BEEF from a Psychological Perspective

BEEF is the latest Netflix streaming phenomenon that has captivated audiences everywhere. The show stars Ali Wong (Amy Lau) and Steven Yeun (David Cho). The show begins with Amy and David getting into a road rage incident and from there on becoming obsessed with seeking revenge through infiltrating and sabotaging each other in their personal lives. Throughout this blog post we will dissect BEEF from a psychological perspective focusing on: family dynamics, anger management, and isolation.

FAMILY DYNAMICS

In the show, Amy Lau has a complex relationship with her parents. Throughout the series the viewer learns that Amy was the result of an undesired pregnancy, her father had an affair, and her mother was aware and decided to stay. None of this had ever been discussed openly in the family unit, and when Amy attempted to discuss it is met with a deafening silence and a pleading to leave the matters in the past. Due to this experience, Amy develops an imaginary character that iterates the message that if anyone knew the truth about her she would never be loved. David Cho also has a complex relationship with his parents. Due to David’s decision to allow his cousin to run an illegal business from the family owned motel his parents lose the motel in a police raid and are forced to move back to South Korea. David spends his entire adult life as a freelance contractor constantly hustling for odd jobs in order to make ends meet. His only goal is to make up for his past mistake, bring his parents back to America, and build them a house.

As a wife Amy Lau is aware that her husband is romantically involved with her assistant but she willingly chooses to ignore it. As an older brother David Cho is aware that he is not in a place financially to support his younger brother but he continues to put on a facade that everything is fine and that he is well on his way to buying the land and building the house for his family. The core of Amy Lau and David Cho’s closest relationships are based on lies, denial, and delusions. This is the ripe foundation for irrational anger that develops in the show.

ANGER MANAGEMENT

“Anger is an emotion characterized by antagonism toward someone or something you feel has deliberately done you wrong” (APA). The anger in BEEF is largely displaced anger.

Both Amy and David are not in positions to accurately channel their anger as their personal situations are results of their own doing. Amy is actively denying her husband’s inappropriate relationship with her assistant and you cannot be angry at something if you refuse to acknowledge its existence. David is angry with himself for his financial situation, but instead of taking responsibility and steps towards a better financial situation, he turns to his cousin whose illegal shenanigans landed him in this position in the first place. He then continues to have a close relationship with the very person that caused his financial problems, he cannot acknowledge his anger toward his cousin as he is now financially dependent on him. Social dynamics in the show add an additional layer of nuance in regards to anger and society. As Amy is brokering a deal to sell her company she takes microaggression after microaggression with a smile in order to get to the finish line. She also manages a hostile relationship with a mother-in-law that cheated her husband out of his inheritance upon her father-in-law's death. In both situations, if Amy Lau expresses her anger the consequences could

be detrimental to her family’s future.

ISOLATION

Both characters feel extremely isolated due to their complex familial relationships and their relationship to anger. From a psychological perspective, “loneliness is a subjective feeling of isolation...A person can also feel lonely when they are surrounded by people” (Tulane University). While both Amy and David lead full lives they lacked honest relationships which resulted in the feeling of isolation. The characters in both described this feeling as a “deep hole

inside” themselves. In a dramatic turn of events, the characters were able to find an honest relationship with each other and form a truly unique bond over their separate but parallel lives. Shows like BEEF are a great way to help those who may feel isolated realize that they are not alone in their feelings. And BEEF has been a huge success, with a predominantly all Asian cast and relatable story line it shows that diversity and inclusion can be entertaining. At the Dean Hope Center we encourage individuals to seek counseling if they are battling with anger, isolation, depression, or suicidal thoughts.

Sources:

https://www.apa.org/topics/anger

https://publichealth.tulane.edu/blog/effects-of-social-isolation-on-mental-health/