Representation in Luther

Representation In Luther 

Females in the show are given a strong, arguably positive, representation; the main three characters all hold significant roles in the show. Luther stays true to TV crime dramas having a love interest character, however Zoe is portrayed as a strong character, unlike other shows. Zoe, is represented strongly as she is able to stand her ground with her partner Mark North, even though he is male- it's common for females to be submissive to males and either not argue back or argue with little effort and weakly. Furthermore, although it may not be a direct positive representation, the fact that Zoe left John, and then proceeded to cheat on her new partner shows that females are capable to make their own choices and do the same actions as men; even if they are negative actions. Rose is another example of a strong female character. Rose is not only a police detective, which could be perceived as a male job due to the danger and physical attributes of the job, she's detective superintendent and holds a higher position than most of the male characters- including the main character. Holding this boss position gives a strong representation as typically men are seen as strong members who can successfully hold such a position unlike women. By having a female hold such a position gives audiences a positive role model.

Alice is a character who gives a strong representation on women, even if it's through questionable and negative actions. Alice is first shown to be a helpless victim, but it's later shown that this was just an act; this shows Alice to be manipulative and able at twist people's perceptions of herself, thus creating a strong representation of herself. Alice isn't a damsel in distress, much rather a perpetrator. Furthermore, Alice is very intellectual which helps her representation. She is shown to be able to have a mind of her own, and doesn't need to rely on a man, unlike the typical representation of females in many crime dramas.

Perhaps the show gives a weak representation of males from audience member's perception; as a male character the one to suffer from mental health problems, and they have been cheated on. Whilst these don't directly represent the characters in a negative or weak way, the cheating suggests that the women characters (namely Zoe) don't feel these characters are particularly good enough for them.
On numerous occasions Luther is shown to abruptly have violent outburst when angry. This gives a negative representation as it potentially shows volatile and unable to control themselves and their emotions.

Stereotypically, men are the ones to cheat, be intellectual and hold positions of power, whereas women are generally weaker, unstable and are victims of men's love/sexual desires; this unconventional representation of genders are refreshing to audiences. According to Gerbner, the repeated use of these stereotypes in crime dramas would influence audiences' perceptions on the world, and Luther being a not following these, audiences could have their preconceptions challenged.

The show also shows points out issues with budget cuts affecting the police in the scene where officers are given bulletproof vests "where available", thus making a statement about the poor state of the police force. This may give a negative representation of the police force as they're not equipped to protect themselves when under attack, so audiences may wonder how could they possibly serve to protect the public. In one episode, a statement is made about the treatment of ex-military soldiers one returning from the army. Many of these people returning often experience mental trauma, with the show discussing statistics relating to this. Whilst this points out this issue, it could possibly give a negative representation due to the violent crimes committed by an ex-service member. These issues could steam from political views from the producers and directors, and therefore act as a political message for the audience. With this message being encoded, audiences could also adopting these views due to the hypodermic needle. However audiences would already have pre-existing political views, and these might cause conflict. If someone had political ideologies conflicting with the show's, they might then adopt an oppositional reading; whereas if someone's political ideas agreed with the show's then they would have a preferred reading.

Although it's not stated whether Luther actually suffers, or has suffered from mental health, it's alluded to greatly. The show gives a positive representation of the issue of mental health as whilst it's suggested he suffered a problem relating to mental health, Luther is still shown as a strong character who is able to live a normal life.

Luther is an original British show set in England, mainly London. Numerous landmarks are shown in the show, especially in the opening sequence. John and Zoe's middle-class background, and standard of living, gives a positive representation of the area as it seems like it would be a nice place to live and is a wealthy, respectable area. Furthermore, the inclusion of black police officers, and the main character being black shows London to be diverse and multi-cultural which gives a good representation. Following on with race, the representation of race, especially black people, is strong. Race is actually focused on very little in the show and his race, doesn't define Luther's character; he doesn't really display any typical stereotypes associated with his race, instead he goes against many of these stereotypes- for instance he is a police officer, and is living a middle-class life. However, many of the issues raised in the show, relate to Britain and London, and this could give a negative representation as it may seem to foreign audiences that the area is plagued with issues.