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Romancing the Regency: 'Bridgerton' and History with Dr. Julie Taddeo

Romancing the Regency: 'Bridgerton' and History with Dr. Julie Taddeo


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Can't make this time? A video recording will be sent to all participants after the seminar.

Travel back to Regency England (1811-1820) as we use the popular Netflix series, Bridgerton to discuss everything from fashion and monarchy to race, class, and gender in the early nineteenth century. We will see how romance fiction "does history" while Bridgerton's much-talked-about color-conscious casting and sex scenes speak to our modern desires and concerns.
Based on the first in a series of historical romance novels by Julia Quinn, the Netflix series Bridgerton has been watched by over 63 million households. This genre of literature has long endured intense scrutiny. Directed primarily to a female audience, historical romance novels and their TV/film adaptations are often trivialized as "fluff" or inaccurately represent history. Our conversation will counter those criticisms and suggest how a popular series like Bridgerton can "do history" and reflect our twenty-first-century interests and values. 

Starting with an overview of the politics of the early nineteenth century, we will discuss the social mores and practices of the elite, the role of women across the classes, and masculinity and sport. We will also look at London as a significant character in the series. The color-conscious casting will help us examine the racial politics of the era, and the much-talked-about sex scenes will help us understand the pleasures and perils of life in Regency England.
Dr. Julie Taddeo is a historian of Modern Britain focusing on social and cultural history and pop culture. She frequently uses popular period drama television (Downton Abbey, Poldark, Outlander, and other series) to explore the history represented by these programs and how they connect to our lives today.

Dr. Julie Taddeo is Research Professor of History at University of Maryland. Her area of expertise is Modern British social and cultural history. She has published several books on such topics as the Bloomsbury Group, Steampunk, British period drama television, and reality TV.

Not suitable for children under age 13 (sensitive content).

90 minutes, including a 30 minute Q&A.

Customer Reviews

Based on 10 reviews
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(10)
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R
R. (Brooklyn, US)
Excellent!

It was wonderful, very clear and well presented and engaging. After I started watching the series, I read some Regency history, and you clarified a lot more.

D
D.A.S. (Takoma Park, US)
Great Lecture

I had never viewed Bridgerton so didn't know what to expect. Dr. Taddeo's presentation was excellent and intriguing. The explanations were so informative that I felt I understood the series and its relationship to the Regency.

C
C.D. (Mount Airy, US)
Bridgerton

I enjoyed this presentation very much. I find this time period very interesting and I love the books and shows written about it. Julie Taddeo was very informative.

L
L.H. (Lafayette, US)
Great presentation!

Loved the snippets of history from the Regency era in Great Britain. Very entertaining with great visuals--especially liked the ones from the Regency era itself.

A
Anonymous (Minneapolis, US)

Guest did not leave comment

Customer Reviews

Based on 10 reviews
100%
(10)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
R
R. (Brooklyn, US)
Excellent!

It was wonderful, very clear and well presented and engaging. After I started watching the series, I read some Regency history, and you clarified a lot more.

D
D.A.S. (Takoma Park, US)
Great Lecture

I had never viewed Bridgerton so didn't know what to expect. Dr. Taddeo's presentation was excellent and intriguing. The explanations were so informative that I felt I understood the series and its relationship to the Regency.

C
C.D. (Mount Airy, US)
Bridgerton

I enjoyed this presentation very much. I find this time period very interesting and I love the books and shows written about it. Julie Taddeo was very informative.

L
L.H. (Lafayette, US)
Great presentation!

Loved the snippets of history from the Regency era in Great Britain. Very entertaining with great visuals--especially liked the ones from the Regency era itself.

A
Anonymous (Minneapolis, US)

Guest did not leave comment