Stranger Things: The Trappings of Nostalgia

Introduction

Nostalgia has been given many definitions since it was first coined in 1688 by Swiss physician Johannes Hofer. The term was once used to describe the feeling of homesickness which afflicted ‘Swiss mercenaries on long tours of military duty’ (Reynolds, 2012: xxv). The term was also used ‘during the American Civil War, [and] was viewed as an illness that was both highly contagious and liable to kill’ (Harvey, 2015:149). We have since moved on from these definitions and we no longer think of nostalgia as a pathological condition, it is more widely viewed as an emotion, one which evokes a ‘bittersweet longing for former times and spaces’ (Niemeyer, 2014: 1). The word is of Greek origin with ‘nostos meaning “return home” and algia “longing”’ (Boym, 2007: 7). Throughout this project, I will chart the varying types of nostalgia that have been theorised, and how the media uses this emotion to target and promote its shows. My main case study will be the Netflix produced series, Stranger Things (2016-).

This programme features a disparate group of young friends including Lucas, Eleven, Mike, Will and Dustin (See Fig. 1). The show centres on the mysterious disappearance of twelve-year-old Will Byers, and is set in a fictional rural town, Hawkins, in 1980s America. On the surface, Stranger Things appears to be a tribute to the many cinematic classics of the 80s. It features references to cult movies from the era, including E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982), The Goonies (1985), and Firestarter (1984). I will aim to thoroughly explore the show in relation to several key theories regarding nostalgia including ‘collective nostalgia’ (Davis, 1979), as well as Svetlana Boym’s (2007) ‘restorative and reflective nostalgia’. I hope to discover how the show responds to the theories I will be analysing and what impact these can have on our understanding of the show. The Nostalgia Pendulum and Collective Nostalgia

Many theorists believe that the media is a key component in the reproduction of nostalgic sentiment. A theory put forward by Patrick Metzger (2017) suggests that a ‘nostalgia pendulum’ exists. Metzger (2017) found, after analysing ‘over 500 film remakes from the past century’ that within pop culture, there is a cyclic ‘resurfacing of things from 30 years ago’. He attributes the current resurgence of 80’s nostalgia to this pendulum and he even uses Stranger Things as an example of one of the ‘shameless culprits [that] intentionally exploits’ this pattern (2017). Although Metzger gave this phenomenon a catchy name, the media’s repeated use of nostalgic imagery has been explored by many theorists, one most notably is sociologist Fred Davis. He writes about the concept of ‘collective nostalgia’ in his book, Yearning for Yesterday: A Sociology of Nostalgia (1979: 122). Davis (122-123) describes it as,

The mass media are in a prime position to be able to reach huge audiences and they can play a powerful role in the ‘recycling [of] nostalgic images’ (Coon, 2014: 32). Nostalgia has become a tool employed by the media because, as Davis (1979: 126) points out, ‘there is money to be made [and] the media have come to devour their past creations at an ever-increasing rate’. Netflix is an example of a platform which uses collective nostalgia to promote and disseminate films and shows to its ‘117.58 million’ users across the globe (Statista, 2018). Stranger Things is not the only 80’s themed programme on the site. Alongside its revival of classic 80’s show Full House (1987-1995), it has also produced television show Glow (2017-) a programme about female wrestlers set in 1985, and an episode of its hit series Black Mirror (2016-), features an idealized version of 80’s America. These programmes are particularly suited to the majority of Netflix’s users who are aged ‘16-34’ (Statista, 2018). ‘Nostalgia for adolescence and early adulthood appears to be stronger than for any other period’ (Havlena & Holak, 1991: 324). The viewing figures for Stranger Things support this claim with the second season drawing in, on average, ‘15.8 million viewers’ (Otterson, 2017). It is tapping ‘into the nostalgic propensities of certain demographic markets’ with a large majority of viewers being born in the 1980s and early 1990s (Grainge, 2000: 17). Netflix isn’t the only production company to take advantage of the current trend in 80’s nostalgia. Paul Grainge (2000: 64) states that ‘in the last three decades of the twentieth century, nostalgia was commodified and aestheticized as perhaps never before’. We have seen countless remakes, prequels and sequels to classic 80s films and television series. IT (2017), Ghostbusters (2016), Jurassic World (2015) and Heathers (2018) are just a few examples. Does our desire for nostalgia programming simply represent ‘a fondness for peering back at these past worlds’ or does it indicate something more complex (Potts, 2014)?

