{"id":30495,"date":"2016-06-23T09:10:54","date_gmt":"2016-06-23T13:10:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/liblog\/?p=30495"},"modified":"2016-06-23T09:18:23","modified_gmt":"2016-06-23T13:18:23","slug":"dealt-a-similar-hand-an-analysis-between-macbeth-and-house-of-cards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/liblog\/2016\/06\/dealt-a-similar-hand-an-analysis-between-macbeth-and-house-of-cards\/","title":{"rendered":"Dealt a Similar Hand: An Analysis Between Macbeth and House of Cards"},"content":{"rendered":"

By:\u00a0 Sydney Vollmer, ARB Intern<\/em><\/p>\n

With our political choices today, we wish we could pretend that what\u2019s going on is some twisted, comedic version of House of Cards<\/em>. \u00a0Unfortunately for all of us, it\u2019s completely real. \u00a0There\u2019s no use in dwelling on it, so let\u2019s just pretend it doesn\u2019t exist by diving back into House of Cards <\/em>while we (patiently) await the fifth season.<\/p>\n

\"Macbeth<\/a><\/p>\n

I\u2019m not a big HOC <\/em>buff, but I saw the majority of episodes each time my dad monopolized the couch after every season\u2019s release. \u00a0The series magnifies brutality and corruption, somehow getting its audience to root for unlikeable characters. \u00a0Truly, there is no one on the show that you can look at as the underdog, or the person who deserves their prize.\u00a0 When you think about it, the show is a complete extension of Shakespeare\u2019s Macbeth<\/em>, if his characters hadn\u2019t died at the end. \u00a0I\u2019m certainly not the first person to make this comparison\u2014not by a long stretch\u2014but I did come up with this realization without external influences. \u00a0That means that the comparisons are so strong that multiple people individually have stood up and said \u201cFrank Underwood is the modern-day American Macbeth.\u201d \u00a0And there is plenty of evidence to back this up; I\u2019ll show you what I mean.<\/p>\n

Francis (Frank) Underwood, a power-hungry congressman looking to steal the presidency, is an obvious Macbeth character. \u00a0Not only is he like Macbeth in motive, but also in practice.\u00a0 As stated above, there are no likable characters in this show, yet the audience often finds itself rooting for Frank in his underhanded scheming. \u00a0Why is this? \u00a0Well, much like in Macbeth<\/em>, it\u2019s because Underwood speaks directly to the audience through asides. \u00a0From the get-go, Underwood lets us know that he doesn\u2019t trust anyone (an obvious shared trait between him and Macbeth). \u00a0By taking asides in which he explains his thoughts to the audience, we feel like we are a part of his schemes\u2014that we are the only ones this powerful and charismatic man trusts, and that makes us feel special. \u00a0It also keeps us interested. We follow Underwood in everything he does. \u00a0We\u2019re at every death, every plot point. \u00a0However, comparing Underwood to Macbeth is so simple, it would hardly be worth a blog if the main character was the only tie between the two works.<\/p>\n

\"Lady<\/a><\/p>\n

Bring in Claire Underwood\u2014a perfect mirror to Lady Macbeth. \u00a0She, too, has a taste for blood and wants to stand above the rest. \u00a0In Shakespeare\u2019s work, Lady Macbeth confronts her husband in a speech before killing King Duncan. \u00a0She insults his manhood and makes him know that she is not proud of him. \u00a0Though Frank Underwood never pulls any punches in the long-run and is never afraid or ashamed of doing whatever it takes to win, Lady Macbeth\u2019s speech does mirror one of Claire Underwood\u2019s in the first episode of the first season. \u00a0Hours after Underwood finds out that he has been passed over for the position of Secretary of State, he comes home to his wife, who is visibly upset that he did not call. \u00a0Calmly, Frank talks to her about the events of the day. \u00a0She replies with frigidness and disappointment\u2014not that he did not win, but that he doesn\u2019t seem to be doing anything about it. \u00a0Her desire for him to control his own fate is apparent. \u00a0She walks away, implying that he is not being the man she married. \u00a0Later on, after a sleepless night Frank confides in Claire, telling her that he has the motivation, but it\u2019s going to take a lot of work from both of them. \u00a0This is the first time we truly see the couple as a united front. \u00a0They both know the objective and they will work tirelessly together to politically advance Frank\u2019s career, which will in turn advance Claire\u2019s standing as well.<\/p>\n

