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Narrating Netflix An Examination of the Narrative Structure of House of Cards and Netflix’s Position Within the Post-Network Era Lina Thierry Pedersen Master’s Thesis October 28 2016 INTERAKTIVE DIGITALE MEDIER INSTITUT FOR KOMMUNIKATION RENDSBURGGADE 14 9000 AALBORG
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Narrating Netflix

An Examination of the Narrative Structure of House of Cards

and Netflix’s Position Within the Post-Network Era

Lina Thierry Pedersen

Master’s Thesis

October 28 2016

I N T E R A K T I V E D I G I T A L E M E D I E R

I N S T I T U T F O R K O M M U N I K AT I O N

R E N D S B U R G G A D E 1 4

9 0 0 0 A A L B O R G

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TableofContents

Introduction 2

MethodologyandThesisStructure 3

Background 6

TheEvolutionoftheAmericanTelevisionSerial 6

It’sNotTV,it’sHBO 7

TheRiseofNetflix 8

Theoreticalbackground 10

Post-NetworkEra 10

ComplexTV 12

Beginnings 15

Characters 16

Comprehension 19

TheUnreliableNarrator 21

TheDramaticAside 24

Analysis 26

WelcometoWashington 26

Let’sbeFrank 32

ThePoweroftheAuthor 38

WhenPushComestoShove 40

Discussion 46

NetflixandBinge 46

PlatformandFormat 48

NetflixandHouseofCardsinthePost-NetworkEra 51

Conclusion 55

WorksCited 57

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Introduction

Throughoutthepastthreedecades,traditionaltelevisionhasundergonesignificantchanges

andlargetelevisionproductionssuchasHBO’sGameofThrones(2011)hasgarneredgreatattention

and success. Many big-profile directors and actors from the film industry has switched to the

televisionindustry,whichhasresultedinanincreaseoflargeproductions,andNetflix’sHouseof

Cards (2013) isagreatexampleof this tendency.DirectorDavidFincher, themanbehindSe7en

(1995),FightClub(1997)andTheSocialNetwork(2010),joinedforceswithactorKevinSpaceyto

create,whatSpaceyhimselfdescribesas“asophisticatedmulti-layerstorywithcomplexcharacters

whowouldrevealthemselvesovertime”(Smith,2013).Sincethelate1980’s,therehasbeenan

increaseinwhatRobertJ.Thompson(1997)terms“qualityTV”(p.35):atermthatcanbelinked

with Jason Mittell’s theory of complex television, with HBO as frontrunner and pioneer with

televisionseriessuchasTheSopranos(1999)andOZ(1997).Now,withtheswitchfrombeingjusta

distributor to producing their own original content, Netflix is one of the pioneers in the

entertainmenttelevisionindustryandischallengingthenormsandconventionsofwhatisknown

astraditionalserialtelevision.

In the early days,watching televisionmeant scheduling the day around various television

broadcasts. Now, as a part of what Amanda Lotz defines as the Post-Network era, there is an

increasing focus on new viewing habits and consumer control, with streaming services such as

Netflixofferingtheiraudiencealargeonlinelibraryofcontent,whichtheaudiencecanaccessat

any time. This project aims to examine Netflix’s role as a producer and how they fit into the

contemporarymedia landscapeand television industry.Withananalysisof theiroriginal series,

House of Cards, this project aims to examine the narrative structure of the series, focusing on

aspectswhere theNetflix produced seriesdistinguishes itself frombroadcast television, i.e. the

distribution and production surrounding the series and how these aspects affect the narrative

structure, relationshipbetweencharacterandnarrator,andaudienceengagement.Thisanalysis

thenfunctionsasafoundationforadiscussionofhowNetflixandHouseofCardsfitswithinthe

descriptionofthePost-Networkera.

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MethodologyandThesisStructure

TheaimofthisprojectistoexamineNetflixandtheirroleasnotonlyadistributorbutalsoa

producerofcontent.Morespecifically,thisprojectwillexaminehowNetflixischangingtherulesof

theindustrythroughacasestudyoftheNetflixoriginalseriesHouseofCards.HouseofCardshas

beenchosenasacasestudy,asthiswasthefirstoriginaldramaseriesNetflixchosetopavetheir

wayintooriginalprogramming.HouseofCardsaddstothedevelopmentinserialfilmic-narration

andformattheindustryhaswitnessedthroughoutthepastdecades,andtherearetwoelements

thatmakesthisseriesespeciallyinteresting:first,thatastreamingserviceventuresintothelandof

original content and second, that Netflix broke with all of the traditions and conventions of

distributionandmadetheentirefirstseasonofHouseofCardsavailableatonce.Theprojectwill

focusonthenewmodeofstorytelling,whichJasonMittell(2015)referstoas“complexTV”(p.3)–

anarrativestructurefeaturedinmanycontemporarytelevisionseries–andhowNetflixfollowsthis

patternwithHouseofCards.InComplexTV:ThePoeticsofContemporaryStorytelling(2015),Mittell

providesanoverviewofnineelements,wherethecontemporarycomplexnarrativedistinguishes

itself from the narrative structure of traditional television: Beginnings, Authorship, Characters,

Comprehension,Evaluation,SerialMelodrama,OrientingParatexts,TransmediaStorytelling,and

Ends.Thisprojectaimstoexaminethreeoftheseelementsinregardstothenarrativestructureof

HouseofCards:1)thestructureofthepilot,“Chapter1”,andhowtheseriescontrolstheaudience’s

expectations, 2) the character development of the series protagonist FrankUnderwood (with a

particularfocusontheuseasides)and3)howtheserieschallengestheviewercomprehensionand

employsdifferentnarrativedevicestokeeptheirattention.

These three elements were chosen as the production ofHouse of Cards differ from the

productionofcabletelevision.NetflixsignedHouseofCardsonfortwoseasonsevenbeforethe

crewhadafinishedpilot(Vankin,2013)–ifthisgavethemanadvantageregardingthenarrative

structure of the series, knowing exactly were the story was going, then how is “Chapter 1”

structuredasapilot,introducingthetone,style,andcharacters?Frankisthemainprotagonistof

HouseofCards,buteveninthis,theageofanti-heroes,Frankseemstotakeittothenextlevel.How

doesHouseofCardsportrayFrankandhischaracter’sgrowth(ifany)throughouttheseries–and

astheseries’narrator,howtrustworthyishereally?Finally,asNetflix’soriginalseriesarenotbound

bythesameregulationsasbroadcasttelevision,howdoesHouseofCardsengageitsviewersand

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keepsthemmotivatedtowatchtheseries?Thesearesomeofthequestions,thisprojectaimsto

answer.

Mittell’sapproachforhisstudyispoetics,whichhebroadlydefinesas“afocusonthespecific

waysthattextsmakemeaning,concernedwithformalaspectsofmediamorethanissuesofcontent

orbroaderculturalforces”(2015,p.5).AswithMittell,theapproachfortheprojectwillbebased

on the historical poetics and cognitive poetics, developed by David Bordwell. Bordwell (2007a)

characterizeshistoricalpoeticsby“thephenomenaitstudies(films’constructionalprinciplesand

effects)andthequestionsitasksaboutthosephenomena-theirconstitution,functions,purposes,

andhistoricalmanifestations“(p.23).AsMittell(2015)mentions,historicalcontextisvitaltothe

study of narrative form, and to understand the workings of complex television, the industrial,

technologicalandreceptionshiftsneedtobefactoredinwhendiscussingthenarrativestructureof

contemporarytelevision(p.5-6).Thismodelfocusespredominantlyontherelationshipbetween

theindustryandtechnology,whileanotherapproach,whichothershavetermedcognitivepoetics,

isaimedatthereceptioncontextsofcinema.Bordwell(2007a)arguesthefollowing:

”…understandingnarrativefilmscanbeseenaslargelyamatterof“cognizing.”Goingbeyond

the informationgiven involvescategorizing;drawingonpriorknowledge;making informal,

provisional inferences; and hypothesizing what is likely to happen next. To be a skilled

spectatoristoknowhowtoexecutethesetacitbutdeterminingacts.”(p.137)

This cognitive approach will help determine how serial television manages viewer’s

knowledgeandhandlesnarrativeinformation,tograinastrongerunderstandingoftheappealof

complextelevision.

Thefocusofthecasestudyhas,asmentionedbefore,beennarroweddowntothreespecific

elements:thepilot,characterdevelopment,andaudiencecomprehension.Becauseoftheuseof

theasideasanarrativetechnique,thisprojectemploysaspecificfocusonFrank’suseofasidesto

establishanunderstandingofhow theasideaffects the structureof thenarrative, the viewer’s

relationshipwithhischaracterandhowFrankisportrayedasanarrator.Onthefoundationofthese

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analyses,theprojectwilldiscusshowHouseofCardsandNetflixasaplatformcorrelateswithand

fitswithin JasonMittell’s theoryof complex televisionandAmandaLotz’definitionof thePost-

Networkera.

The analysis of this project is divided into three parts. Following the historical poetics

approach,thefirsttwopartswillfocusonfirstthenarrativestructureof“Chapter1”,andhowthe

serieseducatestheaudienceontheirstrategies,followedbyadeeperlookintothecharacterof

FrankUnderwood,andhisdevelopmentthroughoutthefourseasonsoftheseries.Thisanalysiswill

paycloseattentiontotheuseofasides,asthisspecificdevicehasacrucialimpactontheviewer’s

relationshipwithFrank.ManfredPfisterisusedtodefineanddeterminethetheatricoriginofthe

asideandcombinedwithVolkerFerenz’definitionoftheunreliablenarrator,thiswillformthebasis

forananalysisoftheimpactthattheasidehasonFrankasanarrator,andifthisaffectsFrank’s

reliabilityasanarrator.Thelastpartoftheanalysiswillfollowtheapproachofcognitivepoeticsand

aims to determine the narrative devices used inHouse of Cards to engage the viewer. On the

foundationofMittell’scomplextelevisionandAmandaLotz’term‘post-networkera’,theanalysis

isthenfollowedbyadiscussiononhowNetflixfitsintothecontemporarymedialandscapeandhow

theychangetherulesforproductionanddesignofthetelevisionserial.Additionally,thisproject

willdiscussconceptssuchasbinge-watching,platformand format,anddiscusshowNetflixasa

platformfitsintothedescriptionofthepost-networkera.

ItshouldbenotedthatwhenwatchingNetflixonacomputer,theexacttimestampisnot

possible to note. Therefore, the time stamps in this project is counting down, and not up. The

followingsectionoftheprojectincludesahistoricalbackgroundofU.S.televisioncontext,whichis

relevant to theHouse of Cards case study by giving a frame of reference for the discussion of

contemporary television. Furthermore, the section features an account of the theoretical

frameworkforthethesisdescribedabove.

