Breast Feeding on Coronation Street - Negative ?

[Oblomov]

Did anyone see it last night. Shaun talking about his new baby and Violet breast feeding ?
I admit I wasn't paying total attention, so may have missed bits, but it seemed really negative.
Same old, same old. When are we going to have a postive storyline ?

[tiktok]

I saw it all (big Corrie fan) - yes, Sean was negative, and said he couldn't wait until Violet stopped breastfeeding so he could have a bigger role.

His boyfriend, the midwife, challenged him for not being very PC, and there was some brief discussion about the propriety of 'flipping them out in public' which Lauren joined in with.

But I thought the vibe of the scene was that Sean was being a dickhead, really - it was a stupid thing to say, but in line with what Sean feels about the way Violet and Jamie are excluding him, and character-led, too. This is what Sean would think - he acknowledged he wanted the baby to grow up 'brainy' but also acknowledged his resentment at the fact he could not be hands-on with feeding.

So, all in all, I think it was positive about breastfeeding as the only people who said anything negative are people who we are clearly meant to think of as a bit pathetic and needy (Sean) or daft as a brush and shallow (Lauren).

Marcus the midwife could have been a bit more vocal about defending it, though. OTOH, there are plenty of midwives who are ambivalent about bf

[Takenoprisoners]

I saw it. I found it really negative. And the boyfriend's comment "that's not very PC, is it" I took to be ironic and sniping. Made me cross.

[Laino]

I found it a bit of a stupid throw away comment - what would've been a primetime moment for Sean to say breast is best etc (in his 'I've read all the literature sort of way) but he said something crap. It really annoyed me as so many people watch the show and it could've been a positve moment. Tut

[OracleInaCoracle]

agree totally, i watched it last night, and while he did say a few weeks back that he "knows breast is best, but when baby is weaning then " i found last nights comments really negative (actually meant to come on and start a thread about it) while i accept that sean and lauren are the type of characters to say something like that, corrie should have taken the opportunity to portray bf in a positive light. they have come under a lot of criticsm for this storyline, they could have redeemed themselves once the fecking baby was born. yet they chose not to. very disappointed.

[OracleInaCoracle]

its ridiculous. the whole storyline is.

but then i am a bitter old witch who shouts at the tv on a regular basis.

[princessosyth]

But it would be unrealistic if Sean was to start spouting that "Breast is best".

[artichokes]

I posted a thread about this last night.

TikTok - I am afraid I do not agree that all in all it was positive. It reinforced the idea that it is hard for the Dad to play a meaningful role in a BFed baby's life and suggested that it is still a very common perception that public BFing is gross. I am not sure the average Corriw viewer will have analysed whether or not it was sympathetic characters who made these observations.

I know Sean's boyfriend made the political correctness comment but I think the term "political correctness" is viewed negatively by most. Few people have sympathy with the poltically correct lobby.

[artichokes]

Princess - he did not have to spout "Breast is Best". They could have simply showed that Violet is BFing and left it at that. It would have helped to normalise BFing.

[tiktok]

arti, you may be right.

I would have loved it if there had been a positive theme round bf.



Maybe there will be later?

[OracleInaCoracle]

agree with artichokes.

the term pc has had a lot of bad press, and they could have shown sean advocating bf as the best thing for his baby, eg violet bfing in the cafe someone sneering and sean jumping down their throat because it is "the best for his son" which would still have been in character. and the "flopping them out" comments were apalling.

[tiktok]

Oh - Maria is pg and she may say some nice things

[princessosyth]

I was responding to Laino's post that "it was a primtime moment for Sean to say that he knew breast was best."

[OracleInaCoracle]

i hope so. when violet became pg i thought that she was the main character in soaps that would be likely to embrace bf-ing and be vocal about it. but instead they used the storyline to write her out.

which pissed me off even more than the original storyline (well, nearly)

[princessosyth]

I agree with artichoke that they could just have shown Violet breastfeeding and leave it at that. I think that any pro breastfeeding comments by Sean would be unrealistic and would not portray the feelings that his character is likely to be going through at the moment. Jamie if anyone is more likely to be supportive with Violet breastfeeding.

At the end of the day Coronation Street is supposed to be a realistic drama, it's purpose is to entertain not educate.

[OracleInaCoracle]

but it is supposed to portray realistic scenarios. and soaps are watched by a huge audience. they do have an obligation to advise and inform. EE did a small piece on bf with honey and billy, and it centred around some customers in the vic commenting on honey bf-ing in public and billy rounding on them with "she is feeding my son, and there are women in the club every night showing far more skin, you dont moan about that"

[CorrieDale]

I completely agree that it's meant to be a realistic drama, but we've all seen soaps taking the moral high ground when it suits the writers - e.g. during the height of the AIDS angst, straight non-druggie characters becoming HIV positive, and the neighbours being challenged if they are abusive as a result. But I really think that the Corrie writers are pointedly anti-bfing. There is never anything positive shown or said about it, and sometimes characters go out of their way to be negative about it. I love the programme (ahem!) but this really pisses me off. So much so, I actually sent a complaining email today, which is something I usually only do to GMTV! Perhaps I should just watch different telly...

[OracleInaCoracle]

agree corrie (not with telly part, obv) this subject has been discussed many, many times on here, and the general opinion seems to be that bfing rates would benefit from portrayal in soaps, drama's etc.

[princessosyth]

I disagree Lissielou, I don't believe that soaps have an obligation to advise and inform. If they used the drama as a vehicle to educate the masses it would be very off-putting it would become a bit like the Trueman Show. Infant feeding to the average corrie viewer is just not interesting.

[OracleInaCoracle]

i totally disagree. people identify with characters in soaps, they identify with their families, their lives and their problems. the writers show a range of situations and they have to be responsible about the way they are portrayed.

and imo it would have been in keeping with sean and his devoted dad bit for him to prattle on about how good bf-ing is for baby, maybe even buying her a pump, so that he can be involved. because babies needs come above his!

[OracleInaCoracle]

sorry babys needs

[princessosyth]

I hear what you are saying and I agree to a point, I expect cbeebies for example to set a good example and generally it does, I have breastfed babies on a few of the childrens programmes.

I would be deeply concerned though if adult television was used as a vehicle to educate. I personally feel that the government want us to live in a nanny state as it is and I would be even more peed off if they thought they could use drama as another means of telling us what we should be doing (I am not specifically referring to breastfeeding). What would be next? Honey on EE going back to work because SAHM is not a good example to set, or a general discussion in the Rovers about how ID cards are a good thing.

[princessosyth]

Sorry I have seen breastfed babies on cbeebies. I wasn't the one doing the breastfeeding. . Lol

[CorrieDale]

Tut. I got all excited there for a second, wondering how much it paid and if you were expected to bring your own baby.

[scottishmummy]

Coronation street is non-factual tv that so far has dramatised/discussed adultery,serial murder,homosexuality,teen pregnancy.and now BF it is not likely to compel viewers to serial murder etc merely by mentioning it, nor is it going to compel potential/actual bf to stop

i can just imagine current/potential BF in a quandry -o what would violet do!not

eh and just because violet gave birth in a pub does this mean mums at 40+ wks will be hanging around the local boozer as location of choice? I think not

i do think it is important to understand and differentiate tv from real life.we don't all do things because it was on tv