House of Cards and philosophy : underwood's republic / edited by J. Edward Hackett.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Hackett, J. Edward, 1979- editor.

Series:

Blackwell philosophy and popculture series.

Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Television programs--Philosophy.

Television programs.

House of cards (Television program : U.S.).

Physical Description:

1 online resource (242 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Chichester, England : Wiley Blackwell, 2016.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Is Democracy overrated? Does power corrupt? Or do corrupt people seek power? Do corporate puppet masters pull politicians' strings? Why does Frank talk to the camera? Can politics deliver on the promise of justice? House of Cards depicts our worst fears about politics today. Love him or loathe him, Frank Underwood has charted an inimitable course through Washington politics. He and his cohorts depict the darkest dealings within the gleaming halls of our most revered political institutions. These 24 original essays examine key philosophical issues behind the critically-acclaimed series-questions of truth, justice, equality, opportunity, and privilege. The amoral machinations of Underwood, the ultimate anti-hero, serve as an ideal backdrop for a discussion of the political theories of philosophers as diverse as Plato, Aristotle, Nietzsche, Machiavelli, Hobbes, and Marx. From political and corporate ethics, race relations, and ruthless paragmatism to mass media collusion and sexual politics, these essays tackle a range of issues important not only to the series but to our understanding of society today.

Contents:

Intro

Series

Title page

Copyright

Introduction: Contemplating a House of Cards

PART I SOCRATES, PLATO, AND FRANK

1 Of Sheep, Shepherds, and a Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

Justice and Power

Underwood's Cynical Use of "His People"

It's Good to Be Bad

Rings of "Power" and Myths

Rings and the "Craft" of Perfect Injustice

Tyranny, Philosophy, and the Search for Meaning in a Cynical World

Can We Really Get Away with Injustice?

Notes

2 Being versus Seeming

"Who the Hell Are You Talking To?"

Frank and the Ring of Gyges

Frank and the Examined Life

Playing the President to Play the President

Real Problems

PART II IMAGINING POSSIBILITIES: AMERICAN IDEALS IN HOUSE OF CARDS

3 Frank Underwood Gives the Ideal Society a Reality Check

The Ideals of The West Wing and the Reality of House of Cards

Frank Underwood throughout History

A New Kind of Ideal Society

When John Rawls Embraces Frank Underwood

4 "What Will We Leave Behind?" Claire Underwood's American Dream

"Burning the Barn to Find Our Penny in the Hay": Adams's American Dream and Ressentiment

Claire Underwood: The Resentful Überfrau

PART III CHARACTERIZING FRANK: ÜBERMENSCH OR THE PRINCE

5 Underwood as Übermensch

"Power Is a Lot Like Real Estate, It's All About Location.… The Closer You Are to the Source, the Higher Your Property Value."

"And Others Are There Who Are Like Eight-day Clocks When Wound Up

They Tick, and Want People to Call Ticking-Virtue."

"You Know What I Like About People? They Stack So Well."

"I Will Make That Hypocrisy Hurt."

"He's Got Power. He's Got a Lot to Lose. And Right Now He is Winning."

"When Has Your Help Ever Helped Me?"

"The Road to Power is Paved with Hypocrisy and Casualties. Never Regret"

"I Will Win and I Will Leave a Legacy.".

Notes

6 Why Underwood Is Frankly Not an Overman

Inside the Beltway: Typology, Not Topography

Master Frank: Doing What Is Necessary

"Why Me?" Peter Russo, Slave Extraordinaire

Will the Real Overman Please Stand Up?

Don't Übermenschen It

The Under/Over on Frank

7 American Machiavelli

"We're in a Very Gray Area. Ethically, Legally. Which I'm Okay With."-Zoe Barnes

"Friends Make the Worst Enemies."-Frank Underwood

"I'm a Good Christian, Remy, Like Your Mother."-Frank Underwood

Majority Whip Jackie Sharp: "Mr. Vice President, What You Are Asking Is Just Shy of Treason."

"Moments Like This Require Someone Who Will Act. To Do the Unpleasant Thing. The Necessary Thing."-Frank Underwood

8 Machiavelli Would Not Be Impressed

Education Reform at All Costs

The Original Machiavelli

Failing to Keep Up Appearances

The Other FU Was Better

Maybe Machiavelli Wasn't Serious

9 Is Frank the Man for the Job? House of Cards and the Problem of Dirty Hands

Avoiding the Problem

The Struggle for Power

Facing a Catastrophe

The Solutions

Frank's Dirty Hands: The Wrong Person in the Right Place?

