ANTHONY BRIDGERTON ANALYSIS I/DID ANTHONY BRIDGERTON HAVE A DEATH WISH, LEADING TO THE DUEL WITH SIMON BASSET?
HALLO FOLKS,
I’ve promised you Readers.
In an earlier Post about Bridgerton [one of the many I already wrote [1]
I announced to you to write about Anthony Bridgerton’s death wish [2]
because that is a crucial and also spectacular aspect of his emotional state
in Season 1.
I dare say, that to understand his emotional state and character, you must
be aware of the valley of painful depression he went through and the reaction,
or lack of reaction, of the people who were close to him.
SO THERE WE GO
DELVING IN THE VERY SOUL OF ANTHONY BRIDGERTON……
Here we see a young man,, the eldest son of a noble Family, aged 18 years, ”who has it all”
Money, high position, beauty, great prospects, a dear and close friendship
[3], great Family, great parents.
And then Fate strikes.
He sees his father dying for his eyes, stung by a bee….[4]
You can well imagine what kind of trauma that causes….
But there’s no time for mourning, because his mother Violet,
who also watched her husband die, is so grief stricken, that she
couldn’t function, letting all the care of her seven other children and
the household into the hands of her 18 year son Anthony, who, as the eldest son, also
became the Legal Head of the whole family [Legal Head of his brothers and sisters, but not of his mother] [5]
You can imagine the burden, imposed on a 18 year old boy, who led a carefree
life until then.
And his mother doesn’t understands at all.
Although loving him deeply, she is so consumed by her own
grief, that she doesn’t see that her son is also grieving and needs
her maternal love and warmth.
The only thing she sees is his duties, the social survival of the family
in the Regency Era, where, indeed, a slight mistake can lead to social
death or exclusion [6]
That being true, that doesn’t excuse her lack of maternal warmth.
His mother Violet is only focused on Anthony’s mistakes [of course,
he didn’t have any experience in leading an Estate], always comparing
his father with him [unintentionally cruelly pointing out that his father
did it so much better], constantly reminded him on his duties, never showing
him any worth of apreciation, leading to his [wrong] feeling, that
she didn’t love him, especially when she did show tenderness to the other seven children, especially his sister Daphne. [6A]
Feeling not loved by your mother unlike your brothers and sisters is painful
and can lead to a deep trauma.
SIENA ROSSO
But it got even worse.
Anthony met with operasinger Siena Rosso and fell desperately in love. [7]
And I say ”desperately”, because a possible marriage with an operasinger
was a no go in Regency Era, leading to immediate social death
to the whole Bridgerton Family, especially because Anthony was the
Head of the Family [8]
So Violet’s concerns about the love affair of her son Anthony and Siena
Rosso were understandable, in the light of her real fear of the social death [9],
but that was not the point.
The point was her total lack of motherly compassion and warmth [at a certain moment
she knew it was more than an ”infatuation” [10] and her dehumanization
of Siena Rosso, calling her ”a certain soprano” [11], without taking into account the emotional effect on her son.
DOUBLE LIFE
Now watching the death of his father, the burden of leading the Estates and the Family, the daily tasks in Violet’s absence [when she was consumed by her
mourning], as the constant and often cold pressure of Violet on his duties
are enough issues to drive a young man to an emotional breakdown:
But add to that his desperate and deep love for Siena Rosso, condemned by
society and his mother [who also cruelly dehumanizes his great love] [12]
and the emotional burden is nearly unbearable.
And because of that love for Siena, added to their secret meetings [they were not
permitted in public places [13], Anthony was forced to live a ”double life”
A life ”in the light” with his Family and social circle and a life ”in the dark”, with
Siena, as if he were a sort of criminal…….. [14]
Very painful when you are in love, especially when the very person, who
should have supported and protected you, not only utters her objections
[what is understandable given the circumstances], but coldly destroys your
very soul by denying your deep feelings or simply dismisses them as
unimportant [15]
DUEL
It is inevitable, that all those emotional factors leave scars on someone’s soul
and can lead to a deep depression and feelings of frustration.
And being in this state of mind, Anthony challenges his closest friend
Simon to a duel, to defend the honor of his sister Daphne. [16]
See this Great Thing under note 17
At the Eve of the duel Anthony meets Siena, tells her about the duel and
suggest to her to go away together, if he survives the duel [which means
killing his best friend] [18]
When he arrives at the duel, he makes his brother Benedict, who is his
second in the duel, swear, to take care for Siena, should he not survive the duel, a sincere
and impressive proof of his love for her [19]
STATE OF MIND
DEATH WISH?