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Background

TheEvolutionoftheAmericanTelevisionSerial

Episodic televisionemerged in thepostwarera, replacing radiobroadcasts as theprimary

entertainmentmediumintheUnitedStates(Hagedorn,1995,p.37).Whileitstartedoffasmainly

atransmissiondevice,bytheearly1950’smostofthesignaturegenresofentertainmenttelevision

–sitcoms,soapoperas,westerns,copshows,etc.–hadbeen introduced,withradioshowsand

moviesbeingthemainsourceofinspirationregardingstyleandformula.MediascholarRobertJ.

Thompson (1997) discusses two types of live-programming: the comedy-variety show and the

anthology drama, and while both were “victims of mass cultural natural selection” (p. 20),

Thompson argues that the anthology drama is the most associated with the Golden Age of

Television. The anthology dramawas based on theNew York Stage and presented both classic

theaterand independent,self-containedplaysonaweeklybasis,butasconditionschangedand

technologyevolved,theanthologydramaallbutdisappearedandwasreplacedwiththeepisodic

series. In the earlier years, it was the wealthy families with a higher level of educational

qualificationswhocouldaffordatelevision–asocialclassmorepredisposedtowatchingclassical

theatre, as it was considered more elitist, but as production costs decreased and televisions

graduallybecameacommonhouseholditem,andasthetelevisionindustryattemptedtoappealto

thegrowingaudience,theepisodicserieswithaconsistentcasttookoverasthedominantformof

television(Thompson,1997,p.22).Wheretheanthologydramaspresentedabrandnewplayevery

week,theaudiencecouldtuneintothisnewtypeofprogram(e.g.ILoveLucy(1951))everyweek

andknowexactlywhat toexpect.Witha fixed cast and set, theywerepredictableanddidnot

presentalargesurpriseeveryweek.Thompson(1997)definesthemas“assembly-lineproductions”

(p.22),duetotherepetitiveness,thereusabilityofthesetandconsistencyoftheformat.However,

thesamerepetitionandconsistencymadethejobsofthecastandcreweasier,andsinceproduction

costscouldbekeptlow,theepisodicserieswasapreferableformatforthedistributors,asthegains

weremanyandtherisksfew.

Thetraditionalseriescanbecomparedtoacollectionofshortstories:“Althoughtheyallwere

basedonthesamepremise,individualepisodeswereindependentofalltherest[and]bytheend

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ofeachinstalment,everythinghadreturnedtowhereitwasbeforeitbegan”(Thompson,1997,p.

33).Thiswaspartlyduetotheirregularityoftheaudience’sviewinghabits.Thepremiseoftheshow

itselfusuallyprovidedtheneededbackgroundknowledge,soifaviewertunedintothe24thepisode

ofAllintheFamily(1971),theydidnotneedtowatchtheprevious23episodestounderstandand

enjoytheepisode–missingafewepisodeshereandtheredidnotdetractfromtheunderstanding

oftheoverallplot.JohnEllis(1982)characterizesthistypeofseriesby“theconstantrepetitionof

basicnarrativesituationsandcharacters:afamily,abusinessenterprise,ahospital,etc.”(p.125).

Astheaudienceiswellacquaintedwiththecast,theseriescanreusethesamepatterneveryweek,

andrepeatknownelementswithoutsubstantialdevelopmentsfromoneepisodetothenext.But

throughoutthe1980’s,anewnarrativepatternbegantoemerge–apatterntheseriesDallas(1978)

laidthegroundworkfor.Thisseriesfeaturedalargecast,employedongoingstorylinesinsteadof

isolatedepisodes,anditsexpertuseofthecliffhangerresultedinquitethestirinthesummerof

1980,astherewasonlyonequestiononeveryone’smind:“WhoshotJ.R.?”(Thompson,1997,p.

34). Consequently, this narrative pattern began to spread to other dramatic shows, and even

sitcoms began employing ongoing storylines and the end of season cliffhanger. The 1980’s

presentedthebeginningofwhatThompsonterms“qualitydrama”(1997,p.35):televisionseries

rootedinthesoapoperafeaturinganewandcarefulattentiontodetail,complicatedandseason-

longstoryarcs,largecastsandthought-provokingsubjectmatters.Theydefiedthetraditionsofthe

simpleandcommercialtelevisionandchangedtherulesofprime-timetelevision.

It’sNotTV,it’sHBO

WhendiscussingQualityTV,itisnearimpossiblenottobringuptheinfluencethatHBO(Home

BoxOffice)hashadonthetelevisionindustry.In1997,Thompsonclaimedthat“QualityTVisbest

definedbywhatit’snot.It’snot‘regularTV’”(p.13),whichisexactlywhatHBO’sslogan“It’snot

TV,it’sHBO”presents.WithoriginalseriessuchasTheLarrySandersShow(1992)andDreamon

(1990),HBOhaslongbeenapioneerwithintheindustry,butwiththecreationofserieslikeOz,The

Sopranos and Six Feet Under (2001), they have “defined new rules for talking about, and

understandingwhatwemeanby,qualityTVinthepost-1996,post-networkera”(McCabe&Akass,

2008,p.84).HBOhaspositionedthemselvesasarolemodelforproducingqualitycontent;given

itssuccessinthis,theHBObrandhasbecomesynonymouswithqualitydramaseriesandpremium

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content,withareputationfornarrativelycomplexserials.Othercableandbroadcastchannelshave

followed suit with FX and Showtime producing taboo-breaking dramas to match HBO’s (e.g.

Nip/Tuck (2003),TheShield (2002),TheLWord (2004)andWeeds (2005))andABCseemstobe

takingnoteof the ‘quality formula’withLost (2004)and its long-arc serialized storyarcs, genre

emphasisandlargecast(McCabe&Akass,2008,p.91).Thesefacetsoftheserialnarrativeseemto

be the reasoning fordeeming it ‘quality television’asopposed to their lessnarratively complex

televisioncounterparts.

TheRiseofNetflix

Netflix was founded by Reed Hastings andMarc Randolph in 1997. The service originally

operatedasanonlinemovierentalstore,whichincludedperrentalfeesandlatefees:consumers

wouldbookDVDsonlineandtheywouldbedeliveredtothemwithin24hours.Twoyearslater,in

1999, the company initiated a subscription service that would provide their customers with

unlimitedDVDrentalsforamonthlysubscriptionfee(NetflixTimeline,nd.)P.DavidMarshall(2013)

describes this as providing “something of a cable/pay television feel to the subscription, giving

subscribersagreatersenseofcontrolintheirviewingchoices”(p.2).Ayearlatertheyintroduceda

personalizedmovie recommendation system, in which the subscribers would ratemovies, and

throughthisdataNetflixcouldthensuggestselectionstoalltheirmembers.Thebaseofsubscribers

grewsteadilyovertheyearsandbytheendof2006,Netflixhadgained6,3millionU.S.subscribers

(Netflix Timeline, nd.). In 2007, Netflix introduced streaming as an added feature to their DVD

subscriptions,allowingmemberstowatchmoviesorTVshowsinstantlyovertheinternet.Inthe

spaceof three years,Netflix hadpartneredupwithdifferent electronic companies tobring the

internet, and more importantly Netflix, to the consumer’s television sets, game consoles,

smartphones,tablets–essentiallyanydevicewithaninternetconnection.In2010,Netflixtooktheir

streamingcontentbeyondtheUSborders,launchingtheirserviceinCanada,andasof2016,Netflix

isavailableworldwideandhasover80millionmembersglobally(NetflixTimeline,nd.).

Since2012,Netflixhasbeencommissioningnewandoriginalcontent.TheseriesHouseof

Cards,Orange is the New Black (2013), and the documentary The Square (2013) compiled 31

primetime Emmy nominations, including outstanding drama series, comedy series and

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documentary or nonfiction (Netflix Timeline, nd). In 2013, House of Cards won three awards:

OutstandingCastingforaDramaSeries,OutstandingDirectingforaDramaSeries,andOutstanding

CinematographyforaSingle-CameraSeries.NetflixwasthefirstinternetTVnetworknominatedfor

theprimetimeEmmy,andwasfurthermore“thefirstqualitymediacontentgeneratingplatformto

challengeoldmediastructures”(Marshall,2013,p.2).Netflixhasprovedachallengertocompanies

suchasHBO,whoisusuallyregardedasequivalenttofilmicqualitytelevisioncontent,andthey

haveutilizedthetechnologicaldevelopments,andculturalandsocialnormsoftelevisionviewing.

By making entire seasons of a series available on the first day, they show an interest in and

understanding of their customers’ new viewing habits, ‘binging’ several episodes in one sitting,

hereby attracting a larger audience and simultaneously providing a guarantee of structure and

supportfortheproductioncompanybehindtheseries.

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Theoreticalbackground

Post-NetworkEra

InordertogainalargerunderstandingofhowNetflixworks,thereisaneedforknowinghow

television has evolved and gotten to this point in history. While most scholars have different

opinionsontheexactdatewhereoneperiodendsandanotherbegins,mostseemtoagreeonthe

separationofthreeperiodizationswiththreeoverallthemes:industrystructure,audiencetargeting,

andchannelavailability.AmandaLotzprovidesaninsightfultimelineoftheU.S.televisionindustry

and has labelled the three periods thenetwork era, themulti-channel transition, and thepost-

networkera,whichshediscussesinthesecondeditionofTelevisionWillBeRevolutionized(2014).

Lotz(2014)datesthenetworkerafromapproximately1952tothemid-1980’s(p.22).While

televisionbeganasanetwork-organizedmedium,manyoftheindustrialpracticesandmodesof

organizationthatcametodefinetheNetworkerawasnotestablisheduntiltheearly1960’s:the

television set had been developed, the main form of economic support was thirty-second

advertisements,andtherewerethreebignationalNetworks–NBC,CBSandABC-whodictated

productiontermsandweretheonlyoutletsforhigh-budgetoriginalcontent,andbecauseofthe

domestic and non-portable medium of the television set, the audience were left with few

programmingoptions(Lotz,2014,p.22-24).

NewtechnologicaldevelopmentslikecabletelevisionandtheVCRexpandedviewercontrol

and choice in the beginning of 1980’s. Lotz (2014) describes how “producers adjusted to

governmentregulationsthatforcedthenetworkstorelinquishsomeoftheircontrolovertheterms

ofprogramcreation”(p.25);thisalteredtelevisionexperienceledtothemulti-channeltransition

asaresultoftheexpandeduserchoiceandcontrol.Newbroadcastnetworksandthe launchof

subscriptionchannelsnotonlyintroducedanadvertising-freeformoftelevisionprogramming,but

alsoledaudiencestobecomeincreasinglymoresegmented.Theemergenceofmanynewnetworks

and channels changed the competitive dynamics of the industry andwhile the networks in the

previous era designed programming aimed at the entire family, the new dynamics resulted in

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networks (andparticularly cable channels)designinganddevelopingprogramsaimedatamore

specificaudience(Lotz,2014,p.25-27).