Nostalgia as Commodity One of the reasons why nostalgia is so popular, and thus an effective commodity, is how it is associated with feelings of comfort and familiarity (Geraghty, 2014: 70). ‘Nostalgia realigns cognition and emotion to produce comfort and security’ (Wilson, 2005: 23). Stranger Things has been described as ‘a love letter to the supernatural classics of the 80's’ (Netflix, 2016). On the surface, Stranger Things could be interpreted as inhabiting a ‘shallow’ form of nostalgia, one which relies on gimmicks and references to the past in order to be successful (Gilby, 2017). A classic example of this is when the creators of Stranger Things decided to promote the show with a scavenger hunt around San Diego Comic Con in 2016. The flyer included instructions on how to take part in the scavenger hunt which ends with a seemingly apt prize of a ‘faux VHS pack full of goodies’. This is not the only nostalgia tactic used outside of the show. The packaging for the first season of Stranger Things comes in the shape of a VHS tape, complete with preworn edges that give it a distinct vintage vibe, ‘as if you just happened to find a retro movie at your local garage sale, rather than in the fluorescent-lit aisle of Target’ (Menta, 2017) (See Fig 3).

With shows like Stranger Things, you can easily get lost in the stylistic quality of the set design, music, costumes and props all of which are used to further the nostalgic sentiment. The first season alone, for example, includes many nostalgic cues to multiple cult movies from the time period. Many of the posters used to advertise the show also pay direct homage to posters from the decade Stranger Things is set in (See Fig. 4).

According to Fredric Jameson (1991: 290), shows which borrow from the past can make us see the world through ‘nostalgia tinted spectacles’ and we end up viewing ‘history [primarily] through the lens of nostalgia’ (Geraghty, 2014: 40). Jameson (1991: 19) writes that as we look back at the past, we see it through ‘stylistic connotation’ which only portrays the ‘glossy qualities’ of the past. He believes that we can become obsessed with ‘pseudohistorical depth, in which the history of aesthetic styles displaces “real” history’ (Jameson, 1991: 20). Allison Graham (1984: 351) states that this ‘collective desire’ we have as a society to ‘idealize – our cultural roots’ is damaging as these versions of the past which we seek are ‘initially appealing, but ultimately unsustainable’ (Coon, 2014: 32). By allowing ourselves to become enraptured with the aesthetics of the show, some theorists believe that we ‘forget aspects of the actual past and substitute a sentimental myth about how things might have been’ (Jenkins, 2006: 157).

Pseudo-historical Nature of Nostalgia Whilst Stranger Things does fall into the category of reproducing a highly stylized ‘pastness’ (Jameson, 1991) within its show, it also hints at some of the cultural fears that were prolific in 1980s America. As I have previously mentioned, the entire premise of the show revolves around the sudden and unexplained disappearance of Will Byers. Throughout the 1980s there was a cultural fear regarding child abductions after a string of high profile cases and several media campaigns which were aimed at promoting a ‘stranger danger’ ethos. This paranoia ran throughout America and further afield with stories of ‘missing children [saturating] the news media and [appearing] on fliers and milk cartons’ (Kutner, 2016). In Stranger Things, the manifestation of the void in which these missing children fall into is the ‘upside down’, a terrifying parallel world that brutally cuts through the aesthetics of the show. The upside down is forever in darkness and is home to a terrifying monster, the Demogorgon, which is responsible for much of the unpleasantness within the show. This frightening realm presents an underlying threat to the peace and tranquillity of Hawkins and its residents. The upside down could also be seen as representing a potential nostalgia purgatory. By constantly viewing the past as a happier, easier and more pleasant time than our present, we can become reliant on nostalgia programming as a source of stability and comfort. Myke Bartlett (2017: 18) has even described nostalgia as ‘a panic room’ which we can ‘retreat [to] when the present looks frightening’. Having the ability to binge watch these nostalgia driven shows means that we can become fully immersed in the world that is being represented. Binge watching is a fairly new form of escapism, which allows us to forget our reality ‘for hours upon hours, or literally days upon days’ (Snider, 2016: 119). The very act of watching a show habitually can produce ‘a homely feeling’ which can ‘strengthen the feeling of longing [for the past] on the part of the audience’ (Niemeyer & Wentz, 2014: 132-133). However, this trend in compulsive viewing has potentially damaging consequences as it can ‘psychologically affect viewers’ perceptions of reality … and create confusion when viewers process these narratives too quickly, which ultimately hinders viewers’ real-world judgements’ (Snider, 2016: 17). As David Coon (2014: 56) summarizes, ‘when we filter out the bad, the negative, and the unpleasant (as we do when we are thinking nostalgically), we are left with an incomplete picture of our existence’. There has been more criticism aimed at the first season, with some claiming that it lacks a sense of ‘self-awareness’ and it falls into some of the tropes which ‘pervaded children’s TV during [the 1980s]’ (Cruz, 2018). One example of this would be the use of the character Eleven as the ‘token girl’ (2018). For some, this recalls the ‘Smurfette principle’ a term coined by Katha Pollitt (1991) to describe ‘a group of male buddies … accented by a lone female, stereotypically defined’. The first season displays evidence of the use of the trope, it even includes the ‘textbook “makeover scene” involving a wig, some makeup, and a dress that leads the boys to behold a transformed Eleven in awe’ (Cruz, 2018) (See Fig 5).