Of course the reason that Anthony challenged Simon for a duel,
was the honor of his sister Daphne [20]
Now it is a Big Thing already, to duel your closest friend, challenging your closest friend, whose deepest, most intimate sides you have seen, and who has seen yours [21]
BUT THERE IS MORE…..
In the troubled, emotional state Anthony was in, torn as he was between his love and his social duties and obligations, hidden motives
and emotions took their toll….
Because when someone is exposed to unbearable pressure and is emotionally
exhausted by conflicting expectations and desires, there is an urgent need
to be free from that all.
So Anthony’s excited [by adrenaline!] and super emotional mind ran in two directions, depending on
the outcome of the Duel:
Either he survived the duel and he went away with Siena, being ”free from the
very rules that keep us apart” [22]
Or he died in the duel, being free from being torn between his love and the
social pressures being a Viscount [23]
So YES
Considering his traumatic background [watching his father die], combined
with his mother’s immense pressure on his duties, her demonization
of the woman he loves and his painful attempts to combine his emotional
desires with his duties, it is safe to say that he actually had a death wish,
in which the duel thing fit.
He sincerely wanted to fight for Daphne’s honor [however painful to
be obliged to kill his best friend] and thereafter flee with his loved Siena.
But there was the wish to be ”free from the pressure by death” too
And sadly but true it was his mother, who triggered his death wish by her
constant pressure on him, totally unaware of pushing him to
the edge. [24]
Had she, it would doubtless have devastated her.
And from her point of view, she probably thought that she ”helped” him.
But like I said before:
When someone is pushed to the edge, it matters not if the intentions
are good or bad.
The only thing that counts is the destructive outcome…….
And THINK READERS
Due to her unintentional cruelty and lack of motherly compassion, she could have received a message, that her son had been killed in a duel….
EMOTIONAL GAP BETWEEN ANTHONY AND HIS MOTHER VIOLET
The most shocking example of the enormous emotional gap between
Anthony and his mother is the episode of his home coming after the duel
Anthony is still shaken from the effects of the duel [which was ended
by the courageous intervention of Daphne [25] and when he enters the
living room his mother hardly looks at him and begins nagging and chattering
about the lace for Daphne’s wedding dress, not even knowing how
near to death her son had been. [26]
Should she have paid any attention to him instead of meaningless chattering
about a wedding dress ”approved by the Ton” [27], she would have seen
the state of mind he was in.
Now he had to cope with his emotional loneliness, desperate love and emotional neglect
by his mother.
Making selective excuses later [In Season 2 [28], [although revolutionary in Regency Era] [29], when the damage
to the Siena love affair is already done, not repairs the emotional toll
she had laid on her son for her destructive dehumanization. [30]
Especially since Violet never apologized for that…..[31]
SO
YES
ANTHONY, ANTHONY BRIDGERTON HAD A DEATH WISH!
Due to his initial trauma about his father, the burden of his
responsibilities, but mostly because of his mother’s immense
pressure on him and her inhuman behaviour of the woman he loves,
which hurt him deeply [32]
And AGAIN
Violet may have good intentions, protecting the family name, but
also thinking to protect him from the consequences of
the social death, might he have married Siena or openly loved her.
But good or bad intentions, when the outcome is, that someone’s heart is deeply wounded, it matters not.
Pain is pain, especially when your only ”crime” is to love someone deeply [33]
That is the most heartbreaking Part of the Story
ASTRID ESSED
I’LL WRITE MORE ABOUT THE EMOTIONAL STATE OF ANTHONY BRIDGERTON AND THE SELECTIVE ”EXCUSES” OF VIOLET IN
SEASON 2
DID ANTHONY REALLY FORGAVE HIS MOTHER?
WE’LL SEE
THANKS FOR READING
UNTIL NEXT TIME!
NOTES
NOTES 1 AND 2
NOTE 3
NOTE 4
NOTE 5
NOTE 6
NOTES 7 AND 8
NOTE 9
NOTES 10 AND 11
NOTE 12
NOTE 13
NOTE 14
NOTE 15
NOTES 16 AND 17
NOTE 18
NOTE 19
NOTE 20
NOTE 21
NOTE 22
NOTE 23
NOTE 24
NOTE 25
NOTE 26
NOTES 27 T/M 29
NOTE 30
NOTE 31
NOTE 32
NOTE 33