Namingthethirdperiodthepost-networkera,Lotz(2014)acknowledgesthe“breakfroma

dominantnetwork-eraexperience,inwhichviewerslackedmuchcontroloverwhenandwhereto

viewandchoseamongalimitedselectionofexternallydeterminedlinearviewingoptions”(p.28).

Sheargues,thattheterm‘post-network’isanindicatorofmorechangestocome,andpredictsa

nonlinear form in the use of themedium. In the current television situation, viewers have an

abundanceofoptionstoselectfromwhen,where,andwhattheywanttowatch(Lotz,2014,p.28).

Theindustryhashadtoshifttheiraversiontonewtechnologies,andinsteadembracethechanges

andadjustmentswithintheindustry,whichsignifiesadramaticshiftfromthetelevisionexperience

inthedominantnetwork-eratoanerawithmuchmoreusercontrol–acontrolthathascontinued

toincreasethroughoutthePost-Networkera.Somuch,infact,thatLotz(2014)arguesthat“ithas

grown feasible to imagineapost-networkeradevoidofnetworksor channelsas thedistinctive

industrialentitiesthey’veservedthusfar”(p.28)

The shift in audience behavior of the post-network era are based on two central non-

television-relatedfactors:computingandgenerationalshifts.Thedigitalevolutionhasallowedfor

a merger of the television and computer screen and the generation commonly referred to as

MillenialshasgrownupwiththeInternet,cableTVandsmartphones,resultinginfluentandnatural

technological knowledge that their Baby Boomer parents has yet to reach (Lotz, 2014, p. 30).

Contentbeyondthenetworkplatforms,e.g.theInternet,videostreamingservices, is increasing,

andLotz(2014)statesthatwhilefeaturesofapost-networkerahavebecomeincreasinglymore

apparent, “such an erawill be fully in place onlywhen choice is no longer limited to program

schedules and themajority of viewers use the opportunities offered by new technologies and

industrialpractices”(p.31-32).Thispost-networkeraallowstheviewerstochooseamongprograms

producedinanydecade,bothcreatedbyprofessionalsandamateurs,andallowsthemtochoose

their own time and place for viewing the program, be it a television, tablet or computer. This

researchwillfocusonthecaseoftheNetflixproducedshowHouseofCards,anonlineproduction

byastreamingservice,andastheseriesisthereforesituatedwithinLotz’post-networkera,this

theoryisincludedinthediscussionandreflectiononNetflixanditsroleasaproducer.

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ComplexTV

Throughout the lastcoupleofdecades, televisionhasundergonesignificantchangesasan

industry,andanewformofentertainmenttelevisionhasemergedwithanewformofstorytelling,

whichcanbeseenasamorecomplexalternativetothemoretraditionalepisodicserialform.Inhis

bookComplexTV:ThePoeticsofContemporaryStorytelling,JasonMittell(2015)arguesthateven

thoughnarrativecomplexityhasnottakenoverthemajorityoftelevision,itissufficientlypopular

thattheperiodofthe1990’stothepresentcanbeconsideredas“theeraofcomplextelevision”(p.

30).Mittell(2015),whohastermedthisnewmodeofstorytelling“narrativecomplexity”(p.17),or

complextelevision,describesitasbeinglessuniformandconvention-driventhanthecomposition

ofthetraditionalepisodictelevisionserial–themostdefiningcharacteristicofthemodewouldbe

unconventionality,andthisconceptofnarrativecomplexitycomplementsLotz’Post-Networkera

definitionnicely.

Theriseofnarrativecomplexitycoincideswithanevolutionwithinthetelevisionandmedia

industry,bothtechnologicallyandsocialeconomically–akeyelementinthedevelopmentofthis

newmodebeingachangeintheperceptionoftelevisionasamedium.AccordingtoMittell(2015),

therehasbeenachangeintheperceptionofcontemporarytelevisionanditslegitimacy(p.31),as

manyof thecreatorsof themore innovative televisionprograms fromthe last twodecadesare

individuals,whoinitiallystartedtheircareersinthetraditionallymoreprestigiousmediumoffilm

(e.g.MartinScorsese,StephenSpielbergandofcoursethecreatorofHouseofCards,DavidFincher,

tonamea few).Partof theappeal for thesecreators is television’s reputation“asaproducer’s

medium, where writers and creators retain control of their workmore than in film’s director-

centeredmodel”(Mittell,2015,p.32)andthenarrativecomplexitycanberegardedasaresponse

totheemergenceofrealitytelevision.Additionally,thereisampleopportunityforthecreatorsto

challengetheircreativity,asthetelevisionformatofferstheoptionsofextendedcharacterdepth,

morethoroughon-goingplotlines,andvariationsinthedifferentepisodes–optionsthatatwo-hour

filmcannotoffertothesameextent.

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Technologicaltransformations,developments,andshiftswithinthetelevisionindustryhave

helped theemergenceand reinforcementof the complexnarrative.After themainstreamingof

cableandVCRduringthe1980’s,ashiftinthebalanceofdistributionoccurred.Traditionally,the

mediumhadbeencontrolledbythenetworks,whoofferedlimitedchoicesofentertainmentwithin

aregulatedtimeframeandwithaspecificschedulewithnootheraccesstocontentthantheirown.

AsMittell(2015)states,thishadanobviouseffectonthestructureoftheprogramsatthetime,

because “while reruns proliferated in syndication, they typically were shown out of order,

encouraging episodic narratives that could accommodate an almost random presentation of a

series”(p.36).Thischangedduringthe1980’s,especiallywiththedevelopmentoftheVHS,the

LaserdiscandfinallytheDVDinthe1990’s,andtheaudiencegraduallybegantotakecontrolwith

newviewingpatternsemerging.Theaudiencewascompletelyincontroloftheirtimespentinfront

ofthetelevision,andthetechnologicaladvantagesencouragedmultipleviewingswithfansbinging

severalepisodesofaseries inonesitting,andmanyofthestrategiesemployedbythecomplex

programshavelasted,givennotonlytheirsuccessbutalsotheacceptanceandembracementof

thesebytheaudience.Thenewtechnologiesandanemergenceofonlineparticipation(e.g. fan

websites,onlinediscussionforumsandrole-playingsites)havecreatedaspaceformorerobustfan

cultures,activelyengagingtheaudiencesandcreatingamoreinvolvedviewer;thecombinationof

thesetwoaspectsoffancultureshascreatedasturdyfoundationforthedevelopmentofnarrative

complexity(Mittell,2015,p.41).

Mittell(2015)definesthebasisofnarrativecomplexityas:

“redefiningepisodicformsundertheinfluenceofserialnarration–notnecessarilyacomplete

mergerofepisodicandserialformsbutashiftingbalance.Rejectingtheneedforplotclosure

within every episode that typifies conventional episodic form, narrative complexity

foregroundsongoingstoriesacrossarangeofgenres”(18).

Complexprogramsdonotnecessarilydissociatethemselvesfromthetraditionalsoapopera,

buttheytypicallyfocusoncharactersoverplotsanddownplaythemelodramaticstyleofthesoap

opera,usingtheplotdevelopmentstoformthecharacterrelationshipsanddrama–areversalof

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the traditional soapopera style. They typically featureon-going relationshipdramasand longer

storyarcscombinedwiththestillpresentepisodicplotlines.MittellmentionsJossWhedon’sBuffy

(1997)andAngel(1999)asexamplesofcomplexprograms,whichmanagestobalancetheepisodic

andserialstorytelling.Bothseriesaresetinthesameuniverse(orWhedonverse,asfanshavetaken

tocallingit)andpresents“arichandon-goingmythologyofabattlebetweentheforcesofgood

andevil,plotlinesarecentereduponseason-longarcsfeaturingaparticularvillain,or‘bigbad,’in

Buffy’sparlance” (Mittell,2015,p.19).Withinanygivenseason,almosteveryepisodeworks to

move the seasonal storyarc forwards,while simultaneouslyofferingmini-resolutionswithin the

specificepisode,andabattlewiththe‘monsteroftheweek’.Thisstrategyevenappliestothemore

experimentalepisodes.AgreatexampleofWhedon’snarrativeskillsisthetheseventhepisodeof

thesixthseasonofBuffy,“OnceMorewithFeeling”(2001).Thisepisodefeaturesthe‘monsterof

theweek’villainintheformofthedemonSweet,whosemerepresencecausespeoplearoundhim

toburstintosonganddance,eventuallyleadingthevictimstospontaneouslycombust,andthus

makingwayforthemusicalstructureoftheepisode.Despitethisunusualformatoftheepisodeand

the‘oneshowonly’villain,thisepisodepropelsthestoryarcforwardbyallowingthecharactersto

reveal their deep, dark secrets to each other through song, while simultaneously irrevocably

changingtheirrelationshipsandhintingatdevelopmentstocome.ManyviewerspraiseWhedon

forinthisspecificepisodeencapsulatingtheentireseason’sstoryarc(Rambo,Edwards&South,

2009,p.170)anditfollowsMittell’sdescriptionnicely,bybothofferingaclosuretothe‘monster

oftheweek’andaddingtotheseason’sstoryarc.

Complex television programs use a number of different storytelling techniques present in

conventional television, but with a much subtler employment and to an even greater degree,

makingitmorethenormthantheexception:Analepses,dreamorfantasysequences,retellingthe

samestoryfromdifferentperspectives.Mittell(2015)arguesthefollowing:

“all of these devices, which vary from the “exceedingly obvious” mode of conventional

television storytelling, typicallymaximize their obviousness by explicitly signaling them as

differentials from a norm, predicated by expository narration (“I remember it well”) or

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contrivedscenarios(suchashypnosis,courtroomtestimonies,orrecollectionsoveraphoto

album)tohighlighthowtheseriesisusingnonconventionalconventions”(p.39).

Contrastingly, complexprogramsusedifferent storytellingdeviceswithahigherdegreeof

fluency, playing with boundaries and fantasy sequences to flesh out character development,

withoutworryingaboutconfusing theviewer.Contemporarycomplex televisionprogramsoften

createframestories,e.g.byteasingtheclimaxofthestoryinthebeginningoftheepisode,andthen

turningbacktheclocktorecollectthestoryupuntilthatpoint(e.g.HowtogetawaywithMurder

(2014)).Anotherpopularstorytellingdeviceinnarrativecomplexityisbreakingthefourthwall,an

essential technique employed in House of Cards. There are several ways of employing this

technique,whichwillbeexplainedindetailinalatersection.

InComplexTV,Mittelldiscussesthevariouswaysthatcomplextelevisionisdistinguishedfrom

traditionaltelevisionnarrative.Thefollowingfeaturesanexpositionofthreeoftheseelements,as

they will be the focus of the analysis in this project: 1) the use of the TV ‘pilot’, 2) character

development and 3) viewer comprehension. The aim of this project is to, with the following

techniques and strategies inmind, take a closer look at howHouse of Cards fits intoMittell’s

narrativecomplexity,and justhowsomeof thenarrative strategiesareemployed in theNetflix

serieswithaparticularfocusonthecharacterofFrankandtheuseofasides.