The slight Underwood feels when he is passed over as Secretary of State, a position that has been promised to him, is akin to the moment Macbeth hears that Duncan has chosen his son to be the next king. \u00a0To be soothed, Underwood is offered good seats at the Jefferson Ball, and extra work that is supposed to come off as an \u201catta-boy!\u201d \u00a0Duncan, never having promised Macbeth any position, has no need to make anything up to him. \u00a0However, that doesn\u2019t stop either party from craving power. \u00a0Each character ultimately decides he must obtain ultimate power. \u00a0In Macbeth<\/em>, King Duncan is the first target. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Playing the role of King Duncan is President Walker\u2014a high-powered man who trusts Underwood with his life. \u00a0In Macbeth\u2019s case, he was killing Duncan to fulfill the Weird Sisters\u2019 prophesy. \u00a0Underwood is fulfilling his own prophesy of vengeance. \u00a0Walker does not actually die, but Underwood forces him into a compromising situation, leaving Walker to resign his presidency.<\/p>\n

\"King<\/a><\/p>\n

As Lady Macbeth and her husband staged Duncan\u2019s death to look like it was the fault of the king\u2019s servants, Frank and Claire also put someone else on the chopping block. \u00a0Raymond Tusk is a powerful businessman and close, personal friend of the president. \u00a0In fact, he is such a confidant to him that he was asked to evaluate Underwood for both the position of Secretary of State and later on, the vice presidency. \u00a0Seeing Tusk as a threat, Underwood seeks to put a strain on Tusk\u2019s friendship with the president by tampering with some business deals in China. \u00a0Meanwhile, Claire learns that the president and his wife are having marital troubles. \u00a0She urges the First Lady to seek counseling, which she and the president do. \u00a0Frank manipulates the bad business deal in his favor and comes out clean as a whistle.\u00a0 But this is not before an investigation of the president leaves him unwilling to reveal his personal life\u2019s issues with the world. \u00a0For this reason, both Underwood and Walker offer Tusk a presidential pardon in return for his coming clean to the judge and implicating the other. Ultimately, Tusk sides with the president, but Frank counteracts this by reigniting his own friendship with Walker. \u00a0The president falls for this false alliance and calls off the pardon with Tusk. \u00a0In return, Tusk says on the stand that the president knew about the deal with China. \u00a0Walker resigns shortly thereafter. \u00a0Death by a dagger–through his career rather than his heart.<\/p>\n

\"Journalists<\/a><\/p>\n

And then there are the Weird Sisters. \u00a0They come to House of Cards<\/em> in the beautiful form of, at first, one woman: Zoe Barnes. \u00a0She may not have a bubbling cauldron, and she may be manipulated by Frank. \u00a0However, her position as a spunky reporter with an investigative attitude makes her the eyes and ears of Washington. \u00a0From her position, she can easily update Frank on where he stands in the political sphere. \u00a0Later on, after Underwood has his way with her, she and two other reporters turn on him. \u00a0What ties this group to the Weird Sisters is not only that their group of three is the same size, but rather that they are a powerful entity who are on the outside of the situation. \u00a0Without Zoe\u2019s affair with Underwood, none of the reporters have a stake in his world. \u00a0They would be observers with predictions, just like the Sisters.\u00a0 Unfortunately, they, unlike the Sisters, lose power and are picked off one-by-one.<\/p>\n

