Artistic Significance: Sabrina Spellman teaches us to be resolute in ourselves

As many of us said goodbye to 2020, some of us also said goodbye to a deeply loved Netflix series, “The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.”
The series ran for four seasons, but it really didn’t take long to grab the hearts of fans.
Now, if you remember the series “Sabrina the Teenage Witch,” you’ll be familiar with Sabrina Spellman, but this series is very different.
It’s darker, grittier and more violent. But, it is more than the story of a half-witch struggling with the predetermined life for her of serving the Dark Lord, aka Satan.
The first message rests in that key word — predetermined.
Sabrina’s been told she would have her dark baptism at 16, signing the Book of the Beast and pledging her loyalty to Lucifer.
But, with that ceremony days away, she falters, reluctant to leave behind her mortal friends and the life she has with them. Afterall, she’s spent 16 years with them while being a witch at home.
Why does it have to be one or the other now?
She starts asking questions about what the Dark Lord would want from her, what she’d be expected to give him and ultimately is the sacrifice worth what she’d get in return.
Sabrina isn’t a go-with-the-flow young woman. She wants to make her own decisions about her own life.
Certainly, it doesn’t go very smoothly, but she’s determined to be the ruler of her own life.
That can come back to bite her, especially in this most recent season, but even when she makes a mistake, she owns up to it and does whatever it takes to fix things.
Throughout the series, Sabrina and her friends learn about their family histories and have to figure out who they are.
One of the best things to see is them supporting each other through these journeys. They don’t always agree and definitely need time to adjust to the changes their friends are going through, but ultimately they love and support each other through it.
I think that’s the most important message — just be there for the people you love. It’s OK to disagree, but you need to be there to support them.
Michael Shine is a staff writer at the Daily American Republic. He can be reached at mshine.dar@gmail.com.