An Ode to Giant Knickers: Three Things Bridget Jones Has Taught Me
An Ode to Giant Knickers: Three Things Bridget Jones Has Taught Me
By Olivia Ascough
It is a truth universally acknowledged that all adore Bridget Jones. Born in journalist turned-author Helen Fielding’s semi-autobiographical column circa 1995, the calamitous character’s trajectory has soared over the years, evolving from novels to movies and beyond. Chain-smoking and novelty-pyjama-wearing her way through life, Bridget navigated the affections of the 90s answer to Austenian suitors and confronted what it is to be a modern woman. The latest instalment of the saga, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, hit screens this Valentine’s Day, with Bridget dabbling in online dating whilst juggling motherhood and life as a widow. Prompting me to revisit the stories, I found resolutions courtesy of erratic yet endearing Bridget that I thought were worth sharing, rather scribbled away in a diary…
Feeling ‘frazzled’? Fear not!
Frantic and flapping, Bridget is lauded as the blueprint of the ‘frazzled English woman,’ pop culture’s latest throwback hyper-fixation. Yet despite her woes and questionable style choices, Bridget was doing excellently for herself. She boasted an established career, a vivacious and supportive group of friends, and a gorgeous flat in the heart of Borough Market, recently valued at just over half a million pounds! In a society that revels in pitting women against each other, Bridget’s character explores the inner conflict felt by so many. Our successes are clouded by fears of ‘Am I good enough?,’ ‘Am I thin enough?,’ or ‘Oh, she’s doing so much better than me,’ meaning it is high time to banish self-doubt and find joy in the shortcomings of life. Even Fielding felt at a loss when Bridget Jones’s Diary soared in paperback sales charts back in the 90s. ‘I look at those lists, and I just think they were compiled by my mum to keep me happy’ (talking to Vogue, 1998). Give yourself the credit you deserve, as to quote Mark Darcy, you are perfect, ‘Just as you are.’
Embrace singletonhood
Are Bridget’s relationships merely a thing of fantasy? Nowadays, it seems frankly unimaginable to be doted on by one, let alone multiple, eligible bachelors at a given time. So where have all the Colin Firths and Patrick Dempseys gone, or were they ever there to begin with? According to the census, 18.3% of women aged 30-34 were unmarried in 1991, while in 2021, that figure climbed to 54.2%, fuelling the argument for the fragmentation of traditional values in society. It’s hard to remember when there hasn’t been discourse around the ‘ticking clock’ looming over women to settle down, marry, have children, and conform to any other conventions we may view as ‘normal,’ but Bridget is a harbinger for the rejection of these archaic ideals. Instead of fretting over a fate as a spinster or crazy cat lady, embrace singlehood and grasp the ups and downs of dating by the horns.
Fabulousness has no expiry date
Though a lot of the jibes from the first film would not slide today—HR would certainly be appalled by Daniel Cleaver’s outlandish office behaviour—and rightly so, there is something to be said about the generational pull of Fielding’s creation. ‘I’ve kind of grown up with Bridget,’ my mum confesses, after sharing stories of the trials and tribulations of 90s London—living as a young woman parallel to Bridget’s experiences, and recalling a ski trip my aunt took at the time hilariously similar to that played out in Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason. All women can identify with the complexities and contradictions of her character; regardless of age, this relatability is key to the enduring power and importance of Bridget’s story. These ideas bring grandmothers, mothers, daughters, girlfriends, and the rest together, united under the philosophy of being unapologetically yourself.
Through her sharp social commentary and candid renouncing of ‘alcoholics, workaholics, commitment-phobics, peeping toms, megalomaniacs, emotional fuckwits, and perverts,’ Bridget says what we are all thinking, but are too afraid to admit. Raw, real, and rough around the edges, Fielding’s creation bridges the gap between the ‘bed-rot’ and ‘clean-girl’ dichotomies of women that bombard the media today. Bridget’s unfaltering optimism and lust for life make her the giant-knicker wearing heroine we crave in the modern day, her story providing countless life lessons.