Beginnings

Atelevisionpilothasseveralresponsibilities.Withintheconventionalindustry,itservesasa

potential series’ test run, first for thenetworks thenpotential home viewers,whoneeds tobe

persuadedtokeepwatching.Mittell(2015)arguesthatapilot“presentsanencapsulationofwhat

a seriesmight be like on an ongoing basis, while providing an exceptional degree of narrative

exposuretoorientviewerswithinanoftencomplexstoryworld”(p.56).Thisincludespresenting

the cast of characterswith clear personalities and relationships and establishing the program’s

genretocontrolthematchingofexpectationswiththeaudience,whilesimultaneouslypresenting

theseriesasnewandoriginalenoughtoconvincetheviewer,thisisnot“justanother”exampleof

whattheyhaveseenbefore.Thus,Mittell(2015)arguesthatthe“chieffunctionofatelevisionpilot

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istoteachushowtowatchtheseries,andindoingso,makeuskeepwatching”(p.56),notinghow

successfulpilotsareboth“educational”and“inspirational” (p.56).Asuccessfulpilotannounces

what it is, presents the set of characters and sets the parameters forwhat is to come, hereby

creating theviewer’sexpectationsandurging themtokeepwatching.A seriesMittellmentions

severaltimesonthetopicofcomplextelevisionisJossWhedon’sBuffytheVampireSlayer(1997).

Within the first 10 minutes of the pilot, “Welcome to the Hellmouth”, the series manages to

establishasetofcharacterswithpersonalitiesandrelationships,itsownnarrativevoice(withfun,

snappydialogue)andsetupthebasicframeworkoftheseries.Whatisinterestingaboutthisseries

is the play on audience expectations. A new viewerwouldmost likely expect a serieswith this

amountofmythostostartoutasanoriginstory–agirlwhodiscovers,sheistheSlayerandher

subsequent story. The opening narration montage and the first scene after the title sequence

certainlyaddstothisexpectation,buttheaudiencequicklylearnsthatthisisnotthecase.Buffy

alreadyknows,sheistheSlayer–shearrivesinSunnydalepackedwithhistoryandshewantsto

escapeherlifeasaSlayer.Theseriesfurthermoretakesthesecretidentitystorylineandturnsit

around. Traditionally, the secret identity of a character is incorporated into a longer storyline

revolving the secrecy of the identity and the people around finding out, as seen in the Netflix

OriginalDaredevil (2015),whereanimportantstorylineinthefirstseasonisthesecrecyofMatt

Murdock’sidentityastheDaredevil. InBuffy,Xander,JesseandWillowallfindoutaboutBuffy’s

identitybytheendoftheveryfirstepisode,thusdrawingthemintotheactionimmediately.While

thecharacters’introductionsarenotexactlymind-blowing,theydowhattheyaresupposedto–

establishtherelationshipsandquirkycharacteristicsofthecharacters.Thedialogueissnappyand

playful,anditestablishesthegenreandpresentsthepremiseoftheshow,whilesimultaneously

twistingtheconventionalgenrepilotaround.

AsNetflixsignedHouseofCardsonwithoutafinishedpilotepisode(Vankin,2013),thisproject

aimstoexamineifthathashadanyeffectonthestructureof“Chapter1”.

Characters

Manytelevisionwriterswillsaythatcharactertrumpsplot.Whentheaudienceischarmed

andluredinbycompellingandengagingcharacters,theexcitingstorylineswillcomeaswell.Mittell

(2015)arguesthatperformanceisalwaysacollaborativeartbetweentheactorsandthewriters,

andtherefore“actorshavevaryingdegreesofcreativeauthorityandcollaborativeownershipover

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their ongoing characters” (p. 119). This can create constraints for the storytelling, e.g. an actor

wantingtoleaveashowsoonerthanplanned,diesorgetstoosicktowork–thisforcesthewriters

toincorporatethecharacterleavingtheseriesinsomeway,astheaudienceiscommittedtothe

pairingoftheactorandcharacter.However,thiscanalsobenefitboththestorytellingandtheseries

asapartoftheindustry.Well-respectedactorscandrawinanaudiencewiththeirparticipationand

actasasealofapproval,buttheycanalsocreatespecificconnotationsfortheaudience,astheyby

defaultwillbeassociatedwithpreviousrolesandcharacters.Mittell(2015)exemplifieswithBryan

Cranston’sportrayalofWalterWhite inBreakingBad (2008),whereCranston’sprevious roleas

loving and easygoing although somewhat inept Hal inMalcolm in theMiddle (2000) leads the

audiencetobondandsympathieswithWalterWhite(p.152).

Mittell describes Murray Smiths theory on the audience’s engagement with a series’

charactersintheirsearchtoidentifywiththem–televisioncuestheaudiencetorecognize,align

withandforgeallegianceswithcharacterstocreatebondbetweentheaudienceandthecharacters

because,asMittell(2015)notes,“wetemporarilygivepartofourselvesovertoafictiontoproduce

intense emotional affect” (p. 127). Recognition is marked as “one of the chief components of

characterengagementincinema”(Mittell,2015,p.127)astheaudiencedifferentiatesphysically

between the different characters within an ensemble cast, e.g. distinguishing lead roles from

supportingcharacters,backgroundextrasetc.Thiscanresultinproducerskeepingsurpriseguest

starsoutofthecredits-aswithSe7en(1995),whereKevinSpaceywasomittedfromthecreditsto

surprisetheaudience–butitcanalsoleadtosurprisedeathstocountertheaudienceexpectation

ofastablecorecastthroughouttheseries’run.Mittell(2015)noteshow“manycomplexprograms

havekilledoffmajorcharactersearlyintheirrunstoraisethedramaticstakes”(p.124).Inashow

suchasGameofThrones(2011),wherefanfavoritesarebeheadedwithoutnotice,nocharacter

seemstobesafe,butHouseofCardsalsofeaturedthesurprisingdeathofZoeBarnesinthefirst

episodeofseasontwo.

Theconceptofalignmentexplainstheconnectionaudiencefeelswithcertaincharactersand

howtheyaresometimeabletodevelopstrongandsincereemotionalattachmentstothem.When

speaking of alignment, there are two central elements: “attachment, in which we follow the

experiencesofparticularcharacters,andaccesstosubjectiveinteriorstatesofemotions,thought

processes,andmorality”(Mittell,2015,p.129).Attachmentisavitalelementwhendealingwitha

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long-formserial,astheaudience’sattachmentcanchangefromepisodetoepisode.Attachment

referstothewidthofthenarrative,i.e.thenumberofcharacterstheviewerfollows,andwithabig

ensemble cast, the attachment can vary across scenes and episodes. Film and television rarely

providesthesamesubjectiveaccesstoacharacter’sinteriorasliterature,butthemediumhasits

owntechniqueforgivingtheaudienceaccesstoacharacter’sinnerthoughtsandfeelings.Some

programs allow for greater access to subjectivity through e.g. voice-over narration, fantasy

sequences,orbreakingthefourthwallbyaddressingtheaudiencedirectly,atechniquefrequently

used inHouseofCards.However,mostcommonlythemediumusesexteriormarkerstoconvey

interiorvoicesor toemotional states to theviewer (appearance,dialogue,actions,etc.).Mittell

(2015)arguesthehowviewers,throughalong-terminvestmentinaseries,“accrueknowledgeand

experiencesaboutcharactersthatallow[them]toposit[their]ownversionoftheinteriority”(p.

132). This is furthermore a tactic employed by complex television, as one of the attractions of

complexTVistheplayandpuzzle-solvingnatureoftheprograms.

Lastly,Mittell(2015)discussesMurray’sthirdfactorofcharacterengagementallegiance:“the

moralevaluationofalignedcharacterssuchaswefindourselvessympathetictotheirbeliefsand

ethicsandthusemotionallyinvestedintheirstories”(p.134).Changesinallegiancecanoccur,when

a character changes: through a character’s changing actions and the viewer’s reactions, the

allegiancesisrelocatedthroughthecastofcharacters.Mittell(2015)mentionsdifferentmodelsof

character arcs: character growth, character education, character overhaul and character

transformation (p. 137-141). Character growth refers to the ‘coming of age’ narrative,where a

charactermaturesandgrowsovertime,astorylinewhichismostcommonwithyoungcharacters.

Theaudienceisatthebeginningawarethatthecharacterisnotfullygrown,andthereforeexpects

achange.Whenamaturecharacterlearnsanimportantlifelessonoverthecourseofaseries,itis

labelledcharactereducation.Ifthecharacterchangesmoreabruptly, itfallsunderthecharacter

overhaul–thisnotionreferstomoresupernaturalsettings,e.g.characterschangingbodies.The

lastmodelofcharacterarcs,isthecharactertransformation–themosttraditionalofthecharacter

arcs.Thismodelreferstothegradualtransformationofanadultcharacterovertime,wherethey

changetheirmorality,attitudeandsenseofself.

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Comprehension

Thereareseveraldifferentwayswithwhichviewersengagewithatelevisionseries,butatitsbasics,

engagement begins with comprehension – making sense of it all. Mittell (2015) argues that

“complextelevisionhasincreasedthemedium’stoleranceforviewer’stobeconfused,encouraging

themtopayattentionandputthepiecestogetherthemselvestocomprehendthenarrative”(p.

164).While traditional televisionwould strive to create as little confusion as possible, complex

narrativesmakesanefforttoengageandchallengetheaudience.Informationmanagementiskey

whenconsuminganarrative,andMittell(2015)arguesthat“mostofthisinformationmanagement

ispreconsciousandautomatic,drivenbyunderlyingassumptionsandconventions”(p.167).These

processes of assumptions rely on cognitive schemata, which viewers develop through their

assumption of media, andmany narrative schemata are based on the norms of the television

medium (Mittell, 2015, p. 167). Bordwell (2012) distinguishes between these, which he calls

extrinsicnorms,andwhathecallsintrinsicnorms.Extrinsicnormsrefertoe.g.genreconventions

andstylisticmodes–norms“codifiedby tradition” (Bordwell,2012)andconventionswhich the

audiencethroughtimeandtraditionhasbeentaughttoexpect.Intrinsicnormsrefertothepattern

ofcoherenceestablishedbythetelevisionseriesitself,orinBordwell’swords:“storytellingmethods

thataresetup,almostlikerulesforagame,forthespecificfilm”(2012)–thisiswhattheseries

teachestheviewertoexpect,e.g.thedirectaddressingoftheaudienceonMalcomintheMiddle

(2000). These norms can be violated to create confusion and engage the viewer’s attention by

“shatteringexpectationsbyshiftingcomprehensionprocessesfrompreconsciousassumptionsand

interferencestoconscioushypothesis”(Mittell,2015,p.169).Bymixingfamiliaritywithabreakwith

theexpectations,itkeepstheaudienceinterestedandfocused.Variationscanincludeachangein

storytellingperspectiveorgenre(overthelastfewyearsthereseemstohaveemergedatrendin

musical episodes of television series, e.g.Scrubs (2001),How IMet YourMother (2005),Grey’s

Anatomy(2005).

