Love, Simon

1

Love, Simon The Plot Love, Simon is a 2018 film based on the novel ‘Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda’ that tells the story of Simon Spier, a teenager who, on the surface, seems to live a happy life. His family, comprising of both parents, himself and his sister is close-knit, and he has a good friendship with his three best friends, Nick, Leah and Abby. He has also been performing well in school. However, there is something that he has kept secret for a while, he is gay. He does not want people to know about his sexual orientation because he is yet to come to terms with it and he is afraid that people would treat him differently. When a boy from his school comes out anonymously under the name ‘Blue’ on the school’s social media page, Simon feels encouraged that he is not alone. He starts communicating with Blue via email and in the process he falls in love with him.

Blue teaches Simon to accept himself as he really is. Just as he is beginning to feel more confident about his sexuality, his private emails land in the hands of Martin, a bully. Martin threatens Simon that if he does not convince Abby to spend time with him, he will expose the emails on the school’s social media page.

Buy this excellently written paper or order a fresh one from ace-myhomework.com

2

Simon is not yet ready to come out, therefore, he does his best to make Martin and Abby spend time together (Bowen, 2018). However, when Abby publicly tells Martin that she does not feel the same way about him, he feels humiliated and decides to post the emails between Blue and Simon on the school’s social media page. This makes Simon withdraw from his friends and he ignores their phone calls and texts to him. He comes out to his parents and despite being surprised, they accept him. His close friends are also accepting of him, but Abby and Nick are disappointed that he gave in to Martin’s blackmail and tried to keep them apart. Blue is also upset about their emails being leaked, and stops communicating with Simon. He makes amends with his friends by apologizing publicly on the school’s gossip site and asks Blue to meet him at the school carnival. At the end of the movie, Simon is happier and at peace because he finds out that Blue is Bram and they start dating, and he also reconciles with his friends.

Message 1: Homophobia and the Stigmatization of Gay People One of the key messages in the movie is how homophobia, discrimination and stigmatization affects homosexual people. These negative attitudes and behavior towards gay people makes their lives difficult because they have to hide who they really are. In the movie, we see Simon trying his best to conceal his sexuality because he is afraid that he might be ridiculed and rejected when people find out that he is gay. To better understand his sexuality, he develops a friendship that later turns into love with another boy (Bowen, 2018). However, they both use pseudonyms in their email exchange because they both want to keep their sexuality a secret. This shows the difficulties that gay people go through sometimes in the process of understanding and accepting themselves, and the challenges of coming out. He tries to find out who Blue is, but since no one is openly gay in school, it makes it challenging to search him out from the hundreds of boys in school.

3

From the movie, we learn that one of the main ways of reducing the stigma is by having the social support. When Simon and Blue begin their email exchange, he learns that there are other people like him and he need not be ashamed. He is also comforted by the love and acceptance of his friends and family when he comes out to them. Having a good support system has a positive impact on the current and future mental well-being.

The movie shows us the challenges involved in coming to terms with being gay as a teen in a society that discriminates people who are different. Simon jeopardizes several of his friendships as he tries to conceal his sexuality.

Love, Simon shows that despite the advancements that have been made in the 21st century, the LGBTQIA community is still marginalized. Adolescence can be made especially difficult when one is forced to keep their sexuality a secret. The film also reveals that many teenagers and youth are unable to come out of the closet for fear of losing their social status and support. The objective of the film is to reduce the stigma and discrimination that the gay community experiences, and to educate people on the importance of supporting their gay peers, family and friends. Simon says, “I’m just like you” as a way of imploring the audience to empathize with him and other gay people. He is a human being like any other; he needs love and understanding.

Message 2: Promoting self-acceptance as a tool of reducing stigma “Love, Simon” became popular soon after its release because it addresses a challenge that many gay people of all ages go through. The film is important because it increases people’s awareness on homosexuality, and seeks to reduce the stigma surrounding the topic. To heterosexual audiences, it is a movie that educates on the importance of providing social support, love and understanding to gay people. It also enlightens them on the challenges that gay people

4

go through in the process of understanding and accepting their sexuality, as well as deciding whether to stay closeted or come out. The movie is important to gay people because it makes them feel seen and heard that they are not alone; they can love and be loved just as they are. The movie has encouraged gay youth to come out to their friends and family. It has also shown them that there is nothing wrong with them, it is okay to love who they love. When Simon finds love in the end, it is a beautiful culmination to the story (Bowen, 2018). He has gone full circle; from hiding his sexuality, to finally accepting it openly and getting into a relationship.

Historical Connection This movie is personal to me because my uncle had a similar experience, however, unlike Simon he was not able to remained closeted until he was in his thirties. From the age of six, my uncle knew he was different. He liked to play games that were considered ‘girlie’ by boys and also felt closer to girls than boys. Around boys, he felt shy. He also felt uncomfortable using the boy’s bathroom. Being a child, he could not explain why he felt that way, because he did not know about homosexuality yet. However much he tried to act like a boy, he did not fit in.

To avoid being teased, he forced himself to stop doing ‘feminine’ things and spent more time with boys than girls. However, when he became a teenager, he began to realize that he felt different because he was attracted to the same sex. He felt ashamed and kept this a secret. He even dated girls for many years, trying to force himself to be heterosexual and ‘normal’ like everyone else. It was not until his mid-20s when he finally decided to get into a same-sex relationship, and it took around six more years for him to come out openly as gay. He says that he felt very relieved to finally have the freedom to be his real self. When he came out, his family and friends were surprised but still accepting. He is now 33 and has been in a relationship with his boyfriend for the last two years.

5

Conclusion Sexuality is an important part of our being. It defines who we are, who we relate with and how we relate with them. From this movie, it is evident that no one chooses their sexual orientation. The LGBTQIA community is no different from heterosexual people. It is important to love and accept them to reduce incidences of people trying to conceal their identities.

6

Reference Bowen, M. (2018). Love, Simon. 20th Century Fox