Bonnet Porn - Why Are We Still Interested in Period Dramas?

Period dramas. Why do we watch them? Why, whenever a new period film or TV show hits the screens, do we pile on in to sit back and enjoy a world so foreign, so alien, so restricted? Of course, at such an exhausting and isolating time as this, we gravitate towards a world where the only cause of worry is who will attend the tea party or which silk gown to wear, but there is something more.

Period dramas are not a new craze- a magnetic force has always pulled writers, directors, and actors to stories of the past. But, I believe the reason for this extends beyond escapism and reflects how we choose to view the past.

Everyone is fixated on believing they were born in the wrong decade. At 7 years old, I was obsessed, somewhat questionably, with the idea of experiencing World War II, begging for a gas mask to appear in my stocking at Christmas (it did – my mother is great on eBay). Then it was the 1960s, chopping my hair off to emulate Twiggy, my idol at the age of 9. Through sixth form, discovering my joy of reading and Timothee Chalamet, I settled on the 1800s. Despite being the physical manifestation of the patriarchy suffocating women, I remain transfixed at the idea of wearing a corset. And a bonnet. Mustn’t forget the bonnet. Right now, at age 20, I’m a bit less picky. I’d settle for February 2020.

But evidence suggests that we all have a capacity for the nostalgia of a time that we may have not even lived through. My adoration for the 1800s mainly stems from envy of the concrete rules for social interaction and decorum. Gone would be the trials and tribulations of swimming through hordes of sweaty, desperate twenty-somethings in some god-forsaken nightclub, with the hopes of finding a sensitive, funny and non-threatening romantic partner to bond over post-war feminist poetry with. My father would simply separate the good eggs from the bad, allowing up to three eligible bachelors to bow before me, to then politely ask to occupy a vacancy on my dance card. Maybe I’m lazy, but it just seems a lot easier, doesn’t it?

This nostalgia fuels the industry’s insatiable hunger for period dramas and, more often than not, these dramas are adaptions and remakes of canonical literature, namely the works of Dickens, Austen and the Bronte sisters. These films and television series will always be made as long as our society has an interest in this type of literature. And, let’s be honest, there will never be a university English literature course that won’t mention Pride and Prejudice or Jane Eyre, and rightly so. These works not only exhibit a stylistic revolution in fiction writing but are crucial in constructing our understanding of this period of history from a woman’s perspective. Some argue that re-hashing period adaptations is pointless, screaming ‘Why do we need another ‘Emma’! Seriously!’ in the faces of the Austen-ites, clutching their dog-eared copies of the classic as they march into the cinema for the third time that week. To them I’d say, ‘Have you seen all of the Little Women films? They are all so different and each one brings a new significance to the story, you ignorant pig!’

With each adaptation, old arguments are revised, and new ones are opened. Greta Gerwig’s Little Women brings a contemporary honesty to the story and demonstrates a structural and temporal playfulness that matches the energy of her characters, without comprising the overall effect of the film. This contrasts with David O. Selznick’s original 1933 film which focuses on being a faithful adaptation of the novel. His studio RKO was dedicated to this cause, arguing that only faithful versions would attract audiences – he later made Gone With the Wind, the highest-grossing movie of all time, so he did have a point. But this shows that remaking does not always mean copying but, rather, re-investigation and re-examination.

That being said, with new means of production with the birth of studio streaming sites, like Netflix and HBO, there is a new wave of period dramas coming to our screens. Not from classic literature, but from contemporary fiction and even fan fiction. Released on Christmas day of last year, Netflix’s Bridgerton has now been streamed in over 82 million households. The Hollywood budget, rampant sex appeal, and beautifully diverse casting render the show as the clearest way of expressing how society, right now, wants to view the past – fun and sexy with a string quartet playing Shawn Mendes hits. This shows that period dramas aren’t all fusty and sexless, they can be camp and joyful whilst revolutionising how we view the past and thus how we approach film and television creation in the future.