If you have never seen Downton Abbey stop what you are doing, lock yourself in your room for a week straight and watch all 56 hours, AKA 6 seasons, and then come back and read this article. You won’t be sorry.
ATTENTION: Slight spoilers Ahead.
1.Saying how you feel is very important.
If you didn’t yell, “TELL HIM YOU LOVE HIM!” at least once an episode, did you really watch Downton Abbey? Whether it was Mary and Matthew, Sybil and Tom, or Anna and Mr Bates, the love interests were never ending, but we loved every drama filled minute of it. The thing to remember about this era (1912-1925) was it wasn’t socially acceptable for women to make such proclamations. So practice your present day rights to state how you feel regardless of race, class, or gender.
2.Kindness is everything, and those being unkind often find dislike in themselves.
A novel could be written on the complex character that is Thomas Barrow. We see him bullied for being gay, to becoming the bully, probably to fill his self loath. But from his darkness, we see him shine as a war medic, and most notably, we see incredible kindness when it comes to the Crawley grandchildren. Additional lesson to be learned: everyone has baggage, so we must be mindful of that and be kind to all.
3.Education will bring you places.
Sybil Crawley, the most modern of the Crawley’s, knew the importance of education. With her, we see her become part of the women’s suffrage movement, go to school and become a nurse all of which led her to find her one true love, he of which happened to be a low class chauffer. With her knowledge and self confidence, she had the courage to go against her family’s wishes to find her own happiness with him.
4.We must always adapt for the future.
A main theme of the entire show is “adaption.” We see each character has a hard time at first, whether it was letting go of a servant one-by-one, installing electricity, or purchasing the newest gramophone. But by the end it is clear that the only way is forward, whether we like it or not. So we all must actively look forward to the future while remembering the past.
5.Never leave on bad terms.
Back then there was no fast means of communication or transportation, so they knew that any meeting may be the last. And each time a character went away for good, I admired that a resolution was always made before the departure.