Downton Abbey Redux
These last few weeks I spent my afternoons binging on the PBS masterpiece Downton Abbey, to the detriment of other things I needed to be doing. I know, I know: Downton was beloved years ago after it premiered in 2010. Friends told me I would love it. They, of course, were right. Aside from the intriguing characters, ingenious dialogue, and compelling story lines, I believed the beauty, orderliness, and stateliness of the great house would offer a balm for my current sense of things falling apart, of immense changes not only in my life but in the world. However, I was mistaken.
The story begins with the sinking of the Titanic in 1912 and the presumed death of Patrick Crawley and his son, co-heirs of the magnificent Downton Abbey estate. The house is occupied by another cousin, the Seventh Earl of Grantham Robert Crawley, his wife and three daughters. Enter Matthew Crawley, a solicitor in Manchester, another cousin and the next heir. The obvious solution is that the oldest daughter Mary, and Matthew get hitched. (Lots of cousins married each other back then.) After much back and forth tension… well, here I need to stop in case you haven’t watched it yet.
Each family member has crises which cause them to reassess the smugness of their privileged life. Along with the family’s story lines, the servants “downstairs” are dealing with their own issues. Even though the Crawleys are considerate to the servants, the differences between the classes are stark. The family is endearing, even with all their snootiness and affectatious pronunciations as befits their lineage and education. The servants have their own hierarchies and rules of behavior, their own “snootiness.”
As the story continues, change becomes the primary underlying theme. The show begins in 1912 and ends in 1926. WWI, the Spanish flu and the advent of jazz and flappers all have an effect on the British social hierarchy. The women’s movement has grabbed hold. Grand estates become impossible to uphold; the coffers are drained, often due to mismanagement. Servants begin looking for opportunities to create their own lives, not willing, or able, to accept their status anymore. Two of the Crawley daughters marry “down” much to the chagrin of the Dowager Countess, Lord Grantham’s mother, exquisitely performed by Maggie Smith. (Most of the best lines are hers). The characters begin to feel the need for “a purpose,” not content to spend their days drifting through the rituals and rules of aristocracy that have been in place for many centuries. (For another take on this period I recommend T.S. Eliot’s Wasteland.)
Change. Inevitable and impossible to prevent. Or even to control. The last ten years have been this way for me. For all of us. We had a recession, a worldwide pandemic, and now Russia is touting its scary ugly side. Let’s throw climate change into the mix. Not to mention the growing dominance of electronics and AI. Humanity has always been in the throes of change, but the acceleration is now exponential. Where are we going? Where will we end up? What is our purpose? Will we ever feel “normal” again, and what exactly is that?
Here’s what we need to remember: nothing is certain except change. We know this but we forget. When life clips along at a steady and comfortable pace we tend to take it for granted. When things get out of whack we are jolted. We may get nostalgic. Somehow we have to find some kind of acceptance so that we can continue to have hope for the future. We also need to band together and foster our humanity. The gap between each generation will become more pronounced than ever as we hurl into the future. Beliefs have become polarizing. Each one of us must find the flexibility not only to peaceably co-exist, but to nurture the emotional interconnections we have as humans. When life is chaotic, the emotion of fear can trump our innate goodness and cause us to act inhumanely. Fight or flight mode takes over, our bodies become stressed and unreasonable. Not a great way to get through each day.
The last episode of Downton Abbey is delightful. Teary-eyed, I watched how the family celebrates Christmas, with changes either in place or in transition. Yes, the aristocrats with their servants are still in that magnificent castle and everything looks perfect: a massive tree decorated with starlight, greenery dressed in flowers, gifts piled high, smiling servants, a new puppy, and happy faces. The stresses of change have been acknowledged and accepted. Little do they know that the next two decades will be the biggest challenge yet. But for now, everyone is happy and hopeful.
As we approach another holiday season, I wish the same for all of us.
