Demogorgons, Death Stars and DIfference: Masculinity and Geek Culture in Stranger Things

Following David Harbour’s anti-Trump speech at the SAG Awards 2017, Stranger Things positions itself as a text that derides neo-conservatism and embraces difference. However, this inclusive veneer is problematized by the 1980s texts it nostalgizes, particularly their concern with white hegemonic masculinity and their marginalization of women and people of colour. Such values were at the heart of the GamerGate scandal of 2014, which seemed to underline contemporary geek culture as an intolerant, prejudiced space. Stranger Things thus attempts to renegotiate the identity of the geek in more positive and inclusive terms, enacting a conditional nostalgia, one that tries to fulfil the expectations of 1980s narratives whilst acknowledging the need for diversification and nuanced performances of gender roles.