I’m not hungry.”, to which Jean responds with one of the show’s most impactful lines. The approach that Jean takes towards asexuality is one that in media is rarer than the portrayal of asexuality; that it’s not only okay to not feel sexual attraction but also that it doesn’t change your value as a person. As Jean put it when speaking with Florence “sex doesn’t make us whole. And so, how could you ever be broken?”
I would highly recommend this particular episode, as Jean and Florence’s conversation gives a great overview of the asexuality spectrum to those whom are newer to the concept. They also talk about how some people don’t feel any attraction either sexually or romantically (aro-ace), although Florence does still experience romantic attraction.
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Turns Out We’re a Sex Education Blog Now
Thought I was gonna write about other stuff, but Netflix’s Sex Education just keeps on giving. Next up is how Sex Education dealt with asexuality.
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Adam’s Journey
Throughout the course of the first season we see the mostly antagonistic actions of the headmaster’s son Adam towards Eric, an flamboyant gay man. It turns out that this torment is driven by a motive straight out of middle school, Adam has a crush on Eric. Through their intertwined storylines we see a complicated relationship between Adam’s internalized homophobia and toxic masculinity combined with a desire to feel good about himself. To add more complications to the mix Adam’s father is cold and nearly emotionless towards Adam, only ever displaying anger and disappointment. There are harmful stereotypes in Adam’s characterization throughout the first season, mainly that the source of homophobia is a failure to cope with one’s own queer identity and attractions. Adam spends much of the first season bullying Eric, and then in a climactic scene at the end of the first season gives Eric a blowjob while they’re in detention. Despite the negative stereotyping of Adam during the first season, the second season pulls around and helps to turn around Adam as a character. He and Eric have a troubled dynamic during much of this season. Eric experiences a healthy relationship, but also frequently meets up with Adam at night to break shit. This comes to a head when Eric explains his feelings towards Adam to Otis who in turn tells Eric that he shouldn’t fall for someone who “treats him like shit”, which eventually leads Eric to reject Adam. This leads Adam to reflect upon himself, admit that he’s bisexual, and earn his redemption during the final episode of season two in a way that is the inverse of the secretive end of season one by openly admitting who he is to the audience and asking Eric to hold his hand.
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Queer Sex Education in Netflix’s Sex Education
Warning: If you haven’t seen Sex Education on Netflix yet there are likely spoilers ahead. Also go watch the show, it’s fantastic.
Sex Education revolves around the sexual advice “clinic” that Otis Milburn runs in in his secondary school. Throughout his clinic sessions he covers a diverse range sexual problems over different sexual and racial identities. Not only does this show cover a range of intersectional topics, but most of the main cast shows some amount of queerness. Sex Education goes farther than surface level representation. It gives pictures of the downfalls of the education system when it comes to sexual education, especially surrounding queer sex ed. While the show is set in the UK school system, it displays remarkable similarities to the US system when it comes to sex education. In the few scenes where actual sex ed is portrayed in school it is done via the bumbling science teacher, Mr. Hendricks. This character is used as a source of comic relief throughout the series, and his teaching of sex education in a haphazard manner is a reflection on the status of sex education in schools. Most of the actual education in the series is through the clinic that Otis and Maeve run, covering topics from Vaginismus to body image to revenge porn. In In episode 6 of the second season they broach a topic that is almost never covered in schools, sexual education for queer youth. In this episode hey attempt to help one of the students at their school to prepare for and learn how to be safe with his boyfriend as he has not had sex before. Throughout this season they broach queer related sexual issues, be it via the clinic or other accessory stories. This show not only focuses heavily on queer characters but also on the struggles of growing up queer and the lack of sexual resources that are inherent with growing up queer.
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Upcoming Topics
Hey Y’all, In the next week or so I’m gonna be posting about a combination of the following Shows, Films, and other assorted media topics:
Queer Youth in The Politician
Sixsmith and Frobisher in Cloud Atlas
Sexuality and incarceration in Orange is the New Black
Sexual Education for Queer Youth in Sex Education
Homegrown queer pop culture in the age of social media
Turns out we’re a sex education account now.
To find these posts later on look for #QPOP
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