Girls, Interrupted: Examining the “Crazy” Girl Trope
In this episode we’re getting into the “crazy girl” trope. Are these portrayals helpful or harmful? Both? Is it okay to laugh at our sadness? Can depression ever be glamorous? We discuss Girl, Interrupted, the return of Tumblr, the idea of the Femcel, Elizabeth Wurtzel, Sylvia Plath, Issa Rae, Michaela Coel, Frances Farmer, Zelda Fitzgerald, Gone Girl & the cool girl monologue, Edie Sedgwick & the sad little rich girl, Orange is the New Black, Glenn Close, Fatal Attraction & the femme fatale, pathological liars, the lack of mental healthcare available, and most importantly how these portrayals in media and in our personal lives impact how we treat celebrities, each other, and ourselves.

CONTENT WARNING: We do talk about suicide, sexual assault, disordered eating & self-harm in this episode— nothing graphic or too detailed but we want you to know it’s in there

Sources:
Girl Interrupted: Stop Your Whining Little Girl, The New York Times, Stephen Holden, 1999

Everything You Forgot About Girl Interrupted and Why the Story Remain So Vital, E News!, Natalie Finn, 2019

Is Gone Girl Feminist or Misogynist? Eliana Docterman, October 6, 2014, Time

Z, Amazon Prime

The Take, The “Crazy” Ex-Girlfriend - A Manufactured Trope
The Femme Fatale Trope, Explained
YouTube

Mina Lee, toxic femininity: what's up with girlbloggers, female manipulators, and femcels?
YouTube

Girl Interrupted, Susanna Kaysen, 1993

Girl Interrupted, Film 1999

Bitch, Elizabeth Wurtzel, Anchor Books, 1999

Madness- Elizabeth Wurtzel, from the introduction

Gone Girl- Gillian Flynn

Gone Girl, film, 2012

Frances, trailer, 1987