Read

Quick Answer: One of the successes of Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black is its nuanced ability to lovingly portray its characters not just as prisoners, but as people. In the third season of Orange Is the New Black, the extensive character development revolves around key relationships, revealing crucial lessons about how women (and humans in general) rely on romantic relationships to define their sense of self. Through these relationships at the heart of the show, the story comments on a deeper level on the struggles of being human and forging a path as an individual, free of harmful influence.

In Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black (2013 - ), we are introduced to an ensemble cast that illustrates the wide range of human experience. Women from all walks of life are stuck together in one cramped space, forced to live together in a place and a situation that none of them wants to inhabit. In the third season of Orange Is the New Black, the extensive character development revolves around key relationships, revealing crucial lessons about how women (and humans in general) rely on romantic relationships to define their sense of self. Through these relationships at the heart of the show, the story comments on a deeper level on the struggles of being human and forging a path as an individual, free of harmful influence.

If Alex and Piper’s relationship reflects anything about human nature, it’s that the heart wants what the heart wants, no matter the repercussions. It is made clearer than ever in Season 3 that Piper and Alex do not want to be in love. But despite their discordant relationship, neither can prevent the connection they share nor the force that continues to pull them back together. Piper intended to have a conventional life. She wanted to marry Larry, have children and lead a civilized life. But she continues to opt for the opposite, almost involutarily. Being in prison and sharing that environment with Alex reminds her of the exciting, turbulent love affair that they had ten years prior. Despite knowing Alex landed her prison, Piper wants her, and despite knowing Piper conspired to get her back in prison, Alex feels the same way. The complexity of their bond is portrayed powerfully in a drama class scene in Season 3, Episode 3: when given a grocery store as the setting for an improv exercise, the pair uses it as opportunity to talk through their complex situation and reach the understanding that, as humans, we are submissive to our feelings. Though our best intentions may tell us to do otherwise, our hearts choose who to love.

Taylor Schilling and Laura Prepon in Orange Is the New Black (2015)

Through her binary personas, Piper demonstrates that other people add meaning to our lives, sometimes to the point that we let others define us and refuse our responsibility for self-determination. In the outside world, Larry’s company defines her “good girl” image and social conformity. In prison, Alex brings out her “bad girl” demeanor and rebellion.

But Piper is hardly the only character who tends to define herself through relationships. Maritza and Flaca. Daya and Bennett. Red and Norma. Taystee and Poussey. All of these characters are linked through their friendships, romantic relationships or feuds. Then there are people who need anyone as opposed to someone—those whose desire for companionship is all-consuming. The emotionally unstable ‘Crazy Eyes,’ for example, pines for a leader to get behind because she obsessively aspires to feel included, make friends and be valued. Similarly, lovable Morello is fixated on the concept of marriage. It is her lifelong aim to marry someone and be considered his, and it doesn’t seem to matter as much who that someone is. Throughout Seasons 1 and 2, Morello appears to be hopelessly in love with the man she was arrested for stalking, Christopher. In Season 3, we see her finally abandon those feelings. She gives up on finding her happy ending with him and redirects her determination towards finding it with someone else. The fact that she is able to decide when to stop loving shows she needs someone generally as opposed to Christopher exclusively.

Yael Stone in Orange Is the New Black (2015)

In a flurry of scenes that introduce a series of visiting suitors, Season 3 shows that Morello yearns to be loved by anyone. The idea of a happy ending is more important to her than ensuring it is with the right person. When Nicky—the rebellious inmate with whom Morello had a casual sexual affair—is sent to maximum security prison, there is nobody left in at Litchfield to love Morello in the way that she needs to be loved. This fuels her obsession to find someone in the outside world instead. In order to be comfortable in her own skin and to live a meaningful life, she needs love. As for many Orange Is the New Black characters and for humankind outside Litchfield, being loved by another person can be a gateway to self-acceptance.

Not every facet of the human experience, of course, is set into motion or dictated by a relationship. At the onset of Orange Is the New Black, Big Boo is one of the most confident, self-assured inmates. While others experiment and remain uncertain about their sexuality and their role at Litchfield, Big Boo is knows who she is and what she likes. In Season 3, we get an intimate insight into Boo’s life prior to Litchfield. We learn about her sexual past, the abuse she has been subject to and the rejection she has faced. We see that her exterior image is extremely different from her internal identity. She may appear confident and comfortable enough with her sexual identity to have “butch” tattooed down her arm, but in reality she has been relentlessly tormented by her parents’ shame and persistent refusal to accept her. They have asked her to dress more femininely; they have branded her lifestyle a “silly phase” and suggested that she grow out of it; and they have been openly judgmental and hateful. A character that appears to be self-assured, certain and accepting of herself on the surface is actually shown to be insecure, vulnerable and isolated in more ways than one.

Lea DeLaria in Orange Is the New Black (2015)

One of the successes of Orange Is the New Black is its nuanced ability to lovingly portray its characters not as prisoners but as people. The diversity of background and personality among the Litchfield Prison inmates makes for a rich setting to explore the universal question of what it means to be human. In Orange is the New Black, the relationships we form and cling to are the key to understanding those deep inquiries about ourselves.