PART IV CLASSICAL LIBERALISM AND DEMOCRACY

10 Frank the Foole, Upon a House of Cards

Frank the Foole

Hobbes's Critique of the Foole

Is Frank's Behavior Rational?

Frank's Objection and the Hobbesian Response

11 Hobbes and Frank on Why Democracy Is Overrated

The Fault in Our Democratic Stars

Hungry Like a Wolf

Money Changes Everything

The Policy of Untruth

The Advantage of the Stronger

12 "Democracy Is So Overrated"

The Underwoods Visit the Kallipolis

Frank the (Unhappy?) Tyrant

From Hobbes to Hegel: Why Monarchs Rule

Are the Underwoods Marxist Revolutionaries?

Are the Underwoods Unstoppable?

Notes.

13 "Money Gives Power … Well, a Run for Its Money"

Marx's Method of Historical Analysis

A Case Study in Historical Materialism: Frank for VP

AmWorks: Is Frank's Goal a Capitalist Goal?

Capitalist versus Capitalist: AmWorks and Walmart

Worker Victories: Class Warfare and Class Conflict

Liberal Democracy Is Overrated

14 Freedom and Democracy in a House of Fear

The "Property Value" of a Surveillance State

Prison of Cards

"Open" House?

Say Nothing

Nobody Can Hear You … Except Us

PART V INTRAPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS, SEXUALITY, AND RACE IN HOUSE OF CARDS

15 Under the Covers with the Underwoods

A Frank Discussion of Adultery

A New Type of Marriage Vow

Tell Me No Lies

Do No Harm

God, Punzo, and the Case for Special Sex

Rethinking Sex and Commitment

The Underwood's Egalitarian Partnership

Incidental Objections

16 The Spice of White Life

"I Get to Play the Nigger": The Narrative of Freddy Hayes

The Situation of Black Male Life

Racial Capitalism and the Representation of Black Male Life

Racial Realism and Harassing White Folks

17 Broken Friendships and the Pathology of Corporate Personhood in House of Cards

"You Ain't Got to Pretend to Be My Friend"

States and Corporations: What's the Difference?

Tusk and the Punching Bag Walkers

If You Can't Beat 'Em, Join 'Em

Why Rousseau?

PART VI EXISTENTIAL REALITIES: SELF-LOVE AND FREEDOM

18 Praying to One's Self, for One's Self

Leave the Ideology to the Armchair Generals …

Everything Is Permitted

Frank's Virtù

Assessing Autoeroticism

19 Existential Freedom, Self-Interest, and Frank Underwood's Underhandedness

Self-Interest and Morality

Consciousness and Freedom

Essences and Freedom

Freedom and Responsibility

PART VII LET ME BE FRANK WITH YOU: AGENCY, AESTHETICS, AND INTENTION

20 Rooting for the Villain

Resistance to Frank Is Futile

That First Pitch in Greenville

The Whale of Imaginative Resistance

21 Frank Underwood's Intentions

"The Nature of Plans Is That They Do Not Remain Immune to Changing Circumstances"

"Decisions Made on Emotions Aren't Decisions at All"

"Take a Step Back and Look at the Bigger Picture"

22 Francis Underwood's Magical Political Mystery Tour Is Dying to Take You Away

Dying to Take You Away, Take You Today

Useless Things

Exhibit A

Words Are Actions

Full Disclosure

PART VIII VIRTUE AND CHARACTER IN HOUSE OF CARDS

23 Frank Underwood and the Virtue of Friendship

"I Won't Leave One of My Own Bleeding on the Field"

"Friends Make the Worst Enemies"

"Life Is Sweet When You Spend It with Your Friends"

24 Have You No Decency? Who Is Worse, Claire or Frank?

Character Studies and Studies in Character

Richard Plantagenet and Elizabeth Tudor

St. Francis and St. Claire

The Past, the Present Perfect, and the Future Subjunctive

An Indirect Route

Learning from Our Betters

Democracy behind the Eight Ball

We the People

A Guess at a Riddle

President Frank Underwood's White House Staff (Contributors)

Index

EULA.

Notes:

Includes index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9781119092827

1119092825

9781119092834

1119092833

9781119092810

1119092817

OCLC:

932334480