I really enjoyed this event because when I watched the series I didn’t necessarily pay the closest attention to what was happening. It was more of a show that I put on in the background while I unpacked all of my clothes in my dorm room. One of my takeaways from this talk was how the show portrayed how little women knew about sexuality and sexual intercourse. Women were kept “pure” in every way that they could while men had pretty much free rein over their lives. While everything seemed really blown out of proportion in the show, I feel that it was probably accurate because women today can still feel the effects of the past.
Even though we are moving towards women fully taking back sexuality, there is sometimes still a(n unnecessary) stigma when women are outwardly in touch with their sexuality. Several of my female friends have told me how their parents won’t allow them to go in their male friends’ bedrooms because of the negative message it would send, while the same parents have little to no restrictions on their sons. A bit of a double standard still, but nowhere near as bad as it was for women in the 1800s and I’m very thankful for that.
I really liked how we compared how things are today and if we could still see reminisce of those thoughts in our world today. It made for a very interesting conversation.
I have not watched Bridgerton, nor have I attended the event. But reading your post makes me want to watch! Growing up in China, I could also feel that social stigma makes people shun away from discussions on sexuality, and I agree that our society is making progress, albeit it might be slow. I look forward to watching the film!
When I watched Bridgerton, I also noticed how it emphasized that women had little education on sexuality, which made them vulnerable to being taken advantage of. It really resonated with me how censorship of information can be used to control people and their futures, so I am glad that schools now have sex ed classes.