Edge Of Seventeen

For adults, it may seem as though adolescents live in a complicated, private world, and in some ways, they absolutely do. However, if we consume media created for and about adolescents we can learn some of the messages adolescents receive, and we can analyze the which messages are true and empowering and which messages are unfair, toxic and limiting. In the case of Edge of Seventeen, there is an important lesson about the pressures we put on young people to perform socially, academically, and as caretakers, and the way in which we punish adolescents with shame and isolation if they dare to challenge these pressures In the following essay, I will offer up a thick description of the film’s context and discuss the way in which the film illustrates …show more content…
Nadine and Krista decide to drink alcohol and party at Nadine’s house, and Nadine finds Krista in bed with Darian the next morning. In the coming days, Nadine struggles as Krista and Darian begin dating. Krista tries to make amends and attempts to encourage Nadine to adapt to the situation by inviting Nadine to accompany her and Darian to a party. Nadine agrees but finds herself too nervous to talk to anyone, and she decides to ask her mother to pick her up. Mona agrees, but Nadine must listen to her lament the dentist’s mistreatment. As a result of Nadine’s early departure, Nadine and Krista have a huge fight and stop talking. Nadine avoids sitting alone at lunch by eating with her snarky, irreverent history teacher, Mr. Bruner. Bruner does not sugarcoat things with Nadine. He tells her that she doesn’t have a life when she informs him that he made a small mistake in his lecture, and he refuses to let Nadine skip out on homework by using her father’s death as an excuse. However, the two seem to enjoy going head to head, and Bruner is the first person Nadine tells of her woes. Nadine’s other at-school ally is Erwin. Erwin is slightly socially awkward around Nadine, but much of that seems due to the enormous torch he bears for her. Nadine refuses these advances, but she is impressed with Erwin’s artistic abilities. Ultimately, however, Nadine is infatuated with a senior named Nic. One day, Mona tells Nadine …show more content…
Specifically, the film concerns stress, anxiety and loss of identity as consequences to living in a society that defines worth on the ability to stay on top of competing demands. In the case of Darian, we see an adolescent who is able to maintain a strong peer group, maintain a physically fit body, stay in good favor and reassure his mother, and perform well in school. However, as Darian admits at the end of the film, staying on the top is not without anxiety, and his case is far too common. Chap Clark argues that “the pressure to succeed, the pressure to maintain stability at home while remaining loyal and connected to the peer group, and the general pressure associated with relationships” constitute the three factors that most regularly contribute to stress in adolescents (Clark 135). In addition, this pedestal is even more dangerous for Darian because he is dealing with grief. Clark explains that that the death of a parent is the single most stressful potential event in an adolescent’s life, and if this death coupled with the living parent’s decision to start dating again is enough to assume that a teen is dealing with significant, health-concerning stress (Clark 135). In addition, the pedestal has put incredible constraints on Darian’s ability to develop an independent identity. When Darian