Season one of Stranger Things is also guilty of ignoring the deeper issues, including social unrest, that was present throughout much of the 1980s. There is an obvious absence of racism within the first season and there is only one black main character, Lucas Sinclair. The show had been accused of ‘retro tokenism’ as it failed to give Lucas a meaningful character arc throughout the entirety of season one (Lai, 2017). The culture of 1980s America was one of turmoil and ‘what emerged … was a situation whereby in an increasingly multicultural society, different interest groups found it necessary to defend their cultural positions’ (Thompson, 2007: 33). We start to get a glimpse of these racial tensions in season two with the introduction of a new character, Billy Hargrove. Billy singles out Lucas, ‘the token black friend in a sea of white faces’ and warns his younger sister, Max Mayfield, to stay away from him (Lai, 2017). We also later see Billy attempt to hurt Lucas by charging at him, picking him up by the scruff of his neck and pinning him against the wall. He then proceeds to threaten to kill Lucas. This could be seen as simply an overprotective brother worried about his younger sister, however, Billy totally ignores the other boys in the room and seems to have an irrational obsession with Lucas. The season two story arc we see for Lucas is applauded by many for the way that it dealt with the prejudice that he could have faced in the era. It also introduces two new 'support characters of colour', Erica, Lucas’ bratty younger sister and Kali, Elle’s “lost sister" (Lai, 2017). We also see a remedy to the reductive use of Eleven as she is given a more substantial storyline and more agency over her fate. Stranger Things also makes casual reference to the fact that homophobic slurs were used ‘freely and unthinkingly’ throughout much of the decade, in both seasons, however, they are noticeably absent from the central characters lexicon (Bartlett, 2017: 22). We do get a glimpse at this anti-gay sentiment, which was rife in the 1980s, when Joyce Beyers, Will’s mum, mentions that he was teased by boys in his school, as well as his father, ‘Lonnie used to say that Will was queer, called him a fag’ (Duffer & Duffer, 2016). Billy is also subjected to a tirade of homophobic abuse by his own father. Whilst the show does make reference to these more challenging aspects of 1980s culture it seems that it is only the villains within the show who represent these ideologies. Myke Bartlett (2017: 20,22) points out that ‘while the kids look authentic to the period, their acting is more in line with modern standards … the past as depicted in Stranger Things is a very twenty-first century kind of place’. As the audience, we are not meant to tolerate the behaviour that is being perpetuated by Billy’s father, Billy himself and Lonnie Byers. Within the show ‘homophobia is called out and punished’ which falls more into line with modern thinking especially as the show now even comes with warnings that it uses ‘discriminatory language’ (2017: 22). As a society, we have rightfully moved on from most of the ‘casual sexism or racism [which took place] in Western society before 1990s political correctness kicked in’ (2017: 22). These aspects of society are partly the reason why most people practise a form of reflective nostalgia. This type of nostalgia ‘thrives on algia (the longing itself) and delays the homecoming—wistfully, ironically, desperately’ (Boym, 2007: 13). We get pleasure from looking back, but we remember not to romanticize our past. Reflective nostalgia recognises the myth of nostalgia and can be critical of the images the media presents us with. Restorative nostalgia, on the other hand, has been described as being a lot more destructive as it seeks to ‘return and rebuild one’s homeland with paranoiac determination’ (2007: 15). The Upside Down of Restorative Nostalgia Some theorists have linked nostalgic individuals and their longing to return to the “good old days” with ‘political conservatism’ (Jackson & Belau, 2017: 14). Those who seek to return to ‘a past in which everything is held in its proper place’ where you can ‘reconnect … with past values and ideals’ potentially indicates a link to traditionalism (Pierson, 2014:140-141). There are many theories which try to explain why, as a society, we feel the need to retreat into nostalgia. One of the main threads of argument is that ‘mass nostalgia reactions are most likely to occur in the wake of periods of severe cultural discontinuity’ (Graham, 1984: 141). Stranger Things was released by Netflix in July 2016. The political rhetoric being used by Donald Trump in his presidential campaign throughout 2016 and 2017, specifically his slogan, ‘Make America Great Again’ potentially falls into the rhetoric of ‘restorative nostalgia’. These include notions of ‘universal values, family, nature, homeland, [and] truth’ (Boym, 2007: 13). According to Svetlana Boym (2007: 13) ‘restorative nostalgia does not think of itself as nostalgia, but rather as truth and tradition’. It could be said that this Trump presidency mirrors the political backdrop of Stranger Things. The show, which opens in 1983, is leading up to the eventual landslide victory of Republican candidate Ronald Reagan (See Fig. 9). The Reagan presidency had a conservative ‘moral vision’ which had ‘its roots in myths about family values, individuality, [and] national strength’ (Thompson, 2007: 8). Reaganism was seen as a remedy for the excesses of the liberal sixties which promoted ‘damaging moral, social and cultural promiscuity’ (Thompson, 2007: 9).

