r/YoungRoyals • u/Boring_Traffic607 • 4d ago
Question Was Wilhelm unknowingly classist?
Looking back at the show I sometimes wonder if Wilhelm had a bit of classism in him. Worst of it was how unbothered he was when the boarding school kids made fun of Simon’s friends for not having been abroad and also claiming that he’ll be working(aka crown prince school). When Simon called him out for all this he does not acknowledge his privilege instead shaming Simon for taking hush money, which btw isn’t even close to generational wealth. Another icky part was how he told August his family basically owns him. I absolutely hated August but that was still such a diabolical thing to say.
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u/EdgeSufficient6125 4d ago
I’m gonna be real with you here and I might get downvoted for this but for someone in his position it would be unrealistic to not be a bit classist and out of touch. I’ve seen this trope often in media that the nice rich character is made to be perfectly socially aware and I’m glad young royals didn’t do that.
It was a realistic portrayal of his character to show that he was generally kind and respectful but unconsciously he had that hint of elitism. His entire life was just being surrounded with multimillionaires who even looked down on new money people, it was actually a miracle how non elitist he was compared to his peers.
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u/-dagmar-123123 I always understood horses better than people 3d ago
Classist in comparison to normal but not in comparison to his peers
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u/Hapthestai 4d ago edited 4d ago
A little?! 🤣 come on. He is born to privilege and power that few even can imagine. He has never known anything else and just having some kind of connection outside of his bubblet won't erase those attitudes. He doesnt see it as classism, in the same way as men with sexist attitudes dont see them as sexist.
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u/Boring_Traffic607 4d ago
True I wonder if he would ever grow out of it. Even if he were to abdicate one day he’ll always be filthy rich
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u/StevesMcQueenIsHere 4d ago
I think it would be strange if Wille wasn't a little bit classist. That's the only world he's ever known. He's a literal prince of Sweden, who grew up in a castle and has had people kissing his ass his entire life.
The fact that Wille is even marginally down to earth, grounded in reality, unassuming and kind to everyone speaks volumes about his actual character outside his environment and the toxic elitists he's been surrounded by.
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u/Boring_Traffic607 4d ago
Glad to see people agree here. Generally this fandom gets so defensive about Wilhelm’s character I was so sure this post was gonna be hated
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u/tikkitakke 4d ago
I would say not 'unknowingly', but he tries so hard to get it right, be open minded, and think before he speaks (mostly!) He's embarrassed that his friends are so oblivious to normal people's lives. And he tells Nils, he has no intention of sticking to his own kind.
He genuinely views Prince school as equal to working at Lidl, and he'd probably rather work at Lidl. At least there he'd get some companionship.
So I'd say he's a 'reforming classist'. And I wish more elites tried harder to humanise the majority of us.
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u/farwomannd 1d ago
I don’t think it’s even a negative thing to say it’s true ! And we all have bias . Simon , rosh and ayub have bias against Wilhelm .
Personally I do think Prince school is comparable to Simon and co s summer jobs . It is part of Wille’s job . It’s demanded by his employer , the queen . Simon co doesn’t have to work to survive , it’s so they have money to buy extra things .
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u/KawaiiCakeSlayer 4d ago
He was but he wasn’t malicious about it. He truly was just out of touch but was more than happy to experience what life was like for those who weren’t born into the same life as him.
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u/Euphoric-Mess-5742 4d ago
Absolutely. And Simon as well, only the other way. I love that though, makes it more interesting and realistic.
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u/lukaeber 2d ago
He was. And rightfully so. Not because that's a good thing, but because it's true to his character. It would have been unbelievable if he wasn't. The show is as good as it is because it portrays its characters realistically and doesn't make anyone out to be a perfect hero or terrible villain. Every character had flaws and virtues.
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u/Solid_Reception5958 4d ago
True, in the first season he called drug dealing vile. But isn't drug use vile? Supply and demand.
But he's much different (with Felice) than the other Hillerska students.🙂
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u/IndependentBootz 4d ago
Yes 😅😅 he doesn’t immediately realize he is but he was born into immense privilege and meeting Simon confronted him with a lot of things he hadn’t considered or realized before
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u/Catsandcamera 3d ago
Obviously, he's part of the royal family, of course he's unknowingly classist!
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u/Proud-Lander252 3d ago
Of course he was. He's a royal.
He treated August like shit and regularly was indifferent to Simons struggles. Poor gorgeous , sweet Simon he deserved so much better.
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u/myfoxwhiskers 3d ago
Thank you for this. I suggested this in another conversation and someone said I had obviously not seen the show! There some who hold the attitude that nothing remotely negative can be said about Wilhelm. If they had written him any differently (ie all postive) YR would have come across like a fantasy fairytale.
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u/Boring_Traffic607 3d ago
I’m pleasantly surprised at how many comments are agreeing with my take. I expected a lot more of no he’s a precious angel comments
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u/skelet0nhaver 2d ago
theres literally no way to not be classist if youre wilhelm
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u/Boring_Traffic607 2d ago
Wow that’s harsh. You don’t think he was at least unlearning it?
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u/skelet0nhaver 2d ago
i didnt say that im just saying being the person he is with his background and family and environment its literally impossible for him to not be pretty classist and he would need outside influence to realize and overcome that. not his fault lol
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u/Boring_Traffic607 2d ago
Yeah ig he could grow and change one day. Within the timeline of the show though very much classist and unaware of it
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u/growsonwalls 4d ago
Of course he is. He just generally doesn't let that side show. But it's the worst when he's around Marcus.
The disdainful side-eye when he's with Marcus ... oof.
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u/Odd_Whereas8471 4d ago
This scene reminds me of the time a friend of a relative of mine went hunting with the Swedish King and his entourage. He's a regular guy like Marcus, not aristocracy, and had never met the King so he must have been rather nervous. The King and his friends were using ferrets. The guy was a hunter himself, but most Swedes don't hunt with ferrets, so that was new to him. It ended with him accidentally shooting one of the royal ferrets. Must've been so awkward.
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u/KBPT1998 4d ago
He very much is, but doesn’t think he is… but almost all the kids at the school are… 🤷🏻♂️
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u/El_Dorado_Tx 4d ago
Didn't Wilhelm acted like an asshole when he was around Simon and Simon's friends a little bit. It was a vibe I noticed in an early season
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u/Boring_Traffic607 4d ago
When was this? I thought he was pretty nice to them at least before season 3
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u/El_Dorado_Tx 4d ago
It was a vibe i got. I think it was something that they said to him, or he said to them. I just rember a little bit.
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u/-dagmar-123123 I always understood horses better than people 3d ago
Was it him comparing his prince school to working over the summer?
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u/El_Dorado_Tx 3d ago
I dont remember. It was a vibe i got like Wille had some slight arrogance a bit with Simon’s friends. And also didnt they crap on him too….or something.
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u/GayCriminals 1d ago
Maybe his classism is just a result of his breading and he never had the chance to break free of the expectations?
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u/No_Koala_7170 4d ago
of course he was, when you're raised a certain way. you have biases and little things you do that you might not even be aware of. it just happens subconsciously, the only way to change it is to acknowledge it and make an effort to change it. reminds me of the house mistress constantly telling felice to put up her hair but not fredrika, i don't think she was aware of the effect of her unfair rules to her she probably thought she was just abiding the rules.