At the end of a deeply uncomfortable, confrontational scene, however, Coel centers both Arabella’s and Kwame’s relationship, and their healing, bolstered by their shared understanding of having suffered similar trauma. Kwame, who faces Arabella’s wrath because he’s a man, is at once a victim to her and the man who assaulted him, a survivor to his friends, and a perpetrator for having had sex with a woman under false pretenses.
#MeToo Is Making People Confront Their Trauma. All the while, her character incites both empathy and disapproval from the viewer, engaging in actions completely justifiable, but insensitive just the same. As Arabella gains popularity, she seems to start weaponizing her victimhood, even against her friends, one of whom she’s aware has suffered through a similar experience as her. Arabella’s initial solidarity with other sexual assault survivors quickly becomes a righteous, abrasive denouncement of all things men. She pretends she’s alright until the flashes of memory become unbearable she tries to constantly surround herself with friends, as the thought of being alone prompts panic and when she finally feels ready to acknowledge and deal with what happened to her, she takes solace in social media, becoming a rape survivor influencer of sorts. Through these three primary characters, I May Destroy You revolutionizes the portrayal of survivors of sexual assault - how they behave, what they desire, and how they handle trauma, with their imperfection at the center, to be tackled and normalized in equal measure.Īrabella, for example, is an up-and-coming novelist and social media personality who goes through several phases of shock, grief, and anger after a stranger in a bar, who she can’t quite recall or identify, drugs and then rapes her. The show follows Arabella (Coel), and her friends Kwame (Paapa Essiedu) - who is a Grindr-addicted, black man dealing with his own sexual assault - and Terry (Weruche Opia), a struggling actress who tasks herself with helping both of her friends heal from their trauma. The show ends having dissected the complicated, often ugly journeys people go through in trying to come to terms with their trauma.
I MAY DESTROY YOU FINALE EXPLAINED SERIES
Michaela Coel’s I May Destroy You starts as a messy, uncomfortable and emotional dramedy, fictionalized on Coel’s own sexual assault that happened when she was writing her hit cringe comedy series Chewing Gum.
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