Knowing

Sara Klooster, Christina Bieber Lake, and Sarah Thomas discuss season one of Shonda Rhimes’s hit Netflix Regency romance Bridgerton in anticipation of season two’s debut in 2022.

CONTENT WARNING: This TV show contains a significant amount of mature content–the show deals frankly with the good, the bad, and the ugly of courting and marriage: socially, psychologically, and sexually. We will be discussing some of these issues in this episode, so please keep this in mind as you’re choosing when/where to listen. This episode is probably not one that is safe for work environments or young listeners.

First encounters with Regency narratives

  • Books? TV miniseries? Full-length feature film adaptations?
  • What were our initial impressions of the genre?

Brief background of the Bridgerton TV show and its adaptation from its source material

Reading

The show does a Regency narrative that opens up the genre in ways that appeal to a 21st century audience while also drawing on historical precedent

How does the series navigate some of the standard tropes of the Regency romance/narrative genre, particularly regarding courtship and marriage? 

  • The Daphne/Hastings marriage and its rocky start
  • Suitable/unsuitable marriage prospects
  • Old money/new money

How does the series open up/diversify the genre? 

  • The Duke of Hastings narrative
  • The presence of aristocratic POC families
  • The casting of Queen Charlotte
  • The unplanned pregnancy storyline

How do the production considerations–costumes, sets, etc.–support these efforts?

Passing On

Christina – the writings of Aphra Behn

Sara K. – Regency Love Mobile Game, and The Nobody by Diane Farr

Sarah – “On Sex and Marriage, Bridgerton Stumbles into Catholic Truth”

“Netflix’s Bridgerton is a Feminist Disaster. But It (Almost) Redeems Itself.”

Additional articles mentioned:

Bridgerton‘s Queen Charlotte Was a Real Royal

7,500 Costumes and 5 Months of Prep: What It Took to Create Bridgerton‘s Costumes

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