Representation of black people in the series Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story
When watching the Bridgerton movie 1 month ago, when the latest series entitled Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story aired on Netflix, I was immediately interested in raising this topic as an object of research proposal material and the title of the final assignment for the Critical Theory course. This movie depicts social conflicts between white and black communities.Â
The social problems that occur in this movie, I see this as a form of social problems related to Marxism. I use the Marxist theory of class struggle and also use Barthes' semiotics and cinematography to help in analyzing the research. Class struggle occurs due to conflict between certain groups for their interests in order to achieve freedom in society.
The Netflix series "Bridgerton" has sparked significant debate regarding the representation of black people, especially in the portrayal of Queen Charlotte. Applying a Marxist lens to this discussion involves examining the depiction of race in the show and its relationship to the historical and economic context. The Marxist theory of historical materialism, which emphasizes the influence of economic structures on social and political phenomena can provide a framework for analyzing the representation of black people in "Bridgerton."Â
However, given the solution in the context of "Bridgerton," the romanticization of black royalty between Charlotte and George can serve to fetishize the social status of black characters, distracting them from the economic and racial inequalities that have historically shaped their lives. With the marriage between Queen Charlotte and George III being the focal point of the show on the romantic lives and interpersonal relationships of the characters, including the black royals, it can serve to distract from the class-based economic and power dynamics underlying the historical period.
To prove the theory and object of this research, I made this essay as a research material that will contain in the first sub-section explains the history of racism in England against black people and how Queen Charlotte and Lady Danbury's efforts to defend their people in the midst of racism in England.
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Representation of Black People in the Series Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton StoryThe Netflix series "Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story" has been a topic of discussion since its release in 2021. The show is set in early 19th-century London and follows the lives of the noble Bridgerton family. One of the most striking aspects of the show is its diverse cast, which includes black actors in key roles. However, the representation of black people in the show has been the subject of debate, with some critics arguing that the show perpetuates a "black fantasy" that ignores the realities of racism and slavery of the time.
The story of the movie begins with the marriage of a German girl named Charlotte who is brought to London with her brother and married to King George II who turns out to have a mental illness that has been suffered without Charlotte's knowledge. Charlotte endures subtle racism from the moment she arrives in London as Princess Augusta tries to wipe Charlotte's skin, although she is offended, Charlotte knows she must remain silent. The royal attempt to change the social dynamics to make people of color look accepted in society while ensuring black people could not access their private clubs, with this happening it strongly proves that at that time race was a very strong issue in the kingdom because of the difference in thrones between blacks and whites. It is evident that race was once an issue when Lady Danbury told the Duke of Sussex in the first season, saying "Look at our queen. Look at our king. Look at their marriage. Look at everything she's done for us, and enabled us to be. We were two separate societies separated by skin color until a king fell in love with one of us. Love, Your Majesty, trumps all." (Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, Verica) The comment sparked outrage for its unrealistic attitude, as we know that black women marrying members of the royal family did not erase racism.
Despite the racism of the time with the ingenuity of Queen Charlotte who was queen and Lady Danbury who was already established as a noble family, they held a matchmaking gossip event or a royal event to officially give titles to black people Lady Danbury asked Princess Augusta (George III's mother) for land and money to include with her family's new title, to reflect what other royals got, she also used the opportunity to remind Augusta that they had more money than most Tons. The show is conscious of the struggles of black people and takes liberties with history to show how social and political revolutions often only happen when the time is right. Queen Charlotte uses it to navigate the position of black people in society and Lady Danbury uses it to make strategic moves to secure the future of black titles, which can be revoked at any time for black women who have the most power in society and still struggle to be respected, seen and heard. It was Queen Charlotte who made the change happen because the palace needed society to accept Charlotte as their queen and see the heirs she produced as legitimate heirs. Lady Danbury tells Charlotte to maintain black honor by saying, "You are the first of your kind... don't you see what you are supposed to do for us?".
Queen Charlotte's tenure illustrates the reality of black life throughout history, but we already have that too. What we need are more stories of romance and joy that feature non-violent black people as people of color but my race doesn't have to be the focal point of every story I tell or consume.Â