Bordwell discusses the terms curiosity hypothesis and suspense hypothesis, whichMittell

refers to as anticipation hypothesis. Curiosity hypothesis refers to the process of creating

hypothesesaboutthepastwhileanticipationhypothesisisusedtorefertohypothesesaboutthe

future (Bordwell, 2007a, p. 139). Complex television uses narrative enigmas and statements to

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promptthesehypothesesfromtheviewerasanemotionalresponsebutatthesametimestaying

withintheframesofthefictionalworld-asMittell(2015)argues,“theidealsurpriseisfollowedby

aviewerthinking“Ishouldhaveseenthatcoming,”suggestingunexpectedbuteffectiveinternal

motivation”(p.172).Narrativestatementsareeventswhichassertastraightforwardstoryelement

withnouncertaintywhatsoever,e.g.amarriageordeathofacharacter.Thesetypeofeventsclearly

changethestatusquoofthefictionalworld,buttherearenorealquestionsastowhen,whyorhow

theeventhappened(Mittell,2015,p.24).Narrativeenigmas,ontheotherhand,areambiguous

events,whichraiseuncertaintyandnumerousquestionsaboutthesituationathand.Mittell(2015)

arguesthat“narrativeenigmasandstatementsleadtodifferentmodesofengagementforviewers,

promptingvariousformsofsuspense,surprise,curiosity,andtheorizing”(p.26).Asfortheconcept

ofsuspense,Mittell(2015)describesitas“asubsetofanticipationhypothesisinwhichtheevents

thatviewershopetohappentocharacters in riskysituationsseeminglyhasa lowprobabilityof

occurringwithin the storyworld” (p.171).Theaudience is reacting toanarrative statementby

hypothesizingabouttheoutcomeoftheeventonbothmacroplotlevelsandmicroscenelevels.

AccordingtoBordwell,theaudiencewillexperiencesuspensewhetherornottheyareawareofthe

outcome,asthetensionsofthesuspenseisbasedonhowtheeventwillreachtheoutcomeandnot

theoutcomeitself(2007b).ThiscorrelateswithHitchcock,whostatedthatsuspensederivesfrom

theaudiencebeingunabletointerveneinthefictionalworld,andhisclassicexamplewiththebomb

underthetableexemplifiesjustthat(Truffaut,1985,p.73).

Lastly,thoughthetechnologicalchangesanddevelopmentshavemadethecultureofbinge-

watchingmorecommon,thereisstillaneedforprogramscreatedforwhatMittell(2015)callsa

“domesticenvironment”(p.181),whichmeansthegapsbetweenepisodesandseasonsneedtobe

takenintoaccount.Therearedifferentdevicesandstrategiesfortriggeringtheviewer’smemory;

oneofthemostcommondevicesiscalleddiegeticretelling,wherethedialogueinusedtoremind

theaudienceofimportantinformation,beitevents,characternamesorcharacteristics,etc.Often,

anewcharacterenterswhoneedsanexplanationforapastsituationorspecificconcept,which

putsthisnewcharacterintheaudience’splace.Someprogramsalsousevisualcuestotriggerthe

viewer’smemory,asthisdeviceissubtlerthantheuseofdialogue.Thiscanincludeshotsofspecific

settings,objectsorevencertainshotcompositions.Mittell(2015)noteshowvisualcuesfunction

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less“tocatchupviewerswhomighthavemissedanepisodethantointegratepasteventsintoa

naturalisticstyleofmoving-imagestorytellingthatstillactivatestheviewers’memories”(p.183).

Other programs use “nonnaturalistic techniques” (Mittell, 2015, p. 183) to trigger the viewer’s

memory.Thiscanincludevoice-overnarration,boththesubjectivefirst-personvoice-overandthe

third-person omniscient narrator, or flashbacks. First-person subjective flashbacks are used to

presentasinglecharacter’smemory,whileobjectivethird-personflashbacks,or“replays”(Mittell,

2015,p.186)areusedmoretofillinbackstory.Outsidethefictionalworld,mostprogramsinclude

a short recap before each episode, ‘previously on…’, to activate specific events in the viewer’s

memoryandbringthemuptodate.Thisisespeciallyefficientiftheseriesbringsupplotpointsfrom

severalepisodesorevenseasonsback.Simultaneously, theabsenceofa recapcancreatewhat

Mittell (2015) refers to as “surprisememory” (p. 191), as the viewer’smemory is not triggered

beforetheexactmoment,thepasteventorcharacterbecomesrelevant.

TheUnreliableNarrator

Whendiscussingnarrationinfiction,animportantelementofinterestisthenotionoftruth

andauthenticity.In“FightClubs,AmericanPsychosandMementos”,VolkerFerenz(2005)discusses

theconceptofnarratorsincinema,andhowitcanbeassociatedwiththeconceptofunreliability.

Overall,hedistinguishesbetweentwobasictypesofunreliablenarrators:thevoice-overnarrator

andthecharacter-narrator.Themainreasonforthisseparation,isbasedontheuseoftheterm

‘unreliable’,whichFerenzfindsproblematic.Hearguesthatacharacteristicsuchas‘unreliable’is

predominantlyusedtodescribeindividuals,or‘real’people,therefore,makingitillogicaltoapply

thatcharacteristictoatheoreticalconstructoravoice-overnarrator,whoinmostcaseshavelittle

tonoauthorityoverthepresentationofthenarrativeinafilm(Ferenz,2005,p.135).Ontheother

hand,pseudo-diegeticcharacter-narratorsaretreatedbytheaudienceas‘realpeople’,whocanbe

heldaccountableforinaccuraciesandunreliabilityinthefictionalworld–acharacter-narratorcan

functionasa“clearlyidentifiablescapegoatwithsufficient‘authority’overthenarrativeasawhole,

whomwecanblamefortextualcontradictionsandreferentialdifficulties”(Ferenz,2005,p.135).

According toFerenz, theaudience is likely toattribute inconsistencies to supernatural forcesor

fantasticelements(e.g. infilmssuchasSecretWindow (2004)orTheSixthSense (1999)),orthe

notionoftheuncanny.

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Ferenzdistinguishesbetweentwotypesofvoice-overnarrators:theheterodiegeticorthird-

person voice-over narrator and the homodiegetic or first-person voice-over narrator. The

heterodiegeticvoice-overnarratorisusuallyequippedwiththehuman-liketraitofavoiceandis

commonly given complete authority as a neutral third party. Their neutral involvement in the

fictionalstorygivesthenarratoragreatamountoffreedom,however,thislackofinvolvementin

storymattersposesaproblemconcerning the term ‘unreliable’. Ferenz (2005)argues that “the

heterodiegeticvoice-overnarratorisinevitablysandwichedbetweentheextradiegeticlevelofthe

cinematicnarrator(outsidethestoryworld)andtheintradiegeticlevelofthecharacters(insidethe

story world)” (p. 144). The heterodiegetic narrator is not a part of the fictional world of the

charactersandisthereforealwaystosomedegreeremovedfromtheimages.Thoughthevoice-

overcanbefallibleconcerningtheirownthoughts,thenarratorcannotmisinterprettheeventsof

thestorybecausetheyareoutsideofinfluenceregardingthetheimagespresentedtotheaudience.

Incontrast to theheterodiegeticvoice-overnarrator,whocommonly lacksbothpersonalityand

involvementinthefictionalstory,thehomodiegeticorfirst-personvoice-overnarratorcanbegiven

bothavoiceandabody.However,acharacterspeakinginvoice-overisstillregardedsomewhat

ambiguous, as the character inmost casesmakes no claim to being the creator of the images

presentedtotheaudience,thusremainingrathershadowy.Thehomodiegeticvoice-overnarrator

typicallyaccompaniestheimage-trackandprovidestheaudiencewithadditionalinformation.An

exampleofthisisMax’characterinMadMax:FuryRoad(2015).Themoviesopenswithavoice-

overnarration to set the sceneandgiveabitof insight to the characterofMax. Ferenz (2005)

compares thehomodiegeticnarrator in film to that in literature, arguing that thehomodiegetic

narratorinliterature“ismostoftenthesolesourceofthenarrativeandcanmanipulatethestory

datajustas[theylike]”(p.147)- infilm,thenarratorcandojustthesame.However,thevoice-

over’sstatementsaresimultaneouslyaccompaniedbyimagesthatcancontradictandrevealthe

truthfulnessandreliabilityofthespeaker’sclaims.Ferenzpointsoutthatthevoice-overnarrator

oftenfunctionsas ‘filters’,whichshowstheaudiencethefictionalworldthroughtheireyes,and

therefore they cannot be the source of the fictional narrative in its entirety. They are not in a

positiontomisrepresentthenarrative,astheydonothaveauthorityoverit(Ferenz,2005,p.148).

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Thelasttypeofnarratoristhepseudo-diegeticnarrator,whichFerenz(2005)arguesisthe

onlytypeofnarratorthattheterm‘unreliable’canbeproperlyappliedto,asthistypedealswitha

“human-likenarrator”(p.153)withauthorityovertheirownnarratingandinapositiontotakethe

blame for any inaccuracies. According to Ferenz, the pseudo-diegetic character-narrator is a

somewhat rare typeofnarrator in thecinema,butexactly this typeofnarrator iscrucial to the

purpose of this project, as Frank is a character in the diegesis, who additionally functions as a

narratorthroughhisvariousasides.Therearedifferentwaystoincorporatethistypeofnarrativein

afilm,but,asFerenz(2005)notes,themostcommonwayofachievingapseudo-diegeticeffectis

tohaveacharactertelltheirstorytoanothercharacter:“theprimarynarrativelevelgiveswayto

theembeddednarratorwhotakesoverthefunctionoftheprincipalstoryteller”(p.149).Thiscan

beexemplifiedwithTimBurton’sfilmBigFish(2003)whereinthecharacterEdwardBloom,who

hasbeenknowthroughhislifeasanavidstoryteller,spendshislastfewdaysofhislifetellinghis

son,Will Bloom, a collection of events from his life. The film frequentlymoves back and forth

betweenthelevelsofnarrative(Edward’sstoryworldandthediegeticworldofthefilm),andthere

isnomistakenofthetwolevels.Ferenz(2005)arguesthatinsomecases,thefilmsseemtocreate

thesenseofcharacter-narratorsoimbeddedinthenarrative“thatthevieweracceptsthepseudo-

diegeticnarratoris if[they]werenotonlyacreationbut,firstandforemost,acreator”(p.151).

Thus, the audience is persuaded to believe that techniques such as the voice-over, subjective

camera,compositionofscreenspace,andeventhemusicalscoreisgeneratedbytheprotagonist

themselves.

