The Consequences of Representing Human Suffering Distress, and/or Violence

Within academia, there has been much focus on representations of suffering, distress, and/or violence, including how these representations can foster meaningful change in audience members. The consequences of representing human suffering, distress, and/or violence, however, have received less attention. Given this, in this dissertation, I explore professional actors lived experiences of representing human suffering, distress, and/or violence. In order to complete this exploration, I undertook a world-first study, uncovering what professional actors experiences of representing human suffering, distress, and/or violence entail; how these actors respond to working with these complex representations; what concerns, meanings, strategies, and personal consequences these actors describe in relation to this work; and what, if any, support systems assist these actors as they engage with such representations. Throughout the dissertation, I review the themes that were identified in this study and consider what these themes can offer actors, the entertainment industry, and North American society moving forward.