Analysis of the West Wing
... This infatuation perhaps is best illustrated by the popularity of the television drama West Wing, currently in its fifth season. ... These many symbolic presidential roles are clearly portrayed in Sorkin’s West Wing. ... By incorporating this example of the complex nature of the relationship of Presidential symbolic roles in the West Wing, its creators add credibility to the show and develop the audience’s sense that the show could be real. ... This principle is illustrated on a very basic level in the West Wing in an episode during the first season that deals with the death penalty. ... However, Sorkin makes the show even more appealing to the American public by making President Bartlett not only a realistic President, but also an appealing President who might in fact be the very type of President Americans would one day like to see in the real West Wing. ... The West Wing’s careful attention to details such as the physical setting of the White House, and the use of Washington DC landmarks as the setting for certain scenes accentuates the shows realism and gives the show a symbolic quality. ... The West Wing follows in a long tradition of the entertainment industries’ (mostly films) portrayal of the American presidency. However, the West Wing’s popularity, and ability at times to deal with complex political issues while maintaining viewer excitement and interest are unprecedented. ... The West Wing’s dramatic and yet realistic portrayal of the American presidency has allowed the American public to go beyond even the unprecedented comprehensive coverage of the real American President provided by twenty four hour cable news channels. Though fictional, the West Wing has satisfied and further stimulated the American public’s infatuation with the American presidency, making the American Presidency more accessible and enshrined in American pop culture then ever before. Aaron Sorkin’s creation has been so incredibly popular and has left such a tremendous legacy in the entertainment industry, that one is left to wonder what sort of permanent effect if any the West Wing will have on the actual American presidency.