ThisisexactlythecasewithHouseofCards.FrankUnderwoodisapartofthefictionalworld

and can thereby not be classified as the “heterodiegetic or third-person voice-over narrator”

(Ferenz, 2005, p. 141)who functionsoutsideof the fictionalworld, nor is he identicalwith the

“homodiegeticorfirst-personvoice-overnarrator”(Ferenz,2005,p.145),thoughheisclosertothis

type than the aforementioned. Though he is a first-person narratorwith “a voice and a body”

(Ferenz,2005,p.145),heusestheasideratherthanthetraditionalvoice-over.Inhisarticle“Putting

television‘aside’:novelnarrationinHouseofCards”,MarioKlarer(2014)discussesFerenz’useof

theterm‘pseudo-diegetic’asbeingdirectlytothepoint,asFrankUnderwoodplayshiscrucialpart

in thestoryline,but thenat timesseemsto takeastepoutside thestoryline tocommenton it.

Frank’sroleasanarratorseeminglymovesinandoutofthediegesis,yetnevercompletelyleaving

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thediegesis,makingtheterm‘pseudo’applicabletohischaracter.Klarer(2014)arguesthenthatto

thecontrary“[Frank’s]seemingtranscendenceofthestoryworldintheasidesiswhatactuallyis

themajorforcethatfuelsthestoryassuch”(p.211).Withhisclearlyidentifiablecharacter,Frank

functionsasapseudo-diegeticcharacter-narrator,withwhomtheaudiencecanidentifywithand

relateto.Atthebeginningoftheseries,Frankseemslikeaperfectlyreliablenarrator,lettingthe

audienceinonhissecretmotivesandplans.Thisprojectwilltakeacloserlookatthisreliabilityand

aimstoshedalightonjusthowtrustworthyacharacter-narrator(andpolitician)FrankUnderwood

is.Howmuchcantheaudience(andtheAmericanpublic)actuallydependonhimandhisactions?

TheDramaticAside

Oneof thenarrative techniquesMittellmentionsasbeingemployedoften in thecomplex

televisionprogramsisthedramaticaside(2015,p.49),atechniquewhichtraditionallyderivesfrom

thetheatricalstage,andisquintessentialwhendiscussingtheNetflixseriesHouseofCards.InThe

TheoryandAnalysisofDrama,ManfredPfisterdistinguishesbetweenthreeformsofthetheatrical

aside:themonologicalaside,thedialogicalaside,andtheasideadspectators.Whiletheyallbeara

resemblance to the soliloquy, themonological aside is themost similar, as it does not address

anothercharacteronstage.However,whileasoliloquymostoftenhappenswhenthecharacteris

aloneonstage,thespeakerofamonologicalasideisnotaloneonstage,nordoeshebelievehimself

tobe.Pfisterexplainsthisformofasideasaconventionthatdisregardsthecircumstancesofreal

lifetoanevengreaterdegreethanthesoliloquy.Aconventionthat“breaksallthelawsofacoustics,

accordingtowhichaspeechthatcannotbeheardbyadialoguepartneronstageismuchlesslikely

tobeheardbytheaudienceatthebackoftheauditorium”(Pfister,1991,p.138)aswellasitbeing

psychologicallyunrealisticforanindividualtobethinkingaloudforaperiodoftimethisextended.

Liketheconventionalsoliloquy,themonologicalasideallowsthecharactertoreflectdirectlyonhis

thoughtseitherbytruthfullyandbluntlycommentingonaparticularsituationorcharacter,orto

expressinformationregardingaparticularcharacterorsituation.

While the dialogical aside in reality does not belong in a category regarding any form of

monologicalspeech,itisstillbasedontheconventionofspeechbeing‘heard’bytheaudiencebut

not by certain characters on stage. As Pfister (1991)mentions, this type of aside “is generally

conditionedbyconspiratorialdialogueordialogueinaneaves-droppingsituation”(p.140)andis

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commonlyexpressedbygroupingcharacterstogetherinaparticularwayonstage,typicallydrawing

thecharactersparticipatinginthedialogicalasidetogethernearthefrontofthestage,whilethe

remaining characters stay put behind them. This type of aside functions more or less like the

monologicalaside,onlyasaconversationbetweentwo(ormore)characters,exceptofjustone.

Lastly,thethird,andforthisproject,themostrelevanttypeofaside,theasideadspectators,

that is imbuedwith dialogical elements, breaks through the internal communicative system by

addressingtheaudience.Alsoknownas‘breakingthefourthwall’,thistypeofasideisusuallyfound

incomedyplaysand,asPfister(1991)notes,isfrequentlyusedbytheplay’svillainsorservants(p.

139).ExemplifyingwithanexcerptfromShakespeare’sMerchantofVenice,Pfister(1991)discusses

howthistypeofasidecanbeusedtocreateacomiceffect:

“Oneofthefunctionsoftheseasidesistoinformtheaudienceaboutthebackgroundtothe

dramaticsituationandthespeaker’splansandthusbothtocreatealevelofsuspenseforwhat

istofollowandtoensurethattheaudiencehasaninformationaladvantageoverthevictims

oftheintrigue”(p.140).

Furthermore,theyservetocreateafeelingof‘complicity’intheaudience.Thisspecifictype

of aside is important in relation toHouse of Cards, as it is used by FrankUnderwood regularly

throughouttheshow.Byspecificallyaddressingtheaudienceandlettingtheminonhissecretplans

andschemes,he,asanarrator,attemptstostrengthentherelationshipandconnectionbetween

hisowncharacterandtheaudience.Frank’sroleasnarrator,hisuseoftheasideadspectators(and

theconsequenceshereof), and the relationshipbetweenhis characterand theaudiencewillbe

examinedfurtherintheanalysis.

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Analysis

HouseofCards(2013)isanAmericanpoliticaldrama,adaptedfromtheBBCminiseriesofthe

samename,andbasedonthenovelbyMichaelDobbs.SetinpresentdayWashingtonDC,theseries

follows the Southern democrat and ambitious US congressman Francis “Frank” J. Underwood

(played by Kevin Spacey) and his equally ambitious wife, Claire Underwood (played by Robin

Wright),whorunsanNGO,theCleanWaterInitiative(“CWI”).WhenFrankispassedoverasthe

newSecretaryofState,aftersuccessfullyhavingsupportedthePresidentoftheUnitedStatesinhis

electioncampaign,hesilentlyswearsrevengeonthepeoplewhobetrayedhim,and initiatesan

elaborateplanbehindthepresident’sbacktogainaplaceofgreaterpowerwithaidfromhiswife.

WelcometoWashington

Onthesurface,thepilotepisodeofHouseofCardsdistinguishesitselffromthetraditionalserial

televisionstructure,asitcanbearguedhowHouseofCardsviewsmorelikea13-hourmoviethan

aserieswith13isolatedepisodes(whichwillbediscussedinmoredetail later).However,inline

withtheopeningofafilm,“Chapter1”ofHouseofCardsneedstomotivateandpersuadetheviewer

tokeepwatchingtherestoftheseriesaswellasteachtheaudiencehowtowatchit.

“Chapter1”startsoutwithalongcoldopening(threeminutesand35seconds),functioning

asshortintroductiontoboththemaincharacterFrank,butalsoPresident-electGarrettWalker,Vice

PresidentJimMatthews,andChiefofStaffLindaVasquezwhowillprovetofallvictimtoFrank’s

wrath during the first two seasons. The opening begins with an event that is seemingly

inconsequentialtotheover-allnarrative,butcrucialtotheportrayalofFrank’scharacter.Before

the image showsupon the screen, the audiencehears the screechingof tires, a crash and the

whimpersofadog(56:17).Withnoimages,theaudienceisfromthefirstframelefttothinkfor

themselvesandfigureoutwhathappenedowntheirown.Whilethedetailsofthisexactsituation

arenottoughtofigureout,HouseofCardsslowlyteachesandtrainstheaudiencetopayattention,

startingfromthefirstframe.ThefirstimageonthescreenpresentsFrankUnderwoodinahalf-put-

togethertuxedo,openingthefrontdoorsandsteppingoutontothestreet,asthedriverofthehit-

and-run flees the scene. He tells anotherman,who is later identified as Steve, to go alert the

Wharton’s,asFrankrecognizesthedogastheirs.Atthispoint,theaudiencehasnotbeengivena

lotofdirectinformationregardingthelocationandtheidentityofwhothismanis,leavingthemto

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speculateaboutthecharactersonthescreeninfrontofthem.Whoarethetwomenandwhatis

theirrelationship?Thedialoguebetweenthem(“Didyougetagoodlook”–“BlueToyotaCamry,

that’sallIsaw”(55:58))couldsuggestanemployer-employeerelationshipbutnothingisconfirmed

yet.AfterhavingsentSteveaway,Frankkneelsdownbythewheezingdogandquietlysuffocatesit,

whilegivingtheaudiencetheirfirstexperienceofthefourth-wallbreakthattheywillneedtoget

accustomedto.Initially,itseemsFrankmightjustbetalkingtothedogorhimself,asifthinkingout

loud,butthenhedirectshisgazedirectlyatthecamera,tellingtheaudience“Ihavenopatiencefor

uselessthings”(55:23).

This scenehas several functions. First of all, the audience is presented to Frank’s aside, a

techniquefrequentlyusedthroughouttheseries.Theambiguityofthebeginningofthemonolog

almostseemstoeasetheaudienceintothisdistinctivetechnique.Secondly,itgivestheaudiencea

glimpseintothecharacterofFrank.Thewhimperingdogiswithoutadoubtinpainandbyquietly

puttingthedogof itsmisery,allthewhile lettingtheaudienceknowthathe iswillingtodothe

unpleasant,butnecessarything,thissituationportraysFrankasaharshbutfairman.TheWhartons

arrive,confirmingthatthedogistheirs,whileFrankconfirmstheemployer-hypothesis:“Steveis

goingtofilethereportonthecar,andhe’llputhispeopleonit.We’lltrackthemdown”(54:54).

ThiscommentalsogivestheaudienceaclueregardingFrank’scharacter-whatkindofprofession

requireshimtohaveabodyguard?ThecamerathencutstointeriorofFrank’shouse,whereheand

his(presumed)wifefinishgettingdressing,andbythispoint,theaudiencehavededucedafewof

Frank’scharactertraits:agoodneighbor,alovingpartner,importantenoughtohaveatleastone

bodyguard.

Thenextcutdatesthescenario–NewYear’sEve2012atthestrokeofmidnight,whichputs

theseriesincontemporarytime,asHouseofCardspremieredonNetflixinFebruary2013.Atthis

bigevent,Frankkisseshispartnerandthenaddressesthevieweragain,thistimewithnoambiguity

whatsoever(54:15).Duringthisaside,hepresentstheaudiencetoPresident-ElectGarrettWalker,

while providing his own personal opinion on the man. This confirms the hypothesis that The

Underwoodsaresocialites,iftheyspendNewYearsEveatTheWhiteHouse;Frank’smentioningof

his“22yearsincongress”(53:53),providesanotherclueregardinghisrelationtoTheWhiteHouse:

heisorusedtobe,amemberofcongress.HecarriesontopresentandcommentonboththeVice

President,JimMatthews,andtheChiefofStaff,LindaVasquez,beforefinallyrevealingthatheholds

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thepositionofa“lowlyHouseMajorityWhip”(53:15)–butheisontobiggerthings,soitwillnot

lastmuchlonger.

