Bridgerton’s Penelope Featherington: Is Gossip the Enemy, or a Symptom?

Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) is a complex character in Netflix’s Bridgerton. Her secret identity as, Lady Whistledown, the notorious gossip writer, has sparked debate on her morality.

Penelope Featherington: Can We Forgive the “Whistleblower”?

One of the more controversial parts of the Netflix Series Bridgerton has always been whether or not, Penelope Featherington is a redeemable character. And are we allowed to forgive her given the fact that she is the author of the notorious gossip column Lady Whitsledown? Aside from the obvious sin of gossip, the morality of this character has been under fire. Particularly after the events of last season when the column smeared her best friend, Eloise Bridgerton’s (Claudia Jessie) name. While some argue it was done to protect her friend, many fans disagree. This betrayal alienated many fans making Penelope a difficult character to root for. Despite the fact that season 3 is her love story. But based on the first part of season three, the show seems to be pushing a message of forgiveness and understanding.

Beyond the Surface: Gossip as a Mechanism

While the act of gossip is often seen as a negative behavior, particularly for women, Bridgerton offers a deeper perspective. Penelope’s own experience of being ostracized for being the source of gossip highlights a double standard. This notion that Penelope wasn’t a “girl’s girl” solely because her actions advanced her gossip column feels demonstrably misguided. Penelope’s own experience as the target of Lady Whistledown’s gossip underscores the fact that she doesn’t simply write what she desires, but rather amplifies the rampant hearsay that already consumes high society. Eloise, despite championing Penelope’s need for friendship and even attempting to help her ostracized ex-friend, harbored her own hypocrisy. While claiming to be a feminist of the time, she betrayed Penelope by spreading a rumor about her seeking help from Colin Bridgerton. This act mirrored the very gossip tactics Eloise once abhorred.

Regency Gossip: Communication or Cruel Weapon?

The series challenges us to re-examine our understanding of gossip. In a world where women have limited power and agency, could gossip, after all, be a form of communication? A way to navigate a restrictive social landscape? This question is underscored by the fact that even Eloise Bridgerton, a self-proclaimed champion of women’s agency, could fall prey to idle chatter, ultimately leading to the potential ruin of another lady’s reputation. This incident serves to highlight the systematic nature of gossip in Regency society, suggesting that women are constantly pitted against each other. Consequently, gossip, and even acts like ruining reputations, become, unfortunately, tools women are forced to wield within this restrictive system.

Bridgerton, therefore, sheds light on the complexities of gossip in this era. Perhaps, in the context of Regency England, gossip could have simply been a form of communication. Maybe its an inevitable byproduct of women’s limited social interactions. From this perspective, ascribing simple morality to gossip becomes irrelevant. After all, if even a progressive thinker like Eloise Bridgerton can succumb to its allure, then why can’t we extend the same understanding to Lady Whistledown, who wields gossip as a powerful tool?

By the end of season 3 part one, the show seems to be nudging the audience towards understanding and potentially forgiving Penelope. Can we finally forgive Penelope Featherington, and remember that these two are friends and can be again?

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