I have recently been on Facebook and Twitter a lot, watching to see people's reactions to the T.V show made about the book 13 Reasons Why. Some of the things that I have seen are rather negative, and honestly, shocked me. People have been focusing on the other characters much more than Hannah and the story itself. People also have very negative views about the main character, Hannah and about the way the show depicts suicide overall. The intent of the book seemed to be blurred by other factors when it translated into film.

Although reading some of the comments I can understand to a certain extent, I hope people understand that the tv show is made purely as entertainment and is adapted for a much broader audience. They added a lot more drama and details to hook people in that the book does not give interest too. They made these changes to appeal to the audience that would be watching and it would be boring watching a tv show with just back and forth commentary between Clay and Hannah as the book entails.

But, what this did was skew the way Hannah’s character is portrayed. It portrayed her as a petty girl with a 'princess complex,' as I have seen people comment, and to be frank, I can see hints of that in the show and I hate it. The show took too much away from the actual meaning and intent that the book was trying to get across. The book has a completely different tone, that if you read, I believe you will alter your image of Hannah. There are also quite a few things that they added to the show for cinematic purposes that does not occur in the book, and for good reason. It is truly sad to me that people look at Hannah in such a negative light because that was not the intent of the book or the show.

One thing that truly bothered me was the comments that it was stupid little things that made Hannah decide to kill herself. First and foremost, the point of the story itself is that little things sometimes matter the most and they build up over time. There were also a lot of intense and dark events that took place that added to the snowball effect. It frustrates me when I see comments like these because people have no idea how powerful words can be to people that are already headed down a dark path. Coming from someone who struggles from depression and knows people who have considered suicide, words can cut deep. And when you feel isolated and alone its almost impossible to dig yourself out of that hole. Then to add big, life changing events into the mix, it creates a snowball effect that cannot be stopped.

The way the tapes are portrayed in the movie makes it look like this horrific form of blackmail that Hannah was forcing on people to make them feel bad about what they did. Now, this could possibly be an incorrect interpretation but I did not see it that way and I do not believe that was the intent in the book either. The tapes were Hannah’s suicide note. She used a different medium than most and was just telling her story. She wanted the people who hurt her to know what they did and what she went through, so they could learn how powerful words and actions can be. I believe that the show failed to certain extent. It should not be gaining the criticism it is if it was done properly. The show emphasized too much drama whereas the book solely focused on the issue and listening to the story of a girl choosing the path of committing suicide. I hope the show at least motivates people to read the book. It is an eye opening book that handles this complex issue in a very delicate way and, in doing so, makes it much more raw and real. In the book, you are in Hannah and Clay’s heads the entire time whereas in the tv show there is too much added drama and stimulus. I’m not saying the tv show was horrible, but it missed the mark in a lot of places. I encourage everyone to read the book. I will always stand by the fact that books are always better than movies or tv shows made about them. You lose so much in translation.