Class cultural memory and the export of "britishness" in British period dramas
Qun Zhou
Xi'an Fanyi University
DOI: https://doi.org/10.59429/pmcs.v8i2.14545
Keywords: British period dramas; class cultural memory; britishness; cultural export
Abstract
British period dramas usually present the class identity of different characters in front of the audience with various details before the name of the character appears. In many dramas that tell the story of rural life, the arrangement of staircases, dinner bells that announce meals, the uniforms worn by servants, and inherited estates, these elements can quickly let the audience see who has the power in their hands and who is in the position of needing obedience to service. This article uses the well-known film and television works "Downton Abbey", as well as the screen adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice" as an example, to specifically discuss the creative process of this display class. This article will analyze from a variety of angles, including the house pattern that appears in the story, the daily food specifications, the costumes worn by the characters, the etiquette norms followed every day, the consideration of the role in making marriage choices, and the rules of order within different families. The core point of this article is that these film and television works are not in the same way to re-enact the real British historical content. The creative team will specifically single out the part of the class life that is easy to be seen by the audience, convenient to remember, and at the same time, with the fun part of watching, and then bind these contents together with the polished and refined "British" image. This processed image is often bound by restrained personality, stable social order, long cultural tradition, elegant aesthetic taste and smooth social continuity. On the one hand, such images can help overseas audiences quickly identify the characteristics of British culture, and on the other hand, it will also make the real class hierarchy in history seem to be much more elegant and reasonable than the actual situation.
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