This cold opening clearly sets the tone and setting for the series through the use of

Washingtonand thepresident.This ishelpedalongby the title sequencewhich featuresa1.45

minutes long time lapse sequenceportrayingadarkandgrittyDC, setting the scenewithin the

political sphere of the United States.Mittell (2015) argues that “most contemporary programs

either forego opening credit sequences entirely or precede shorter sequences with a teaser

sequencetoimmerseviewersinthenarrative”(p.57).ThisdoesnotapplytoHouseofCards,asthe

titlesequencedemandstheviewer’sfocusallonitsownandportraysthematicideassuchaspower,

which,combinedwiththedarkandgritty images,greatly reflects the influenceofFincher (Beyl,

2013;Granild,2014),whichwillbefurtherdiscussedinthecomingparagraph.Thisseemstobea

tendencywithNetflixOriginals,as their title sequencesareusually longerandmoreheavywith

symbolism.Daredevil,forexample,showsdifferentbuildingsandmonumentsfromHellsKitchen

slowlymaterializingastheyaredrenchedinthesameredcolorasDaredevilssuit,representinghow

heseestheworld,bothliterallyandfiguratively:acityonfire.OrangeistheNewBlackfeatures

shortcloseupsofdifferentfaces,portrayingthemanydifferentpeopleandlivesaffectedbyminimal

securityincarceration.Theintrosequencesoftheircablecounterpartsusuallyshowclipsfromthe

series, featuring the characters alongwith the actor’s name, e.g. Suits (2011), where the intro

sequencefeaturesclipsfromNewYorkintercutwithclipsoftheseries’twomaincharacters.The

openingofthefirstepisodecreatesasubstantialamountofcontext,notonlyforrestoftheepisode,

butalsofortheover-allseries;withinthefirsttenminutes,themaincharacters,thesetting,and

theentirepremisefortheseasonhasbeenrevealed–theconsequencesoftherejectionofFrank

asSecretaryofState,andthecontinuousfourthwallbreak,beingthetwomostimportantelements.

Therestoftheepisodeexpandsuponthis,andfurtherestablishestheintrinsicnormsfortheseries,

aswellasmakingconnectionstotherelevantextrinsicnorms,styleandnarrativemode-concepts

whichwillbeanalyzedinalatersection.

Fincher’sinfluenceisevidentnotonlyintitlesequence,butintheoverallcinematographyof

HouseofCards.Aestheticallyandstylistically,HouseofCardsportraysthecoldandharshworldthe

Underwood’sinhabit.Thecolorpaletteconsistsofblues,greysandtealsandboththecharacters’

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costumesandtheirsurroundingsaddstotheportrayalofthecharacters.Theuseoflight(orlack

thereof) is furthermore very Fincheresque (Granild, 2014), as the use of darkness and shadows

reflects the darknesswherein the character, especially Frank,moves. An interesting contrast is

found in“Chapter1”,where thesceneat theNewYearsEveparty isbrightly lit (54:18),as this

portraysFrank’sfaceoutwardly.However,assoonasFrankandClairearealoneinthecarontheir

wayhome(51:19),theyarecoveredinshadows,reflectingtheirtrueselves.Thecameraworkclearly

reflects the overall theme of the series: power. With its slow, almost lazy, but deliberate

movements, preferring to shadow the character’s actions and movements instead of cutting

betweenangles,thecameraeffectivelyportraystherelentlessfocusandalmostdiabolicaldrivethat

defines Frank Underwood’s character. In an interview, the show’s cinematographer Eigil Bryld

mentions that “everythingwas to be very composed, anddesigned to communicate a senseof

powerandspace”(Kreindler,2013).Thisunderlyingthemeisevidentinthecinematography,and

eachshotreflectsthepowerrelationshipbetweenthecharactersinthescene.

OneofthemostcharacteristicnarrativetechniquesusedinHouseofCardsisthebreakingof

the fourthwall. Frank frequentlyaddresses theaudiencedirectly,and theuseof this technique

establishesFrankasthemaincharacteroftheseries,asheisquicklyintroducedasthenarratorof

his own story, which the audiencewill follow. These asides of Frank’s have different functions

dependingonthecontextthattheyaredeployedin.Klarer(2014)explainshowtheasideactsas“a

built-incommentaryandguidelineforreadingcorrectlytheactionsoftheprotagonist.Frankkeeps

giving us clues whenever his actions or words seem to contradict his real character” (p. 208).

Sometimestheirroleisassimpleexpositionaldevices,asthepresentationattheNewYearsEve

party,orFrank’scommentafterameetingwithLindaVasquez:“Didyousmellthat?Thesmugness,

thefalsedeference.ShethinksIcanbeboughtwithapairoftickets.WhatamI,awhoreinpost-

warBerlin?Salivatingoverfreestockingsandchocolate?Whatshe’saskingwillcostfarmorethan

that”(27:44).Othertimestheyfunctionasinterruptingoutburstswithinonscreenconversations,

havingFrankcontemplatethesituationoutloudtotheaudience.Justbeforetheabovementioned

meetingwithLindaVasquez,Franktakesashortmomenttomuseonthereasonforthesubsequent

meetinganditspotentialoutcome:“It’squiterareforapresident’schiefofstafftoclimbthehill.A

gestureofrespect,nodoubt,ordesperation.I’mguessingshe’llsay“DonaldBlytheforeducation”.

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Let’sseeifI’mright”(29:19),andthenproceedstolookexasperatedtowardstheaudienceduring

the conversation, to let them in on the ridiculousness of the situation. The use of asides helps

establishFrankasthemaincharacter,andgivestheaudienceaccesstotheinnerworkingsofthe

White House through Frank’s perspective, providing them with a gateway, to what could be

consideredasecretworld.

ThecentralfigureofthestoryisclearlyFrank,asalmosteveryothercharacterexistsprimarily

inrelationtohim.TheUnderwoodsareportrayedasanextremepowercouple,withFrankhaving

apowerfulpositionwithinthegovernment,andClaireworkingastheheadofasuccessfulcharitable

organization,therebynotwithoutpoliticalsavvinessherself.WhenFrankneglectstocontacther

afterhisfirstmeetingwithLindaVasquezandcomeshomelate,Claireremindshimthatthey“do

thingstogether.Whenyoudon’tinvolveme,we’reinfreefall”(42:01).ThisestablishesClaire’sneed

tobesignificant.Shedoesnotwanttobemerelyapolitician’swife,whositsathome,whileher

husbandseestoalltheactionalone.Theyarestrongerthanthat,theyareequal–atleastifyouask

Claire.Franklatercomments:“Ilovethatwoman.Ilovehermorethansharksloveblood”(38:32),

insinuatingthatheagreeswithClaireonthedynamicbetweenthetwo,yet,astheviewerlaterfinds

out, he has no problem betraying his wife for his own profit. Both reporter Zoe Barnes and

congressmanPeterRussoare introducedwithoutan immediateconnection toFrank,butas the

pilotprogresses,ZoeentersabusinessagreementwithFrank,andPeterRussoendsupasFranks

lapdog.Intheopening,Frankintroducedtheaudiencetothethreemostimportantpeopleinthe

WhiteHouse–andconsequentlythetreepeoplehevowstoruinforhavingpassedhimover.

The main storyline of the season follows Frank, who is livid after being passed over as

SecretaryofState.Thisstorylinesetssails,asheschemeswithhisemployeeandright-handman

DougStamperonhowtobestgetrevengeoverthepeoplewhohasbetrayedhim–beginningwith

thenewlyappointedSecretaryofState,MichaelKern.AsFranknotes,“That’showyoudevoura

whale,Doug.Onebiteatatime”(37:25).Zoe’sjourneytothetopofTheHeraldfoodchainisquickly

intertwinedwithFrank’s revengescheme,as theybeginabusinessarrangement,whereinFrank

usesZoetoexploitandmanipulatehiscolleagues intosubmission,whileZoeusesFranktogain

more attention and respect in her field as a journalist. Peter Russo, a congressman from

Philadelphia,isbusywithhisownstoryline(whichincludespoorworkperformance,sleepingwith

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hisassistant,anddrinkingtoomuch)untilhisalcoholictendencieslandshiminjailafteraDUIarrest.

ThissituationiswherehisstorylineintertwineswithFrank’s,asFrankbailinghimoutplaceshim

heavilyinFrank’sdebt,andtherebyforcinghimtodoFrank’sbidding.Lastly,thereisClaire’sjobat

theCWIandtheirfuturedevelopmentandexpansion.Thisisthemoststand-alonestoryline,butit

isstillpartlyset inmotionbyadonationcontingentonFrankgettingnominatedasSecretaryof

Statefallingthrough,asthisresultsinachangeofcourseandalargeroundoflayoffsatCWI.Asall

theother storylineshavegreatly intertwinedwithFrank’s revengeplot, theaudience is right to

expectthemtointertwineevenfurther.Mittell(2015)describesconventionaltelevisionnarratives

asfeaturingthefollowing:

“twoormoreplotlines,thatcomplementeachother:amainAplotthatdominatesthescreen

timeandsecondaryBplotsthatmayofferthematicparallelsorprovidecounterpointtotheA

plotbutrarelyinteractswiththelevelofaction”(p.42).

ThecomplexityofthenarrativeinHouseofCardsworksagainstthesenorms,asthevarious

plotlinesoftencoincideandcollidethroughouttheseason.Manyofthesmallerpersonalstorylines

inHouseofCardsaresignificantandevolvethroughouttheseason;someasconsequencesofthe

main storyline, and some affect the main storyline, while still being subordinate to the main

storylineofFrank’spoliticalambitions.

Ifatraditionaltelevisionseriescanbecomparedtoacollectionofshortstories,HouseofCards

couldbecomparedtothenovel,andthereareseveralnarrativedevicesthatgiveweighttosucha

comparison.First,theepisodesareallgiventhetitleofchapters:“Chapter1”,“Chapter2”,etc.The

longandcomplexstorylineandplotscreatesafeelingofcontinuitythroughouttheentireseason,

tellingonelongstoryandnotseveralshortstories.Second,theuseofFrank’sasidesandhisroleas

a narrator links the narrative to that of a novel evenmore, as a first person narrator is most

commonly found in literature rather than in film or television. Through the use of these

components,HouseofCardsputsasidetheserialformatoftraditionaltelevisionandevolvesintoa

complexwebofnarratives,includingauthor,character,plot,andnarrator.

