After watching the episode where Simon calls out the unequal power dynamics, I became intrigued, and thought maybe they could pull off a healthy balance between acknowledging racism and keeping up the light-hearted Gossip Girl -esque tone it started out with.īut by abandoning any further mention of race, and by playing into more subtle racist stereotypes, the show loses its momentum.
If Bridgerton had explored an alternate history where Queen Charlotte uses her power to give Black people lands and titles, while paying close attention to race and power discrepancies, then maybe that would have made it too gritty, and not fitting with the humorous, sexy atmosphere it attempts to create.
It’s not something people can choose to “unthink” just because a Black person enters into the upper echelons of society…The way the show handles race is akin to sweeping it under the rug and pretending it doesn’t exist – an idea people of colour still have to deal with today as we fight for our rights.” In her article about the show, Michele Thiel remarks, “a public and privileged interracial relationship doesn’t solve racism. In and of itself, Queen Charlotte’s marriage feels more flimsy than viable as an explanation for the presence of Black characters in the wealthy, aristocratic spheres of British society. So, the only time race is mentioned, it’s mentioned by Black characters to ‘explain’ why they are there…but I thought the whole point was creating an atmosphere where Black characters don’t have to explain their presence? White characters never mention or acknowledge this apparently culture-changing monarchical shift.
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This topic is never revisited, and the series continues on with its bodice-ripping sumptuous balls. Interestingly, the main heartthrob in the show, Simon, responds to Lady Danbury by saying that the power they have gained in society is flimsy because it is based on one man’s (King George’s) decision. It seems like the showrunners wanted to create this fantasy, but were worried what would happen if race wasn’t mentioned at all, so they employed the oldest trick in the book: love as a thematic device to solve all problems. So, why was race mentioned in a conversation between two Black characters, Lady Danbury (Adjoa Andoh) and the Duke of Hastings, Simon Bassett (Rege-Jean Page) wherein Lady Danbury cites the marriage of Charlotte and George as the beginning of a new era in England where “love conquers all” and racism no longer exists? Why not simply commit to the fantasy and ignore race altogether?īlogger Ruth Terry points out, “Mentioning racism undercut the show’s blissfully colorblind approach, and I shuddered to think what White viewers would take away from simplistic message.” For one thing, Bridgerton is supposed to be an escapist series where Black characters are present in a way that is not contingent on race or racism, giving an illusion of equal ground between the characters, so they can simply exist side by side without characters of color having to justify their presence on screen. I’m on board with this idea, and I do have an appreciation for glittery, period-piece escapism just as much as the next girl, but something about the presentation of race in the show feels like it’s lacking. What could she have done? Could she have elevated other people of color in society?” Van Dusen remarks of his vision behind the series: “ there’s a lot of evidence to the idea that Queen Charlotte was England’s first queen of mixed race, and that idea really resonated with me because it made me wonder what that could have looked like and what would have happened. It doesn’t give any real attention to the transatlantic slave trade, which is the reason why there could have been a Black queen or a Black duke in the first place, and puts no emphasis on racism or any other structural barriers that the show’s Black characters would have faced. The show isn’t supposed to be historically accurate. Showrunners Shonda Rhimes, known for Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal, and Chris Van Dusen wanted Bridgerton to be an escapist, fun, sexy show with brilliant costumes, witty dialogue and a fast-paced plot.
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