Jane "El" Hopper (born Jane Ives), better known as Eleven, is a main protagonist in the first and second seasons of Stranger Things. Her character is played by Millie Bobby Brown. Eleven was kidnapped and raised in Hawkins National Laboratory, where she was experimented on for her inherited psychokinetic abilities. After escaping the lab, she was found by Mike, Lucas, and Dustin. Upon discovering her abilities, Mike believed that she could help find Will, their missing friend. During their time together, she and Mike formed a strong bond and quickly grew to like each other. It was ultimately revealed that, in a lab experiment, she made contact with a creature from another dimension, accidentally opening an inter-dimensional gateway. In an attempt to protect her friends, Eleven eventually faced and destroyed this monster in a showdown at Hawkins Middle School, mysteriously vanishing in the process. Eventually, she was found to be alive, secretly living with Jim Hopper at his grandfather's old cabin. After she grew impatient from being separated from her friends, Eleven went on a journey by herself, discovering her past in the process. Realizing that she could not leave her friends behind, she returned to Hawkins, reuniting with them, to help defeat yet another extra-dimensional threat. Eleven was then taken in by Hopper as his adopted daughter. Later, she attended the Snow Ball dance with Mike, who invited her the previous year. Contents[show] History Main article: Eleven/History Personality and Traits Raised in Hawkins National Laboratory and completely deprived of socialization, Eleven was timid, socially withdrawn and extremely cautious of other people. However, she became fiercely protective and showed unyielding loyalty towards those who cared for her, especially to Mike who she fell in love with, to the point of sacrificing herself to destroy the Monster when it threatened to harm her friends. Even after being separated for a year, Eleven showed considerable determination in saving her friends by returning to them in Hawkins from Chicago when she sensed them to be in grave danger through the Void, reuniting with them in the process. If Eleven attempted to defy Dr. Brenner's orders when under his control, she would be locked in a cramped room as punishment, potentially for hours on end. These painful experiences lead her to develop severe claustrophobia. She also showed some signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, frequently remembering her harrowing experiences at the lab following her escape. Due to a very limited vocabulary, she could not effectively communicate her thoughts and emotions and had little to no understanding of simple concepts such as friendships or promises. These difficulties communicating often lead to misunderstandings with her friends. Despite this, she was a quick learner and came up with creative ways of explaining concepts as shown when she flipped the Dungeons & Dragons game board to explain the nature of the Upside Down. Episodes of intense stress and fear had the potential to trigger Eleven's powers, releasing them in unpredictable and sometimes dangerous ways. She was reluctant to harm innocent life and had no malicious intent but was sometimes forced to maim or kill in extreme circumstances. She did not take this lightly as these instances were always followed by strong feelings of guilt and self-loathing (not to mention the physical toll these acts had on her body). Despite having killed before, upon being pressured by Kali into trying to kill, she refused to after seeing the man she was about to kill had children and then stopped Kali from shooting him. In every event of having to resort to killing someone, she has done it in self-defense. After nearly an entire year of living with Hopper, Eleven's vocabulary expanded significantly, although she still struggled to understand complex words and social cues. Powers and Abilities Psychic abilities Eleven was born with a vast array of preternatural abilities, acquired through a combination of inheritance and exposure to hallucinogenic drugs while in utero during her mother’s time as an MKUltra test subject. These abilities were the reason she was abducted at birth and raised at Hawkins National Laboratory, where she was experimented on. The effect of the subsequent direct experimentation on Eleven and her powers is unclear. It is possible that her powers laid dormant and could only be unearthed through further experimentation. However, it is also possible that Eleven had access to these powers at birth, but merely gained understanding and experience of them during her time in the laboratory. As her mother displays similar psychic powers, it is possible the experimentation on her mother during her pregnancy augmented her powers or she simply naturally developed stronger abilities. Initially, exercising her abilities to accomplish small tasks was shown to be rather difficult for her. However, with practice, Eleven was able to accomplish greater and greater feats. Nearly a year after the events of November 1983, Eleven became able to use her telekinetic and telepathic powers far more easily and without as much effort and concentration, easily closing doors, lifting objects, and entering her mental void by simply placing a blindfold on. Her abilities are somewhat linked to her emotional state, being at their strongest when influenced by her anger and fear. Being in distressing situations would occasionally cause Eleven to unleash her powers involuntarily. This was most likely how Eleven had opened the Gate: her fear of witnessing the Demogorgon possibly magnifying her powers to the point where she was able to open an interdimensional portal. This was also observed in “The Flea and the Acrobat” when she unintentionally flung Lucas across the junkyard during his fight with Mike. In “Will the Wise”, following an intense argument with Hopper, Eleven had a “psychic tantrum”, causing her to violently break all of the cabin’s windows. With help from Kali, Eleven learned to harness her anger at will, allowing better control over her powers. She would go on to use this knowledge to aid her while closing the Gate. Using her powers takes a physical toll on her body. When using her powers to perform more menial tasks, Eleven usually only suffers from nosebleeds. Based on how her powers are executed, it is likely the source of this blood is actually her brain. When accomplishing more daunting tasks, however, she would become physically exhausted, often to the point where she’d be unable to walk. Her most extreme acts caused bruising on her face, her eyes to become bloodshot, her ears to bleed, and occasionally