Set in the aftermath of World War I, Peaky Blinders is an inversion of sorts of the traditional Marxist narrative, with the show’s main character—Thomas Shelby—largely shedding his communist ideals after returning home to Birmingham, England from the war, instead setting out to legitimize his family business within the confines of the capitalist structure. However, as the show progresses, it becomes apparent that the class hierarchy in England is dependent upon more than just the accrual of wealth, with the circumstances and social standing one is born into either aiding or impeding their future progression through the ranks of society. Thomas Shelby’s relationship with the growing movement for armed revolution in Birmingham proves increasingly complicated throughout the course of the show’s fourth season, with the viewer left somewhat unsure as to whether Shelby has infiltrated the movement merely as a government agent, or whether he genuinely subscribes to the ideals espoused by the revolutionaries. The theme of marginalization is also present throughout the series, specifically in regards to a Romani community and a Jewish gang.
In the fourth episode of the fourth season of Peaky Blinders, factory manager Niall Devlin raises the possibility that he and Thomas Shelby will be “put up against a wall and shot” if the communists come to power in England, having been deemed traitors to their class for their acceptance and perpetuation of capitalism. Tellingly, Tommy Shelby replies, “I am not a traitor to my class; I am just an extreme example of what a working man can achieve.” Still, when once again immersed in the surroundings of working class Birmingham, Shelby finds himself unable to wholly ignore the fact that the existing political and economic order works to systemically prevent the advancement of people from his background. However, presumably due to the carnage he witnessed while fighting in France, Thomas Shelby prioritizes pragmatism above idealism—he wants to be on the winning side of the coming conflict, regardless of who the winner is. Such an attitude toward social upheaval also makes an interesting statement about the nature of privilege. Consciously or not, Peaky Blinders seems to argue that lofty ideals are a luxury reserved for the upper echelons of society, while the lower classes are constrained by design to fulfilling immediate, physical needs, with little time to devote to existential concerns, and with far more to lose from a failed idealistic endeavor.
Image Source: BBC/CARYN MANDABACH/ROBERT VIGLASKY