Downton Abbey: Sir Anthony Strallan

I've only recently been watching the BBC produced show Downton Abbey, which takes place in Britain immediately after the first World War. I was struck by the show's treatment of one character in particular, Sir Anthony Strallan. A middle-aged widower, Strallan sustained an injury during the war that left him without the use of his right arm. Before the war, he was seen as an eligible bachelor and one of the matronly characters was actively trying to set him up with her granddaughters. After the war, when he returned with a (presumably) paralyzed arm, the family's attitude toward Sir Strallan has changed dramatically. Not realizing that he is now disabled, the grandmother is embarrassed that she invited him to tea with the granddaughter that had previously been in a relationship with Strallan. Throughout the course of the next few episodes, Strallan becomes engaged to marry one of the granddaughters and the rest of her family adjusts to the relationship with various degrees of acceptance. The story culminates in Strallan abandoning his bride-to-be at the altar, overwhelmed with feelings of guilt that he is causing her to waste her life caring for an old man.

It seems outlandish that the family's attitude toward the man would have changed so dramatically as a direct result of his injury. It is made clear that Strallan is a qualified Lord and therefore socially would make an acceptable husband in the dual-class imperialist system. In the story, Strallan was even involved in high-level diplomatic negotiations before the war, though this prestige has no bearing to the family when compared to his disability. Socially, his disability has instantly made him an unacceptable life partner.

I would like to think that this sort of thing did not happen in modern society, but I am reminded of the injured military veterans who return home only to be eventually rejected by their partners or families. In truth, with the advent of high explosives and the nature of modern warfare, disabilities caused by war are likely far more severe than they were during the first World War. Times are improved inasmuch as there is no official social prohibition against marrying a person with a disability, but the unmentioned stigma certainly still exists.