even unconsciousness. However, if Eleven was sufficiently satiated, this physical toll could be alleviated. Eventually, Eleven’s body had grown accustomed to the recurrent use of her powers, being able to go longer durations without succumbing to complete exhaustion. Eleven's powers would occasionally affect the nearby electricity; when attempting psychic communication, nearby lights would sometimes flicker or even go out entirely. The Demogorgon, while traveling between dimensions, had remarkably similar effects on nearby electricity, suggesting her abilities may also cause distortion of the electromagnetic field. StrangerThingsBus Eleven flinging a large van in the air. Telekinesis: Her most recurrent power, she is able to manipulate objects, people and creatures with her mind. When amplified by her emotions, her telekinesis is strong enough to lift large and heavy objects; she flipped a Hawkins Power and Light van in the air in “The Bathtub”, and in “The Lost Sister” she was able to channel her anger in order to pull a train car towards her. Moreover, in “The Mind Flayer”, she was able to throw and kill a Demodog with her mind. Eleven could also use this ability to attack and cause physical damage to people (primarily in self defense), even being able to affect internal organs to some extent; she was able to squeeze Troy's bladder in order to make him urinate himself and later broke his arm. Additionally, she has thrown people against walls on several instances, broken the neck of an orderly at Hawkins Lab, and was even able to crush the brains of several agents at once. Levitation: Via telekinesis, Eleven could suspend objects in the air, making them levitate. This was first displayed in “Holly, Jolly” where she made Mike’s model of the Millennium Falcon float. This ability is not restricted to objects, as shown in “The Monster” when she saved Mike by levitating him to safety after he had jumped off a cliff. In “The Gate”, Eleven herself levitated as she was closing the Gate, possibly as a side effect of her using so much power. Extrasensory Perception (ESP): Eleven can gain information through the mind rather than the physical senses. She could recognize people taken into the Upside Down from photos, though she had presumably never met them before, and could sense Will's corresponding location in the other dimension. Stranger Things 1x06-Eleven's mental void Eleven in the void of her mind, using sensory deprivation. Remote viewing: Via ESP, she can seek out and find targets in different locations than her own. When amplified by sensory deprivation, this ability is powerful enough to find targets over vast distances, even as far as other dimensions. See also: The Void Telepathy: Often used in tandem with her RV abilities. When she has located her target, she can choose to communicate with them mentally. Psychometry: Or “token-object reading”, Eleven can gain information about a person by touching objects associated with them. In “The Weirdo on Maple Street”, she was able to correctly identify which game piece was Will's when demonstrating with the D&D board. Technopathy: To some extent and with varying results, she can transmit the voices of people and other sounds in other locations over electronic speakers. Portal Manipulation: Eleven can open and manipulate portals to the Upside Down. She was first revealed to have this power in “The Monster”, where it was shown that she had accidentally opened the Gate upon making contact with the Demogorgon. Eleven later manages to close the Gate in “The Gate”. In “Trick or Treat, Freak”, she manipulated a portal that the Demogorgon had opened in order to make it large enough for her to pass through. This ability may be rooted from the primary telekinetic power. Dimensional Travel: After the Gate was opened, it allowed Hawkins Lab scientists to go into the Upside Down. She herself entered the dimension after defeating the Demogorgon in “The Upside Down.” Biokinesis: Eleven could manipulate the bodies of living creatures to a certain extent, as shown when she disintegrated the Demogorgon. Teleportation: Tentative. She appears to possess this ability as shown when she was somehow transported to the Upside Down upon defeating the Demogorgon, though the exact specifics of how this happened are unclear. It's highly possible the Demogorgon could have played a part, considering it appeared to have abilities similar to Eleven's. Another possibility is that the teleportation was an unintended side effect from Eleven exerting so much power. In any case, if she does possess this ability, she most likely has no knowledge of it. Regular Abilities Survival skills: While living in the woods for a month, Eleven learned crucial survival skills, such as hunting (by using her powers) and how to make a fire. Morse code: She was taught how to read and signal Morse code by Hopper as a means for them to safely communicate. Relationships FamilialNon-Familial Terry Ives While Terry is her biological mother, Eleven originally had no knowledge of her or even the fact that Brenner had kidnapped her at birth. However, Terry tried desperately to get her daughter back and still believed she would one day return. After learning that her mother was alive through the Void, Eleven defied Hopper's rules to meet her. Becky Ives Becky is Eleven's aunt. Like Terry, Eleven had no knowledge of her due to not knowing the circumstances of her birth. Becky believed Terry really miscarried and in extension believed that Jane did not exist. Jim Hopper Chief Hopper was an ally of Eleven and later became her adoptive father. He rescued her and her friends from government agents, safely bringing them to the Byers house to meet with the others. Their relationship likely had little opportunity to develop at this time as they were preoccupied with saving Will. Hopper ultimately had to reveal Eleven's location to Hawkins Lab in order to save Will, a decision he did not take lightly. Hopper appeared to have some awareness of Eleven's status following her self-sacrifice, providing her with Eggo waffles on Christmas Eve. Eleven's disappearance reminded Hopper of the loss of his daughter, and he became determined to find her. Hopper eventually found Eleven in the woods and began taking care of her, relocating her to his grandfather's old cabin. The two developed a complicated father-daughter dynamic as they lived together for almost a year. For her safety, Hopper neither permitted her leaving the cabin, nor did he permit her to communicate with Mike or her friends. After the shutdown of Hawkins Lab, Hopper officially took Eleven in as his adopted daughter and allowed her to attend the Snow Ball.