Netflix's Bridgerton has sparked an online conversation about consent after some viewers complained about an intimate scene in the hit new period drama. Warning, spoilers ahead for season one episode six.
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In the show, Daphne happily weds Simon while accepting his confession that he "can't give her children". After a few happy days of marriage, she then discovers that Simon can physically have children, he only chooses not to have them, and tests her theory in a controversial sex scene.
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Simon discovers that she tricked him while knowing he didn't want children, and Daphne is heartbroken that he deceived her into thinking he couldn't have children.
What did you think of the scene?
Viewers took to Twitter to share their opinion, with one person writing: "Entrapping someone into pregnancy is a violation of body autonomy & consent," while another added: "So, has anyone mentioned Daphne, in @charlotteslark's words, playing fast and loose with consent? I remember that really bothering me when I read the book when I was about 19 years old... and as I recall in the book it was even worse."
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A third person added: "I would love to enjoy this show without feeling icky about this scene!! And for the most part I did love it. But to defend this scene — either arguing it's 'historically accurate' or that it's in fact consensual — is super weird to me."
Have you been enjoying the new show?
Speaking about her character's risqué scenes, actress Phoebe Dynevor told Grazia: "I've done sex scenes before that I can't believe I did: it was only five or six years ago, but it would not be allowed now.
"I love her [Daphne's] coming-of-age story and her sexual awakening. I love seeing the female gaze and watching her figure it out for herself. She's a late bloomer, but it's not like she can Google it."
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