I'm not big on TV. But listening recently to an animated four way conversation where everyone discussed the motivations and machinations of characters from "Downtown Abbey", I had a small "e" epiphany. If I weren't paying close attention at the outset, it would have been easy to assume the conversation about those TV characters was instead a discussion about friends of the people having that conversation.
My "aha" came as I recognized how I've enjoyed similar conversations about characters from novels that have transported me. And since I've often stated that a novel succeeds to some degree if characters seem alive enough to maintain a conversation, it logically follows that a TV show that does the same thing has also succeeded.
Not terribly profound but it could be helpful at home. My wife is a big "Downtown Abbey" fan.
About Me
- Pat Barton
- My most recent single release - "My True North" - is now available on Bandcamp. Open my profile and click on "audio clip".
You've given me yet another reason to like your wife. Conversation is everything in Downton Abbey. There is little action except for the occasional fatal roadside accident or death in childbirth. But tell me, Pat, what would you do with a footman, a butler and a valet? You'd probably set them free, leaving the poor blokes to wander the English countryside with no jobs. Then what would become of poor Mr. Barrow?
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