Dear Gentle Reader,

What do we gain from the exercise of learning to critique what we love? What does our choice for escape reveal about the world we've left behind?

Those are the questions at the heart of "The Fantasy and Reality of Bridgerton," a course that critically explores the hit Netflix series based on romance novels by Julia Quinn.

Themed tea selections are part of the spread for a class session discussing global tea culture and trade.

Instructors Ida Chavoshan and Erin Morrison developed the class together after connecting over their appreciation for the drama, created by Shonda Rhimes's Shondaland Productions. Like many viewers beckoned by the show's extravagant, gossipy, and steamily romantic alternate universe as an escape from the grim and isolating COVID-19 pandemic, the two Liberal Studies professors were struck by the pairing of exquisite Regency England period detail with boldly counterfactual choices, such as multiracial casting and a classical-ish soundtrack of 21st-century pop songs arranged for the Vitamin String Quartet. "The representation makes it really exciting," Morrison says. "It raises this question about what would've happened if there really was this kind of racial integration that early on."

They had their personal criticisms-Chavoshan wishes that the Indian character Kate Sharma got an origin story episode set in her own country, for example-but saw a lot to explore in questions about why this era (roughly 1795 to 1837) in English high society, so often glorified in literature and film, seemed so ripe for reimagining.

The class takes a trip to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden to explore the history of gardening to show off wealth.

The syllabus they developed is organized thematically, with the class tackling each topic-say, fashion or education-first through the lens of how it functions in the realm of escapist romanticism on Bridgerton, and then turning to history and cultural analysis to consider what the show leaves out. "As the course title suggests, we have fantasy days and we have reality days," says Chavoshan.

So when it comes to talking about the show's inescapable focus on sex and romance, for example, one class session is devoted to a discussion of how concepts like consent figure into its plotlines, while the next dives into maternal mortality and STDs among the British aristocracy. "On 'reality day' for sex week I talk about how syphilis was a real problem among the upper classes at the time, but you never see anyone sick with it on the show," Morrison explains. On the syllabus, the tagline for both class sessions is "I burn for you."

By contrast, a tea party in the Liberal Studies lounge-a fantasy complete with delicate pastries, elegant centerpieces, ornate hand fans as party favors, and dance cards printed with each guest's name-provides an opportunity for students to examine the cultural significance of British high tea and the role of Bridgerton's tea scenes in advancing the story. Guest lecturers from among the international Liberal Studies faculty broaden the discussion with presentations on tea culture from their home countries (such as Iran, China, and Russia) and invite students to reflect on their own personal relationships to family food and drink traditions.

The subsequent tea-related reality check comes in the form of a class discussion called "The Rotten Pineapple"-all about the East India Company and the exploitative colonial practices that brought spices, tea, and pineapples to England, enabling opulent forms of hospitality. "When you see the lavish tea settings and ball scenes, where is the money for all of that coming from?" Morrison asks. "The answer is basically always either plantations or the slave trade. That's interesting to think about when you have people of color in the society."

The goal of bringing in reality isn't to "correct" the show's historical inaccuracies, many of which may be deliberate. "At that point it would be a documentary, which neither we nor our students would be drawn to in the same way," Chavoshan explains. But researching the real-world backdrop for the show's flights of fancy can deepen students' exploration of the showrunners' creative choices.

The professors say that a clear highlight of the semester is the "Meet Me at the Orangery" session, a class field trip to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden to explore the history of designing landscapes to portray wealth and leisure. As a followup assignment, students write reimagined Bridgerton scenes inspired by the setting, and then read aloud from their work. The results have included explorations of all types of different relationships, romantic and not, that draw on both the history they've learned and on their own experiences and backgrounds.

"I'm blown away-they all do a beautiful job, and it's interesting to see how they connect what we're discussing in class to their own lives," Chavoshan says. "One of the most rewarding things about teaching this class is seeing students realize how you can bring expertise to a topic from multiple perspectives."