The writers said Piper was their trojan horse. That’s how they got the show accepted by producers and audiences alike, by telling them it’s a fish out of water story about a nice educated white lady. But their actual story was always about the other women in the show.
Piper does have an important role in the show though. She’s the comparison point. She’s here to embody privilege. You can never dismiss the injustice of what happens to the others by saying “well they’re criminals”, because Piper is there to show that they don’t all get treated the same way. That’s the whole point of her character. Piper is also a criminal. But she’s also white, upper class and educated.
Piper is a mirror held to that section of the audience that enjoys the same privileges she does. She thinks of herself as a good person who cares about others. And for the most part she actually is. But she’s also much more selfish than she thinks she is. And while she thinks of herself as educated, she lacks immensely in awareness of the world around her. She may care about others, but for the most part she’s oblivious to the injustice done to others and the privileges she herself enjoys and her being oblivious has serious consequences for others. Janae, Tucky, Flores, even Alex (though she deserves most of what she gets) are a few of the women who have suffered solely because of Piper’s selfishness, insensitivity and self-righteousness.
Orange is the New Black is brilliant writing. Every single part of it, every single character is relevant. Saying the writers just suddenly realised/didn’t realise yet the POC women “stole” the show is doing them injustice. They knew exactly what they were doing.
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