En Downton Abbey el servicio perdía a los chicos que amaban y en cambio les tocaba quedarse con Thomas. Más allá de la mera casualidad o la conveniencia del guion, considero que desde el sistema del chivo expiatorio, expuesto por René Girard, se pudiera entender esta situación: el ego colectivo del piso de abajo sabotea su propia felicidad con los chicos y fabrica un chivo expiatorio para no mirar su culpa interna. El personaje donde se ve esto con más claridad es la Sra. Patmore, ella encarna el arquetipo de la madre protectora (y destructora), pero su amor está atrapado en la trampa del «amor especial». Ella ama intensamente, pero con una necesidad desesperada de posesión y control, proyectando en los jóvenes sus propios miedos al abandono y a la crueldad del mundo. Por ello, no puede evitar que: William Mason, muera en la guerra tras ser empujado a enlistarse (en parte por la presión social que la Sra. Patmore compartía);  Archie (su sobrino), sea fusilado por cobardía en el frente, dejándola con una culpa devastadora y una profunda vergüenza social; Alfred Nugent, se va a Londres a cumplir su sueño de ser chef, dejándola sola en la cocina.

El ego de la Sra. Patmore cree que el amor siempre exige pérdida y dolor. Al perder a los seres que idolatra, su mente refuerza la creencia de que «el mundo es un lugar cruel que me quita lo que amo». Pero para no volverse loca con la culpa interna por estas pérdidas, necesita un lugar externo donde volcar su rabia. Aquí es donde entra Thomas. Mientras «los chicos buenos» mueren o se van, Thomas sobrevive a todo: a la guerra (autolesionándose), a la gripe española, a una infección (provocada por la terapia de conversión), a los despidos y al rechazo social y comunitario.

Si Thomas se va, sin antes ser sacrificado (tema del que hablare en otra entrega), la Sra. Patmore (y Carson, Anna, Bates, Huhges…) se quedarían a solas con sus propios demonios, culpas, errores, miedos. Así que Thomas es útil para ellos. Es el pararrayos de Downton. Mientras Thomas esté ahí siendo «el chico malo», ellos pueden justificar su amargura: «No soy infeliz por mi miedo (al sexo, la pobreza, la perdida de la reputación, la violencia…), soy infeliz porque Thomas está conspirando en los pasillos».

Thomas no tiene que hacer nada para recibir odio, el peligro de Thomas hacia ellos es imaginario. Por ejemplo, en la temporada 6, cuando Thomas intenta enseñarle a leer en secreto a Andy (quien es analfabeto), la Sra. Patmore interviene con sospecha absoluta, asumiendo que Thomas tiene intenciones de depredación sexual. Alguien que no reconoce sus sombras proyecta en otros sus propios miedos. El sistema social adoctrina tanto a la Sra. Patmore para ver la homosexualidad como una perversión peligrosa, que su mente prefiere inventar un monstruo antes que ver un acto de genuina bondad. Su miedo a la sexualidad, exacerbado en otra forma de analfabetismo, lo proyecto en odio hacia Thomas. La tragedia es que rompió un puente de conexión humana que Thomas estaba intentando construir desde su vulnerabilidad.

In Downton Abbey, the servants lost the boys they loved and instead had to keep Thomas. Beyond mere coincidence or script convenience, I believe this situation can be understood through the lens of the scapegoat, as described by René Girard: the collective ego of those serving downstairs sabotages their own happiness with the boys and creates a scapegoat to avoid confronting their inner guilt. The character who best illustrates this is Mrs. Patmore. She embodies the archetype of the protective (and destructive) mother, but her love is caught in the trap of "special love." She loves intensely, but with a desperate need for possession and control, projecting her own fears of abandonment and the cruelty of the world onto the young men. Therefore, she is unable to prevent William Mason from dying in the war after being pressured into enlisting (partly due to the social pressure Mrs. Patmore also experienced). Archie (her nephew) dies on the front lines out of cowardice, leaving her with devastating guilt and profound social shame; Alfred Nugent leaves for London to pursue his dream of becoming a chef, leaving her alone in the kitchen.

Mrs. Patmore's ego leads her to believe that love always demands loss and pain. Losing the people she idolizes reinforces her conviction that "the world is a cruel place that takes away what I love." But to avoid going mad with the guilt she feels over these losses, she needs an outlet for her rage. This is where Thomas comes in. While "the good ones" die or leave, Thomas survives everything: the war (through self-harm), the Spanish flu, an infection (caused by conversion therapy), the loss of his job, and social and community rejection.

If Thomas leaves, without first being sacrificed (a topic I'll address in another installment), Mrs. Patmore (and Carson, Anna, Bates, Hughes…) would be left alone with their own demons, guilt, mistakes, and fears. That's why Thomas is useful to them. He's the target of criticism at Downton. As long as Thomas is there, being "the bad boy," they can justify their resentment: "I'm not unhappy because of my fears (of sex, poverty, loss of reputation, violence…), I'm unhappy because Thomas is plotting something in the corridors." Thomas doesn't have to do anything to provoke hatred; the danger he represents to them is imaginary. For example, in the sixth season, when Thomas tries to secretly teach Andy (who is illiterate) to read, Mrs. Patmore intervenes with absolute suspicion, assuming Thomas has predatory intentions. Those who don't recognize their own flaws project their fears onto others. The social system indoctrinates Mrs. Patmore to see homosexuality as a dangerous perversion, to the point that she prefers to invent a monster rather than witness an act of true kindness. Her fear of sexuality, exacerbated by another form of illiteracy, is projected onto Thomas as hatred. The tragedy lies in the fact that she severed a bridge of human connection that Thomas was trying to build from his vulnerability.

Chunk 33/52: S5E3 + S5E4 up until 16:58 (when Isobel says: "Surely, Prince Kuragin has reminded you what one kind word can do.")

What is Thomas up to?

calls the number of an add for "Choose your own path" ("conversion therapy")

pretends his father is ill to get time off for the "therapy" (Baxter knows his family and says she's sorry to hear his father was ill)

says his father was never kind to him

(Cora misses running everything with Barrow during the war, being busy, being useful)

returns from his trip, pretending to have seen his father

helps himself to a spoon (while others are suspicious, Baxter is "sure it's nothing")

is caught in distress in the bathroom with his "medical kit" by Baxter

Drinks, drinks, drinks

S5E3

1:29 Mary's breakfast: coffee

3:03 family breakfast: tea

3:58 Mr. Carson: tea

He sure has experience playing a gay man with the initials T.B. who starts as a fucking asshole but hides how much he feels and loves and cares and even when he's nice he's still a fucking bitch

I start