According to Rose Butler (2017), ‘Stranger Things [can be] read as a scathing comment on the damaging ideologies of the decade’. This includes the Reaganite era and his political legacy. The upside down has been described as a warning of the ‘working-class desolation’ that was about to occur under Ronald Reagan (Smith-Brecheisen, 2017). Part of Reagan's appeal was how he managed to align himself with traditional conservative values including ‘the unfettered Cold War hardliner, the tough lawman of Hollywood Westerns, [as well as] a traditional religious family man’ (Vanderbilt, 1993). In a way, the ‘manufactured nostalgia’ (1993) of both Reagan and Trump illustrates ‘the skill with which the right has mobilized the utopian imagination’ (Britton, 2008: 109). The idea of nostalgia as ‘propaganda’ is embedded in the world of Stranger Things (Vanderbilt, 1993). The show ‘draws attention to the social and cultural issues that plagued the Reagan era, including fiscal inequality, social conservatism, and Cold War militarism’ (Butler, 2017:14). In the heart of Hawkins lies a secret government laboratory in which agents are experimenting on children and imbuing them with superpowers so they can be used as weapons in the fight against the Russians (See Fig. 10). These experiments echo real-world cases and their associated conspiracy theories, The Montauk Project and MKULTRA. Both allegedly attempted similar feats including mind control and time travel. The original title of Stranger Things was going to be Montauk in reference to the aforementioned project (Gonzales, 2016). The lab within Stranger Things is also responsible for the creation of the Demogorgon, a monster which spreads toxicity in its wake. This could be seen as a metaphor for the toxic ideologies of the right-wing conservatism of Reagan and a potential warning of history repeating itself. The world of Stranger Things is also more obviously bleeding through into current American politics with Congressman David Cicilline likening the present-day political climate to the upside down (See Fig. 11).

‘Restorative nostalgia is often closely linked to politics’ and we must be careful not to allow it to ‘colonize politics and history’ (Boym, 2007: 18). Nostalgia can be a powerful tool employed by the media, as I have previously mentioned, but in the wrong hands, it can become a weapon used to foster fear and promote a false ‘historicity’ (Jameson, 1991: 284). Conclusion Overall, responses to the show have been positive with many praising the homage it pays to cinema classics from the 1980s. ‘Stranger Things channels the spirits of the celluloid storytellers who dominated the era … it delivers a shot of nostalgia right to the viewer’s heart’ (Managan, 2016). Others have applauded the show for its use of the upside down to temper any feelings of nostalgia that may be conjured up by the aesthetics of the show, ‘viewers may take simple pleasure in returning to their own pasts … but that joy must forever be in contrast with the strange and lonesome fates of those who live in Hawkins’ (Loughrey, 2017). Throughout this project I have discussed the two main strands of nostalgia according to Svetlana Boym which Stranger Things covers. I believe that the show uses nostalgia as a superficial mechanism to ultimately sell their show, however it also displays an awareness of the trappings of nostalgia which can cause problems in society today as well as in the past. I have explored these in the form of reflective and restorative nostalgia and the mirroring of political power being wielded during decades thirty years apart. David Pierson (2014: 143) points out the value that nostalgia can have in allowing us ‘to question and critique our present social and economic situation'. With the continued concern over rising tensions between the UK, USA and Russia there has been a lot of discussion about the potentiality of a second Cold War. António Guterres (2018), the United Nations Secretary General, heightened these fears at a recent Security Council meeting.

