The Insidious Implication of Stranger Things Season 5: Hate Your Enemies

It is the end of an era. A little more than two weeks ago the last episode of Stranger Things dropped on Netflix, the final act of a show that has been a pillar of American pop culture for nearly a decade and likely will remain in the popular consciousness for years to come. Yet this last season did not entertain me as much as it disturbed me. Neither jump scares or visually repellent monsters were to blame. What troubled me had nothing to do with visual phenomena.

It took a while for me to understand the source. My feeling of uneasiness began in episode three. Thirteen minutes in Hopper and Eleven confronted a detachment of about half a dozen Wolf-Pack soldiers, pawns of the notorious Dr. Kay. Hopper killed or severely wounded at least three of these soldiers, and after disabling the device that neutralized El’s powers, she was able to finish off the rest. Hopper and El captured Lieutenant Akers, the leader of the detachment, and spirited him away to a discreet location so that they could question him about the arrival of the next supply convoy to the Upside Down. When Hopper interrogated Akers, Akers refused to answer his questions. Akers pointed out that Hopper had just killed soldiers that were his friends. Hopper responded, “I’d kill a thousand guys like you to protect one person I love.” Perhaps Hopper’s hyperbole was only a negotiation tactic but as the season progressed this explanation seemed less and less likely.

Hopper interrogates Lt. Akers

Over the course of season 5, the Hawkins crew kills dozens of Wolf-Pack soldiers and other government personnel (to be precise the total tally is 34). In fact, the only person or group that kills more people than the ‘good guys’ in Season 5 is the big, bad boss himself, Vecna, and his minions, the Demogorgons. That the bad guy is the most murderous character of all is to be expected, what is more disconcerting is the willingness of the protagonists to do the same without a second thought. 

I was homeschooled growing up. My mother believed in the benefits of a classical education and especially the usefulness of Latin, which I studied for more years than I care to remember. One of the classic texts that almost every Latin scholar becomes acquainted with is Caesar’s account of the Gallic Wars. In my youth I took what I read at face value with little thought to what the words meant. But when I began to consider what I was translating, Julius Caesar’s exploits came into focus. Caesar claimed to have slaughtered a million Gauls and enslaved another million. Rape and pillage on such a mass scale is itself unnerving but what is perhaps even more disquieting is the callousness with which Caesar himself recounted the events. Julius Caesar was not just unapologetic regarding his brutal methods, he boasted of them. Caesar hated his enemies. He hated the Gauls. He was proud to have slain and enslaved so many of them. Certainly, Julius Caesar believed that the life of a Gallic tribesman was of little value compared to a Roman life. To be clear, Caesar never explicitly stated this in his writings, but that only goes to show he thought his perspective self-evident. After all, if something is obviously true to everyone, the assumption is that it is not necessary to say it is so. 

Gallic chieftain Vercingetorix surrenders to Julius Caesar after the battle of Alesia

Julius Caesar did not even consider justifying the devastation he brought upon his enemies because they were the ‘bad guys.’ They were barbarians. They were different and lesser. They could be destroyed without remorse. The Hawkins’ crew had a similar perspective regarding Wolf-Pack personnel. They did not view Wolf-Pack personnel as misled or ill-informed pawns. They did not attempt to explain to any of these unfortunate souls that Dr. Kay distorted the truth, that what they had been told about the Upside Down and Eleven was a lie. Instead, each and every soldier was seen as an indivisible component of the evil machine. They couldn’t be reasoned with. They should be destroyed without hesitation. Violence wasn’t just justified, it was deserved. The only difference between Julius Caesar and Nancy Wheeler is who they identified as 'other.' Through Caesar’s perspective the ‘other’ were Gallic tribesmen, through Nancy Wheeler’s perspective the ‘other’ were various employees of the American government. Hopper’s response to Lieutenant Akers is confirmation that he, and likely the rest of the Hawkins gang, have no remorse when killing them.

I am a Christian, even if I rarely live up to the brand. I believe that the Bible contains the most profound wisdom regarding how to live and how to treat people. I believe that Jesus was the only person who ever managed to live out these principles completely. During his earthly ministry the Roman Empire occupied Palestine and ruled Jesus’ people, the Jews. Roman law allowed legionnaires to demand locals carry their equipment for up to a mile. If the locals refused, they could be punished. Of all Roman statutes imposed on the many conquered peoples of the Mediterranean, this law was one of the most hated. Therefore, it was a shocking moment in Matthew 5:41 when Jesus told his followers that if a Roman legionary made such a demand on them, they should carry the soldier's equipment two miles, even further than the law required. Why should any Hebrew, whose country had been raped and pillaged by Romans, go out of their way to assist those who had so deeply wronged them? It seemed the pinnacle of insanity and injustice.

Jesus said many subversive things during his time on earth. But among the most counter-intuitive was his teaching to “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” In the West, this Biblical principle was foundational to what has become known as tolerance. What constitutes tolerance has changed over time. Nowadays, tolerance is the highest virtue and is used as a cudgel to villainize those that disagree. Much political discourse, when distilled down to its essence, consists of labeling us, ‘the good guys,’ as tolerant and them, the ‘bad guys,’ as intolerant. Of course, it goes without saying, intolerant people do not deserve sympathy or much else for that matter. So, who does? 

Stranger Things season 5 strongly implied that friends, the people who more or less treat you the way you want to be treated, deserve sympathy, love and respect. Over the course of the last eight episodes important relationships fractured and frayed as characters’ fears and anxieties came to the fore. But at the end of it all, the bickering members of the Hawkins gang forgave, forgot and made amends with one another. The implication is to love, be patient and forgive ‘your people.’ Your inner circle deserves to be treated well. Not necessarily anyone else.

This sentiment is perhaps best typified by Dustin's graduation speech near the end of the final episode. He preached a message of self-acceptance and tolerance to the students but to the school administration he vocalized contempt for their traditionalism, their age and their conformity. "Principal Higgins and every square like him is gonna do their damnedest to put everything back in order.........So, honestly, just screw it. Screw the school. Screw the system. Screw conformity. Screw everyone and everything trying to hold you back and tear us apart, because this is our year!" Yes, Dustin was willing to support people his age that are like him. That is a commendable trait the importance of which should not be downplayed. But what was saddening was that he had also drawn a line in the sand of where his tolerance and compassion ended. It did not extend to seniors, people in authority and others who did not think like him. They were his enemies. They were not worth his time. They did however, merit one emotion: hatred.

Dustin's graduation speech.

The idea that love and compassion are only merited by ‘your people,’ is antithetical to Christianity. As Jesus said, “If you love those who love you, what reward will you get?” A Christian is called to exhibit love and compassion to all, friends and enemies alike, because all are eternal souls made in the image and likeness of God Himself. Even if we do not love our enemies, God does. 

These past few years have seen both hate and expressed hatred become more socially acceptable. Stranger Things season 5 is no trailblazer of social morality, but rather a sign of the times.  Even so, that doesn’t make it right. Hating our enemies is destroying us. It is poisoning politics. Dividing societies and families. Ruining relationships. Hollowing out our very lives.

Is it even possible to love your enemy? To love someone who has deeply wronged you? Perhaps, like Stranger Things, it is a fantasy. But I believe just the attempt will prove to be part of the solution. It's at least worth a try.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”