Representation of gender in crime drama

Explore the representation of gender established in episode 1 of Luther

Write about:
-The roles played by men and women in the show
-Stereotypes or typical roles used
-Characters that break stereotypes
-Your views on representation
The television series Luther shows a variety of different stereotype gender representations in the first
episode.
For both men and women, there are many character tropes that can be seen in a variety of television
and film productions that are easily recognisable. For men, the typical roles usually include; the villain,
the hero, the jock, the rich businessman, the father-figure or the chosen one. In many productions
that have these stereotypes, the male character is usually powerful, brave and in many cases,
rescues the female. Female roles in such productions include; the damsel in distress, the evil stepmother, the misunderstood villain, the sleazy journalist, the hot girlfriend, the female action hero or the
ugly duckling.
In Luther, the main protagonist (John Luther) is brave and powerful. This is typical of a male main
protagonist as that character trope can be seen in many Hollywood blockbuster productions. In one
particular scene he is interrogating the character Alice Morgan (a grieving young woman whose
parents have just been brutally murdered). Alice Morgan plays the typical young girl, who is seemingly
timid and scared. However, when the camera breaks the 180 degree rule, Alice Morgans personality
changes and becomes more powerful, as there is an evident shift in the dynamic between Luther and
her. The character becomes villainous and is shown to be calculative. This is a stark contrast to the
previous interpretation of Alice Morgan and many could argue that this shift in persona is an atypical
interpretation of a female character.
Another female character within this series is the female boss Rose Teller. She holds a lot of power
over many of the male characters and is in charge of the whole investigation into Alice Morgan.
Although she many seem like an independent female character, she is actually controlled by a higher
male character (which many could argue is to be expected of female character stereotypes). She is
the character that calls Luther, the powerful main male protagonist, back into his role as detective for
the case which shows how she relies on a powerful male character to help her.
Zoe Luther, John Luthers wife, is yet another interesting character in Luther. When we are introduced
to this character we learn that she has been cheating on her husband and can be interpreted as cold
and uncaring, as she has been lying to him about her affair. However, her role is a successful
business woman (an atypical female role in productions) and is powerful in her line of work. Despite
this, she fits nicely into the role of cheating wife which is a very stereotypical role of female
characters.
A large majority of the characters in Luther, Episode 1 are female characters who are developed a lot
in the beginning few moments. We learn much about these characters within the episode and much
about their background. The first episode of Luther passes the Bechdel test. The Smurfette principle
does not apply to the episode, as the female to male character ratio is fairly even despite many of
the male character roles being minor.