Pierson (2014: 148) goes on to state that nostalgia can be ‘a stimulus for politically liberal social and political change’ as well as ‘a revolutionary incentive for a critical and political practice'. As a society, we can use nostalgia, and thus nostalgia programming, to look back and learn from our mistakes, as well as to see how far we have come and what progress has been made. There is no harm dwelling in the past and appreciating it for what it was, but we must not get trapped in the ‘upside down’ of nostalgia by filtering out the negativity and longing for a past that never really existed.

List of Figures

Figure 1a: Lambert, Kyle (2016) Stranger Things Poster [Poster]. Available at: https://www.creativebloq.com/features/illustrating-retro-poster-artwork (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 1b: Netflix (2017) Season 2 Cast [Photograph]. Available at: https://hypebeast.com/2017/10/stranger-things-season-2-has-a-lot-to-live-up-to (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 2: IndieWire (2016) #strangehunt has hit #sdcc! [Photograph]. Available at: https://www.instagram.com/p/BIGgg6sDLfN/?utm_source=ig_embed (Accessed: 15/04/2018).

Figure 3: Target (2017) Stranger Things Season 1 Collector's Edition: Target Exclusive [Photograph]. Available at: https://intl.target.com/p/stranger-things-season-1-collector-s-edition-target-exclusive-blu-ray-dvd/-/A-52823816?disable_sapphire=true& (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 4a: Duffer, Matt; Duffer, Ross (2017) Stranger Things [Poster]. Available at: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4574334/?ref_=nv_sr_1 (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 4b: Scott, Ridley (1979) Alien [Poster]. Available at: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078748/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1 (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 4c: Duffer, Matt; Duffer, Ross (2017) Stranger Things [Poster]. Available at: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4574334/?ref_=nv_sr_1 (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 4d: Craven, Wes (1984) A Nightmare on Elm Street [Poster]. Available at: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087800/?ref_=nv_sr_1 (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 4e: Duffer, Matt; Duffer, Ross (2017) Stranger Things [Poster]. Available at: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4574334/?ref_=nv_sr_1 (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 4f: Lester, Mark L (1984) Firestarter [Poster]. Available at: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087262/?ref_=nv_sr_1 (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 4g: Duffer, Matt; Duffer, Ross (2017) Stranger Things [Poster]. Available at: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4574334/?ref_=nv_sr_1 (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 4h: Reiner, Rob (1986) Stand by Me [Poster]. Available at: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092005/?ref_=nv_sr_1 (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 5: Chapter Four: The Body. Stranger Things (2016) [Television programme, extract]. Directed by Shawn Levy. USA: Netflix. Broadcast: 15/07/16. 50mins. 00:17:50-00:18:57.

Figure 6: Chapter Four: Will the Wise. Stranger Things (2017) [Television programme, extract]. Directed by Shawn Levy. USA: Netflix. Broadcast: 27/10/17. 46mins. 00:31:15-00:33.36

Figure 7: Chapter Nine: The Gate. Stranger Things (2017) [Television programme, extract]. Directed by Matt Duffer and Ross Duffer. USA: Netflix. Broadcast: 27/10/17. 1hr 1min. 00:19:10-00:19:50

Figure 8: Chapter Eight: The Mind Flayer. Stranger Things (2017) [Television programme, extract]. Directed by Matt Duffer and Ross Duffer. USA: Netflix. Broadcast: 27/10/17. 47mins. 00:06:45-00:07:45

Figure 9: Netflix (2017) Stranger Things 2 | Final Trailer [HD] | Netflix [YouTube]. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1ZXOOLMJ8s (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 10: Netflix (2017) Millie Bobby Brown in Stranger Things [Photograph]. Available at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/on-demand/0/hawkins-lab-real-conspiracy-theory-inspired-stranger-things/ (Accessed: 15/04/18).

Figure 11: Business Insider (2017) A Democratic congressman compared the Trump administration to 'Stranger Things' [YouTube]. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tza5SZAVmcU (Accessed: 15/04/18).

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