Moving on to Macbeth\u2019s next victim: Banquo. \u00a0Poor Banquo was told that his descendants would be king. \u00a0Macbeth saw him as a friend until he saw him as a threat. \u00a0Underwood takes it upon himself to take Congressman Peter Russo under his wing. \u00a0Russo is an alcoholic and divorced man from Pennsylvania who is just trying to make it in the political world\u2014while enjoying a drink and a lady or two. \u00a0With the help of Underwood, he rises in the public eye. \u00a0He gets cleaned up and plays the part of Underwood\u2019s puppet, until Underwood sees him as a threat, that is. \u00a0After Underwood no longer needs Russo, to whom he convinces that he is a friend, he conceives a plan to trap Russo back into a downward spiral to drugs, alcohol, and prostitutes. \u00a0After sabotaging his career, he can\u2019t let Russo go to the public with what he knows. \u00a0So, Underwood traps Russo in his garage with his car running, never to wake up from his drunken stupor. \u00a0Later on, much like Macbeth at the feast, Underwood sees Russo. \u00a0He comes to him in a dream, along with Underwood\u2019s former lover, Zoe, and they seek their revenge on his psyche.<\/p>\n

\"Banquo<\/a><\/p>\n

If you haven\u2019t seen the show, you might think that Underwood is doing this without help. \u00a0That is far from true. \u00a0Whereas Macbeth hires assassins to do his dirty work, Underwood, too, hires some outside help. \u00a0Doug Stamper and Remy Danton could fit the bill as assassins. \u00a0Danton plays the less loyal of the two, ultimately quitting Frank all together after he grows a conscience and finds a way out. \u00a0Stamper is far more allegiant. \u00a0Although he takes a break from Frank to work for the woman running against him, Stamper ultimately returns with more information to share. \u00a0Present at most every dirty juncture in Frank\u2019s career, he shows himself to be truly handy as he aids in killing many people through literal and figurative deaths.<\/p>\n

A final interesting tidbit has to do with the name of the show, rather than the characters or plot. \u00a0The phrase \u201cHouse of Cards\u201d refers to something that is so intricate it could collapse at any second–quite an appropriate name for the show that\u2019s all about schemes and back-door deals. \u00a0But, take the show\u2019s name on a more literal level as well. \u00a0House of Cards<\/em>. \u00a0What\u2019s in a deck of cards but a King (Macbeth\/Frank), a Queen (Lady Macbeth\/Claire), a Joker (Banquo\/Russo), Aces (high or low, the Weird Sisters\/reporters\u2014they can make or break the game), and all the numbers (the pawns that alone mean nothing, but when played strategically, can win). \u00a0We all know that Macbeth did not win in the end. \u00a0It remains to be seen whether or not Frank will. \u00a0All will be revealed in time, but for now the writers are holding their hands close and don\u2019t seem inclined to fold any time soon.<\/p>\n

\"Assassins\"<\/a><\/p>\n

For those interested, I have also been told to look into HOC<\/em>\u2019s similarities to Henry III<\/em>, Othello<\/em>, and Julius Caesar<\/em>. \u00a0Anyone who would like to peruse our Shakespeare holdings (including multiple illustrations like those used in this blog) in this year of his quadricentennial are welcome to give us a call at 513.556.1959, email us at archives@ucmail.uc.edu<\/a>, have a look at us on the web at \u00a0http:\/\/www.libraries.uc.edu\/arb.html<\/a>, check us out on Facebook at https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ArchivesRareBooksLibraryUniversityOfCincinnati\/<\/a> or follow us on Twitter, @ARBLibrary. \u00a0We\u2019re located on the 8th<\/sup> floor of Blegen Library, and our hours are 8-5, Monday through Friday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By:\u00a0 Sydney Vollmer, ARB Intern With our political choices today, we wish we could pretend that what\u2019s going on is some twisted, comedic version of House of Cards. \u00a0Unfortunately for all of us, it\u2019s completely real. \u00a0There\u2019s no use in … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,13],"tags":[67,742,877],"class_list":["post-30495","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-arb","category-uclibraries","tag-rare-books","tag-shakespeare","tag-shakespeare-400"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/liblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30495","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/liblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/liblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/liblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/liblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30495"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/liblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30495\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/liblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30495"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/liblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30495"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/liblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30495"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}