It is hoped that the use of stars from a TV dystopia focused on women may heighten viewers’ empathy.

Research has found that media narratives can heighten feelings of empathy among audiences. A study that used short video clips to tell an emotional story saw oxytocin levels increase by 47% among participants who’d viewed the narrative. Equality Now’s decision to use The Handmaid’s Tale– a show that has gained critical and popular praise for its gripping story – was doubly effective at stirring them to action.

“Whether or not characters are ontologically ‘real’, our familiarity with them renders them very emotionally potent; a kind of emotional truth that we experience at a biochemical level quite the same as we would with strangers whom we get to know over the course of a season – or years,” says journalist Abby Norman.

To find out more about the work of Equality Now, visit their website.

Image: Channel 4

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