Satisfying Social Drama

It’s no secret…the year 2012 for films I saw and books I read were unmemorable. For more on my book reviews go to Goodreads. However I did find stories that were intelligent on a medium that I have made a point to veer from… until now and that is PBS and cable television. The writing and the casting of Downton Abbey http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/downtonabbey/ is sharply etched.  It’s gorgeously shot with beautiful art-direction and the fascination doesn’t stop there— its writing and acting is brilliant. 

Certain tender scenes play in my head long after I turn off the set.  Last Sunday in tears I watched another royal wedding.  And I love weddings.  But the character I adore most is the brazen matriarch Maggie Smith who plays Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham.  She is multifaceted and flawed— the strongest and most outspoken of the bunch.  Lady Violet advise is far from politically current by today's standards and she is a bit rough around the edges.  She says it like it is and doesn't let her age or gender prevent her from getting things done. But the best part about her is her wit and impeccable delivery of dialogue. It’s so good, I watch pen in hand thinking to myself— I wish I would have written and said that! 

Naturally you would have had to have seen the show to understand its context. But for a lesson in dialogue, here are some of her finest quotes. 

1. “No Englishman would dream of dying in someone else's house . . . especially somebody they didn't even know."

2. "One way or another, everyone goes down the aisle with half the story hidden."

3. Cora Crawley: "Are we to be friends then?"

Lady Violet: "We are allies, which can be a good deal more effective."

4. "Well, give him a date for when Mary's out of mourning. No one wants to kiss a girl in black."

5. Mrs. Crawley: "I'll take that as a compliment."

Lady Violet: "Oh, I must have said it wrong."

6. "Your quarrel is with my daughter, Rosamund, and not with me. So put that in your pipe and smoke it."

7. "I'm a woman, Mary. I can be as contrary as I choose."

8. Cora Crawley: "I hate to go behind Robert's back."

Lady Violet: "That is a scruple no successful wife can afford."

9. "Don't be defeatist, dear. It's very middle class."

10. “Oh really! It's like living in a second-rate hotel, where the guests keep arriving and no one seems to leave."

Have you watched the show? What character do you like most?