So, as my Facebook friends know, I recently watched Seasons 1 and 2 of Downton Abbey, courtesy of Netflix.
I wasn’t quite sure if I would like it, because I’ll admit to not really watching that much British television.
However, some of these people know me pretty well, so I gave it a try.
Well, I was hooked.
From the first moment, I couldn’t look away.
However, as I made my way through the episodes, one thing struck me.
The utter…boredom that a life of privilege must have brought.
The main family didn’t earn their money. They inherited it.
So, there were no factories to run, no jobs to attend to.
It was just ordering the servants and making social calls.
This was the way of life for so many of privilege, at the turn of the century.
Wake up, ring a bell for your servant to come get you out of bed and get you dressed.
If you were a woman, they would also do your hair.
Then, downstairs to breakfast, and as soon as you left your room, someone would come in and make your bed and neaten up your room.
After breakfast, you make social calls, or read the mail, or go for a walk or just sit in the parlor.
And so your day continues until the servants get you ready for bed, including brushing your hair.
I just can’t imagine that kind of life.
Don’t get me wrong, the idea of someone cleaning up after me as soon as I leave the room is entirely appealing.
As is the thought of having every meal cooked for me and, especially, someone else doing the laundry.
However, it seems to me to be a life without purpose, and I wonder, is that what privilege brings?
Throughout the show, a few of the characters begin to realize the lack of purpose and change their lives, but there are some (and they aren’t all old fuddy-duddies) who believe that this is the life they were meant to live and are outraged by the thought that there is something more they should be doing.
That by living their life, they are doing something…giving others jobs by allowing them to serve them, etc.
The truth is, although I enjoy all the story lines, the servants lives are the most interesting. They are the most well-rounded characters, because they are the most well-rounded people. They have lives of purpose…they have interesting conversations and thoughts and desires and hopes and dreams. What is there to look forward to if you have everything?
I don’t really have a point here, but it’s just something that I find so interesting to think about.
As far as the show goes, I wait for January with baited breath, for Season 3, and in the meantime, have been devouring other BBC shows on my iPad. “North and South” (which has a much different meaning in the US than in Great Britain) was a good one, and I’m in the midst of “Daniel Deronda” and plan on watching “Upstairs/Downstairs” next, as I do enjoy seeing the differences between the privileged in the house vs the servants.
BBC. It’s not just for your Grandma.
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