The Women of Downton Abbey: Upstairs
**Spoilers ahead**
Set in the early 20th Century, Downton Abbey is well situated to tackle a variety of gender themes. It is early enough that women’s rights were largely absent, still a vigorous source for dramatic conflict, yet it is late enough that the debate is active and open. In this way it can make these issues front and center through the show’s narrative. Almost every recurring female character is burdened in one way or another by the gender constraints of the time. It shares some similarities with the BBC/HBO co-production Rome in the way that series displayed the soft power of women in a society that on the surface was dominated entirely by men.
