With the backlash that has been created by the release of the recent interview that aired on CBS, one can learn and reflect about how the British society has a unique and strangely strong connection to their royal family. It is this strange connection that outsiders find hard to fathom.
The institution is intertwined with the social practices of the nation. Society as a whole feels an obligation to protect and defend the institutions. Whenever there is the smallest of criticism of the royal family, whatever the criticism, there will always be a group of people ready to support and defend them.
The interview started with Oprah asking about the time surrounding the wedding. Oprah asked weather Meghan knew about how big marrying into the royal family was. According to Meghan Markle, she didn't do any research into what marrying into the royal family would be like. Oprah seemed shocked by this statement. This could be seen as odd for some people, but it could also be seen as one of the reasons that she might not have been prepared for the life and the royal duties that would entail. When recollecting about the first time she met the Queen and a conversation about cutseying, Meghan also expressed shock about how she is treated within the family, 'I thought genuinely that’s what happens outside, that was part of the fanfare. I didn’t think that’s what happens inside. I go, but it’s your grandmother. He goes, It’s the Queen!
After talking about the royal wedding, Oprah went on to discuss the negative criticism that Meghan has received from the press. They first talk about one of the biggest stories, which was the story that stated that Meghan had made Kate Middleton cry over a discussion about 'flower girl dresses'. The story reported that Meghan Markle had made Kate Middleton cry during the lead up to the wedding. Meghan Marlke addressed this and said, 'The reverse happened...she was upset about something, but she owned it, and she apologised...she brought me flowers.' According to the Daily Mail, Kate Middleton is mortified by the developments of the story.
'The reverse happened...she was upset about something, but she owned it, and she apologised...she brought me flowers.'
After talking about the story, Oprah goes on to discuss the different in the media coverage between Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle. BuzzFeed first made a complication of article titles that had a different depiction of very similar events. The article titles were also talked about on the James O'Brien shown on LBC. This is criticism that nobody could say was deserved with a straight face. One example is that of Kate Middleton being praised for holding her baby bump, but the Daily Mail writing an article asking experts what is wrong with Meghan Markle's constant cradling of her baby bump. The headline of an article praising Kate Middleton's flower choices for her wedding was, 'Why you can always say it with flowers'. A article surrounding a similar occasion, Meghan Markle's wedding, had the headline, 'Royal wedding: How Meghan Markle's flowers may have put Princess Charlotte's life at risk'.
Royal wedding: How Meghan Markle's flowers may have put Princess Charlotte's life at risk'
They then go on to talk about what it was to be a mixed race individual marrying into the royal family. Meghan Markle responded that the Royal Family made her think about it. Then comes one of the most dramatic parts of the interview. Oprah asks, 'Were you silent? Or were you silenced?'.
She said the latter.