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In a recent Zoplo poll, 41% of respondents voted that given the chance they would choose to be royalty 500 years ago, instead of being the average person today.
In today’s ‘postmodern’ society, we enjoy goods and luxuries that the nobility of 500 years ago could only have dreamed of - antibiotics, instant messaging, travel. So does this statistic indicate a desire for the grandeur and exclusivity of royal life? Or for relief from the overstimulation of modern society in favour of a simpler time?
As a culture, we have always been fascinated by the lives of royals. We want to know them, understand them, and turn their lives into a spectacle for our entertainment. This is best seen in the various depictions on stage and screen of figures such as Henry the 8th and his wives, Marie Antoinette, and the Romanovs, notably all of these stories are stained with tragedy. We know these stories back to front, specifically how they end, so why are 41% still so drawn to the prospect of royal life?
The past is so appealing because of its simplicity, something that we are severely lacking in a time of instant access to anything and the constant bombardment of messaging. In a time where everything is accessible, it erodes value.
It seems perfectly natural that the thrill seekers among us would rather escape the overwhelming confusion of today’s society for a life of hedonism and absolute control.
Even those of us who would have answered the latter must concede that we romanticise the past; we are drawn to historical sites, architecture, and discourse (…let them eat cake…), and this is representative of our need to abandon a never-ending cycle of trends for something more stable and fulfilling.
Perhaps this subconscious desire to rid ourselves of the complexities of modern life has begun to manifest in a denouncement of ‘fads’ and a call to return to traditionalism. It’s no coincidence that in recent years we have seen a resurgence in period dramas, such as Bridgerton, and a return to traditional values as seen in the ‘trad wife’ movement.
As individuals, we cling to whatever is stable in this ever-evolving modern world. In this way it makes absolute sense that 41% of us would prefer to live a structured and privileged life 500 years in the past. Me personally? I wouldn’t survive a day without a Pret coffee.
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