Intersectionality of Race, Class and Gender: The Complex Representation of Bipolar Disorder on Fox Network's Empire

ABSTRACT

Critical analysis of representations of mental illness in television programming are woefully lacking, due in part to the limited existence of major characters with mental illness in entertainment media. Much of the theoretical work done on the topic has relied upon parasocial relationships the audience may develop with characters with mental illness, and normative determinations of the positive or negative nature of representations of mental illness. Fox Network's show Empire provides an opportunity to examine the representation of mental illness through a major character, Andre Lyon. Through narrative analysis, the author argues that Empire presents a complex and sometimes problematic representation of bipolar disorder. This depiction provides the opportunity to explore the intersectionality of race, class, and gender with the representation of mental illness, and this nuanced view may offer audiences the narrative probability and fidelity needed to guide the ways we understand and interact with individuals who have a mental illness.

KEYTERMS:

• African American representation
• intersectionality
• mental illness
• television