“Orange Is the New Black” enjoyed considerable success during its five seasons. The show blends elements of a typical television series with the rarely explored dynamics of incarcerated women, with a desire to connect viewers to an often marginalized part of the population. Say no to plagiarism. Get a Custom Essay on 'Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned'?Get Original Essay Prison, Angela Davis notes, is a common feature in American media. It can be used to evoke a wide variety of themes: freedom, justice, redemption, revenge and many others. Therefore, while it was a surprise to see a show featuring diverse female inmates appear in the writing room, its use of the ever-popular prison archetype helped ensure its success. Although this commercial success helped make OITNB a household name, from a critical perspective, it is the depiction of women's experiences in prison that makes it interesting. Given its wide popularity, OITNB has significant power to influence society's views on women and prisoners. In some ways, the series helped generate progress in this regard, while in other ways it did the opposite. One of the show's biggest strengths is Sophia, a transgender woman played by transgender actress Laverne Cox. As was explained extensively earlier in the “Reel Injun” course, one of the main ways to ensure that minority groups are fairly represented is to give them autonomy in their representations. Transgender characters played by transgender actors and actresses are rare in the industry, and Sophia's character is a step in the right direction for trans representation. The series also takes a strong stand against the many flaws of the American prison system, the most obvious being: the mandatory minimum sentencing requirements that led Piper to take a plea bargain. This issue is addressed in detail in “13th,” where it is noted that these minimums prevent judges from exercising their sentencing discretion. Combined with the sanctions that criminals often face if convicted after rejecting a plea bargain, these sanctions have the effect of depriving many people of the constitutional right to a trial, particularly drug offenders, of the constitutional right to trial. The series clearly argues that Piper had already been rehabilitated, had returned to a normal life, and did not need to be punished for her actions. His punishment is seen as something closer to bloodlust than justice, a view shared by many when it comes to drug crime in the United States. In other ways, however, the series fails to portray women in prison. One of the biggest problems comes from the use of Piper, a white, middle-class protagonist. While the creator of the series states in Zerlina Maxwell's article that Piper is used as a way to bridge the gap between a typical viewer and an inmate. In "White is the New White", it is argued that Piper instead serves to perpetuate stereotypes and allow white people to continue profiting from the lives and experiences of people of color. This is reinforced by subtle racist tones in the show's storyline, creating the feeling of a "white damsel in distress" afraid of being surrounded by inherently frightening people of color. Although it is not unreasonable for a woman.