Debates about representation



So why the fuss? soaps are known for their high emotions. Well, for viewers who have lost a baby to cot death, such a storyline not surprisingly brings back painful memories, however people are saying that it is the case with many of the narratives in other programmes like Coronation street and Emmerdale. In this case the objection was not to having a storyline about cot death but instead how the character of Ronnie was portrayed.

People argue:

“as is all too common, a bereaved mother has been portrayed as deranged and unhinged... For many, EastEnders might be their first or closest experience of a newly bereaved mother's reaction and subsequently they may treat baby snatching as a typical desire”

So in other words they are putting idea's into people's heads.

Personally I do think it is a really sensitive issue and Eastenders have kind of lost it a bit. Realistically how much bad luck could happen on one square and in fact to one person. Ronnie has been rapped by her father, left alone as a child by her mother, watched her child who she believed was dead die, her husband was shot in the head, she was stabbed in the back by her brother who actually turned out to not be her brother, and now when she is finally blessed with some good luck they decide to kill off her only child and add the twisted storyline of her swapping it with another baby. Of course the producers need to entertain viewers and come up with new exciting story lines, but using something so sensitive for entertainment seems to cross the line a bit. I know that you could say that for all the other tragic story lines they've used but I'm sure they've received complaints about those too, it just seems people have been extremely effected by this one in particular.Well I guess that's just my opinion. I know it's just a storyline and eastenders is just a soap which I've watched for years, but it's not the kind of storyline me and my family find entertaining, it's just too depressing and I can understand the point of view seen by viewers who have lost a baby.