The story of Hannah Baker is one about a girl who took her own life. A girl, who arguably, got what she wanted. In an article written by Kalhan Rosenblatt “Dr. Victor Schwartz, medical director of the JED Foundation, told NBC News. “None of that stuff is made clear because it’s focused on the horrible things people have done to her. The whole thing is an extended revenge fantasy.” (Rosenblatt 2). Schwartz goes on to argue that the portal of Hannah’s death is not one of depression, but one of hate and rage. She is nothing more than an angry teen trying to get back at her classmates for mistreating her. But that is not what she represents. Hannah Baker represents all of the youth in the world. She is a figure of light that slowly gets shot down by all of the darkness and hate in the world. The story is a perfect representation of human nature, and how people take advantage of the giving. But, “Can a person be that sick?” (Asher Tape 6, Side B) Hannah Baker in Tape 12.
Originally, humans were creatures of purity. Adam and Eve ran free, careless of lust or pride. Things changed however when Lucifer exposed them to the forbidden fruit. Adam and Eve were suddenly self conscious. From the original story of it all, The Paradise Lost. “Their guilt and dreaded shame! O, how unlike/To that first naked glory! Such of late/Columbus found the American, so girt/With feathered cincture; naked else, and wild/Among the trees on isles and woody shores./Thus fenced, and, as they thought, their shame in part/Covered, but not at rest or ease of mind,” (Milton 1114-1120). Newly aware of their bodies, Adam and Eve quickly covered them up. Ashamed of what they were, and what they looked like. God looked upon them with great shame as he realized his children disobeyed him. They had grown up. They were not just the naive children he had once known. They were now aware of the first deadly sin, pride. They wanted to cover themselves up from the world. They did not want to be seen in ill light. No one does. Something society has formed for humans. A fear of looking foolish in front of other people. The fear of disappointing someone else’s standards. This is heavily shown during Hannah’s tapes. How people used her in order to seem cooler. Hannah was new to the school. She was naive and wide-eyed. She went on a date with a boy named Justin, just because she wanted her first kiss. Hannah is Adam and Eve before the fall. She is a beacon of hope and the representation of hope. In other words, a massive red target for high schoolers. Justin used her as a stepping stone to seem cooler to his friends, and the school. Hannah repeated in her first tape “A rumor based on a kiss…” (Asher Chapter 1). She repeats how many things Justin caused by bending the truth. Hannah also refers to Justin as “The beginning of the end” (“Tape 1, Side 1” 13 Reasons Why the Series). All of these rumors are what cause the rest of the stories that Hannah talks about. Each story dimmed her light more and more. Each blow caused her to lose more and more hope in the world. Next in the story was Alex. One of Hannah’s first friends at her new school. Similar to the idea of having her first kiss, Hannah just wanted ‘BFF’s’ in her high school. She wanted to know that she had people to rely on, and to know they could rely on her. When her friends started dating each other, and started to leave her out. Hannah wanted the best for them. She took a step back in order for them to be happy. Even if she was envious of the time they spent together, or the relationship they had, she neer acted upon it. Alex sadly did not hold back. When he and Jess broke up he used Hannah’s name in order to get back at Jess. Making a list of who’s hot and who’s not in the freshman class. Putting Hannah in the hot list, directly next to Jessica’s, who was on the not list. This caused “open season on Hannah Baker” (Asher Tape 2, Side B). This caused Hannah to be objectified by her classmates. This caused Hannah to be sexually assaulted, and later raped by the same boy. For just wanting friends. For just wanting the best for the people she cared about. She was taken advantage of by the people she cared about most. Out of pure envy, something that has been around since the beginning of time. In the Bible, Luke tells a story of two brothers. One goes off into the world to make a life for himself, and he fails miserably. When he comes back home years later he is welcomed into the open arms of his father. His brother who had stayed and worked for his father was not too pleased with the news, “Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’” (Luke 29-30). A story and a feeling since the beginning of time. A boy being envious of the things other people have, of the things taken away from them. Alex lashed out in a way society had pathed for him. The use of other people and the destruction of others happiness. Something that has become more apparent within teenage life as well. Due to her naivety, Hannah was used and abused by Alex and Jessica. Two people who she trusted the most. Again, something so juvenile, something so simple, causing something so catastrophic. Something that caused someone to think less of themselves. Something that caused someone to feel they were unimportant. Something to make a person want to end their own life.
Hannah’s tapes are just letters from our former selves. Reminding us of what we used be. In both the book and the story, Hannah’s voice is haunting. This story being told in the epistolary format allows for it to become real. A real girl talking to you from the dead, rather than some doctor spitting facts at you. The letters are a vital part of the story, because it forces us to pick apart what society has made us become. Hannah’s classmates were simply playing by the rules set for them thousands of years ago. It has been shown in society for decades. How people use and abuse people like Hannah. A beacon of light constantly struck down by the wants of others. A blazing sun cracked and shattered by the ideals of others. Hannah’s classmates are society, and Hannah is a representation of the youth inside of everyone. The transition from childhood to adulthood, and what people lose in the process. What had to be beaten out of Hannah. 7 reasons why that spark has died in society. But also, 7 reasons why the spark can continue burning. Shown that if more people acted like Hannah, if more people were not so prideful, maybe hope would be abundant in society. Because if despair and hate can spread like a disease, so can hope and love.
Milton, John, 1608-1674. Paradise Lost. London ; New York :Penguin Books, 2000.
Bible Gateway passage: Luke 15:11-32 – New International Versionhttps://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+15%3A11-32&version=NIV
Asher, Jay. Thirteen Reasons Why. Penguin Books, 2017. (both book and series)
Netflix’s ’13 Reasons Why’ Carries Danger of Glorifying Suicide, Experts Sayhttps://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/tv/netflix-series-13-reasons-why-glorifies-suicide-mental-health-experts-n749551
