Local Absence, Global Supply: Lebanese Youth, Sexual Education, and a Netflix Series

ABSTRACT

This paper investigates the potential that mediated text can have on expanding Lebanese young people’s notions and understandings of sexuality beyond their personal boundaries and the immediate local context to uncover the portrayal of these notions within a global mediated space. It specifically seeks to examine the intersection between Lebanese youth media practices and sexual learning by identifying the extent to which watching the hit Netflix series Sex Education, affected young people’s sexual identities, knowledge and practices. Four focus groups, each comprised of six respondents, described the importance of the series in influencing young people’s sexual learning and thoughts in a society where sexuality and sexual subjects are taboo. The four main discussion themes that were developed – namely, Open Mindedness: transgression, acceptance and respect; Transformation: life skills and right choices; Gender Equality, Well-being and Health; Reliability/identification and the Need for Trustworthy Connections; and the Need to Re-educate Family and Society about Sex – underscore the importance of the series as a learning tool, the need for the re-introduction of sexual education as part of school curricula in Lebanon, and the re-education of society more generally to help foster healthier sexual lives among young people.

KEYWORDS:

• Sex education
• sexuality
• transgression
• acceptance
• gender equality
• transformative

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. Within this context, we take sexual education to be education that empowers young people to make conscious, emotionally and physically healthy, as well as respectful choices with regards to their sexual lives.

2. See: https://sherloc.unodc.org/cld/uploads/res/document/lebanon-penal-code_html/Lebanon_Penal_Code_1943.pdf.

3. In the series, Jean and Otis have a good mother-son relationship. As a sex therapist, Jean is at times embarrassingly intrusive when it comes to Otis’ life, but he knows he can rely on her when he needs to.