House of Cards and Discourse

House of Cards

From watching the first episode of House of Cards, there were many unique elements of the show, but the one that stood out was the quality of discourse and careful intent that some of the main characters possess.  Frank Underwood and his wife, Claire Underwood, both particularly exhibit a fashion of speaking that communicates intent in a cutthroat fashion.  The effects of their discourse is clearly evident on the effect it has on characters and the relationships that exist.

Beginning with Frank Underwood, his ability to control conversations, speak with intent, and make every word carry meaning is noteworthy.  When he speaks to the audience of the show, he does so in a manner that makes it seem as if he is completely sure of the events that will occur later on in the show.  One key example, is right before Linda Vasquez walks into his office, he speaks to the audience and mentions that she will bring up David Blythe, and as soon as she walked through the door, she immediately brought up the aforementioned topic.  In reference to the lack of wasted moments and words, Frank’s meeting with Zoe is also noteworthy.  When Frank asks Zoe to have an impromptu meeting with him, he begins talking about the main focus of the recent presidential campaign, which was American education.  After Frank handed over Blythe’s education reform bill to Zoe, Zoe begins to bring up the grey-area on legality that they are teetering on.  Frank cuts her off and references the painting that they are sitting in front of.  The painting depicts two people, sitting in a slim boat.  Frank states that he is fond of the painting, and then tells Zoe that they are now in the same boat, and that Zoe should be careful not to tip it, because he would only be able to save one of them from drowning, hence legal backlash.  Frank’s ability to fully examine a situation and choose the correct words to convey his thoughts is somewhat unnatural when viewed through a real-world lens, but also plausible considering that his political skills may have substantially sharpened his innate speaking skills.

Claire Underwood, shares many qualities with her husband, but also has some slight differences.  First, her ability to speak with purpose and intent is impeccable.  During one shot, she is seen speaking with one of her employees.  In an extremely direct and concise manner, she communicates that they need to cut staff salary in half by laying off many employees.  Claire recognizes the ramifications of her decision, but also states that she has planned all of this, which is also a trait that she shares with her husband; they both have the ability to carefully plan events and predict their outcomes.  In a smiliarly cutthroat manner, near the beginning of the show, Claire confronts her husband when she realizes that he is not being upfront with her about how business is going at Frank’s job.  She makes it clear that they work together as a team, and soon after, Claire and her husband begin to plan an elaborate plot in order to shift future events in their favor.  Claire’s cutthroat and direct method of leadership is effective and adds an additional dynamic to her character.  

The use of public and private discourse in House of Cards appears to be a key focus, set in place by the original writer.  Considering how heavily clever discourse influences the relationship between Frank and Zoe, future episodes may continue on the same trend.  Additionally, Claire’s ability to be a cutthroat leader may propel her through different situations in the future, as well.  The husband and wife combination of Frank and Carrie, and their combined ability to shift events through speech is certainly an aspect of the show that could stir the plot in future episodes.