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“Chapter1”ofHouseofcards teaches theaudiencehowtowatch theseriesandwhat to

expect from future episodes, while simultaneously inspiring the viewer to keep watching. The

presentation of the different storylines prepares the audience for multiple story threads

interweavingwitheachother,e.g.Frank’sfirstmeetingwithDougwhichintroducesnotonlythe

mainstorylineofseasonone,Frank’srevengeplan,butalsothedestructionofKern’scandidacyas

SecretaryofState,whichlaststhefirsttwoepisodes.Thenthereisthesmallerstorylineofthehit-

and-run,whichisendedwithin“Chapter1”,asthedriveriscaughtattheendoftheepisode.The

uncompletedstorylinescreatenarrativeenigmas:HowwillFrankcarryouthisplanandhowfaris

hewillingtogo?WhatwillhappentothepoorandunfortunatePeterasFrank’slapdog?IfFrankis

asruthlessandviciousasheseemstobe,howwillthearrangementbetweenhimandZoeend?And

whoisinchargeintheUnderwoods’seeminglypowerfulrelationship?Enigmasthattheaudience

willhavetokeepwatchingtheshowtogettheanswersto.ThefactthatNetflixsignedonfora

secondseasonrunwithoutafinishedpilottoapprove(Vankin,2013)allowsHouseofCardstofocus

entirelyonstorytellingandcharacterization.Ratherthanspendingunnecessarytimewithartificial

cliffhangers,theyareabletoincludescenariossuchasthefirstscenewiththedog,whichhasno

realmeaningforthestorylinebutexistssolelyforthepurposeofestablishingFrank’smaincharacter

traits.“Chapter1”establishestheseries’tone,theme,styleandnarrativecharacteristicsaswellas

presentingasetofinterestingcharactersandevents,motivatingtheaudiencetokeepwatchingto

findouthowtheyarelinked.

Let’sbeFrank

OneoftheinitialgreatdrawsofHouseofCardswastheinvolvementofKevinSpacey.Asa

respectedmultipleAcademyAwardwinningactorhisnamealonefunctionedasasealofapproval.

Mittell (2015) argues that “actors serve as sites of intertextuality,merging viewermemories of

previouscharactersandknowledgeaboutoff-screenlivestocolorourunderstandingofarole”(p.

122).ThisnotionplaysanimportantroleregardingHouseofCards,astheaudiencehasahistory

withSpaceyinvillainousroles,suchasSe7en,whereheportrayedtheembodimentofevil-aserial

killerwhouseshisowndeathtomakevictimsdohisbidding,orinTheUsualSuspects(1995),where

hefooledthewholeworldregardingthetrueidentityofmythicalcrimekingpinKeyserSöze.Mittell

(2015)discusseshowBryanCranston’s role asHal inMalcolm in theMiddlewasan “important

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frameworkforhowWalterWhitewasperceived”(p.152),andmadehistransformation“fromMr.

ChipstoScarface”morebelievable-thesamecanbearguedwiththecaseofKevinSpacey.These

manipulative,psychotic,andvillainousrolesplayacrucialroleintheperceptionofSpaceyinthe

roleofFrankUnderwood.Only,thisisnotthestoryofhowMr.ChipsbecameScarface.Thereisno

journey - Scarface is already here.House of Cards is not the tale of the deterioration of Frank

Underwood’smoral–thatshipsailedlongago.HouseofCardsisthetaleofwhenMr.Scarfacegoes

toWashington.

AfterbeingcastintheroleasFrankUnderwood,SpaceyspentayearattheOldVicstarringas

thetitleroleinShakespeare’sRichardIII,aroleFincherhimselfcalled“greattraining”(Sepinwall,

2013).Thismakesgreatsense,becausethesetting,plotandcharactersofHouseofCardsareall

conduits that refer back to the compositions of Elizabethan theatrical plays, in particular

Shakespeare’sRichardIII.Spaceyhimselfhasstatedthat,astheoriginalsourcematerial,thebook

andtheoriginalTVseries,iswrittenbasedonRichard’sdirectaddress,“Frankwouldn’texistwithout

RichardIII”(A.Thompson,2014).TheplotandsettingofHouseofCardsmirrorsthatofRichardIII,

inwhichthestorytakesplaceattheLancastriancourtinLondon,andtheplay’smaincharacter,

Richard III himself, is a villain-like characterwho, ridiculed for his physical defect, encompasses

feelingsofbeingneglectedandpassedover regardingapositionofpower, and therefore vows

revenge.With cunning schemes, he plans a way to get rid of his competitors to the crown of

England,even ruthlesslybetrayinghisownbrother in theprocess. In themodernday centerof

power,WashingtonDC,Frank,unabletoacceptthepositionofSecretaryofStateallottedtoanyone

else,mimics this logicandswears to take revenge–atall costs.Additionally, there isa specific

charactertraitthatFrankshareswithhisShakespeareancounterpart:aloveofbreakingthefourth

wall.Furthermore,thisnarrativetechnique iscrucial fortherelationshipbetweenFrankandthe

audience.

Asmentioned in the theory section, Smith’s notion of alignment consists of the two key

elements:attachmentandaccess.Initsfirstscene,HouseofCardspresentsFrankaswhatFerenz

(2014)callsthe“pseudo-diegeticnarrator”(p.153)and,thereby,establishesthatthisiswherethe

viewer’salignmentwilllie.Thefourthwallbreakisimportant,asitprovidestheaudienceaccessto

characterinteriorityandallowsthemtobondwiththevillainousprotagonist.

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Whileputtingdownthedogin“Chapter1”,Frankstates:“Momentslikethisrequiresomeone

whowillact,whowilldotheunpleasantthing.Thenecessarything”(55:35)toclarifyandjustifyhis

actions.Uponexamining the fatallywoundeddog,hedoeswhatwouldbeconsideredthemost

consideratethinginasituationlikethis,byputtingthedogoutofitsmisery.Althoughthisscene

doesnotdepictFrankasasympatheticman,thisactionindicatesthatheisaheroicfigure,someone

whoisabletodowhatisnecessary–therightthing–howeverhardorunpleasantitmaybe.Soon

after,theaudiencefindsFrankinhisbathroom,washingthebloodoffofhishands.Withasingle

glancedirectlytowardsthecamera(53:39),Franksituatestheaudiencenotonlyinsidehishome,

but insideoneof themostprivate rooms inhishome, thus strengthening the impressionof an

intimaterelationshipbetweenFrankandtheviewer.Thesefirstcoupleofminutesoftheepisode

managestocreateapositivefirstimpressionoftheshow’smaincharacter,andalthoughFrank’s

moralambiguityisexposedbeforetheendoftheepisode,thisinitialpresentationofhimasamoral

andpositivecharacterislikelytostaywiththeaudience.ArthurA.Raney(2004)explainshow“the

initialformationofanaffectivedispositiontowardsacharactermayattimesprecedespecificmoral

evaluations of the character” (p. 361). This scene allows the audience to form a positive and

favorablejudgmentofhischaracterearlyon,andismorelikelytostickwiththatjudgmentandstay

investedinFrankasacharacter,evenashismoralambiguityprogressesintoflatoutimmoralityby

theendoftheseason.Klarer(2014)argueshowthisintroduction“initscruelty,[…]expoundsthe

protagonist’s main character trait of extreme loyalty to his own self-imposed and rather

questionableprinciples”(p.206).

Frankaddressestheaudiencetogivethemaninsightintohisplans–ratherthanrevealinghis

innerthoughts–andmostimportantly:toletthemknowhehasone.Frankisamastermanipulator

andreversepsychology isoneofhismostusedstrategiestoaccomplishthis.AnotherofFrank’s

abilitiesisconvincingpeopletoeithertaketheblameforhim,ortonotblamehim;thisispresented

totheaudiencein“Chapter2”byFrankduringameetingwithDonaldBlythe,whowrotethefirst

draft of the education bill, which Frank just leaked to the press in order to crush it. Donald is

understandably distraught and unaware that the perpetrator is sitting in front of him. Frank

confidentlytellsBlythethatheisreadytotaketheblame–“I’llfallonthisgrenademyself,justto

pissthemoff”(39:41)–andpicksupthephonetocallJohnKingatCNN.Pause.Now,theaudience

iswellawareFrankisbluffing,butwhatexactlydoeshewanttoaccomplish?Heturnstothecamera

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andexplains:“Whatamartyrcravesmorethananythingisaswordtofallon.Soyousharpenthe

blade,hold itat just therightangle,andthen3,2,1…”(39:19).Rightoncue,Blythereplies:“It

should be me” (39:09). Blythe is clearly uncomfortable with Frank’s seeming martyrdom, and,

therefore,takestheblamefortheleakhimself.DonaldBlythewasaneasymark,andFrankisnow

incontroloftheeducationbill.Heresistedaboutasmuchasthewoundeddogin“Chapter1”,but

thissituationteachestheaudienceanimportantlesson-thisfirsttimetheaudiencehaswitnessed

Frank’suseofreversepsychology,heexplainedexactlywhathewasdoing,andhowhewasdoing

it.Thenexttime,theaudience isprepared;thesword issharpenedandFrankdoesnotneedto

explainwhatheisdoing–onlyhowheanglesthesword.

Bynow,theaudienceisusedtoandexpectstheseasides,andFranktypicallyusesthemtolet

theviewerinonhisgenuineintentions,almostmakingthemco-conspirators.Therefore,itgreatly

affectstheviewerwhentheyaresuddenlydeniedaccesstoFrank’sinteriority.Thishappensforthe

firsttimein“Chapter6”,whereFrankattendsaTVdebatewiththeheadoftheTeachersUnion,

MartySpinella.Beforethedebate,Frankisasconfidentaseverbutthedebateturnsoutdisastrous

andFrankultimatelyendsuphumiliatinghimselfonnationaltelevision.Klarer(2014)arguesthat

“afterhavingaccustomedtheviewertoanarrativelogicthatmakesthestorylineintelligiblethrough

carefullyplacedasides,wearesuddenlyconfrontedwithparadoxicalactionsbytheprotagonistthat

wouldrequireexplanationsviasuchasides”(p.208).Atthispoint,theaudiencehasanintimate

relationshipwith his character, and therefore trust this scenario to be a calculated strategy to

deceiveSpinellaandlurehimintoacarefullysettrap,toputthefinalnailinhiscoffinandendthe

strike.However, thetelevisiondebateendswithout theconfidentandself-assuredcommentary

fromFrank.Thetheaudienceislefttojustobserve,ashelaterwatchescountlessreplaysofhisown

wordshavingbeenturnedintoaviraldancemix(courtesyoftheInternet),ponderingjusthowmuch

impactthisfailurehashadonhisreputation–andhispride.Theviewer,onceatrustedconfidante,

is left to their ownhypothesizing on this narrative enigmauntil the end of the episode,where

Frank’s schemes andmanipulations puts him back in control of the situation fromwhere he is

ultimately able to put the final coffin in Spinella’s coffin. Up until now, the audience has been

accustomed toFrank’s liesanddouble-speak,butashis trustedco-conspirator, therehasnever

beenadoubt,thatFrankhasliedinhisasides.Theaudiencehasfunctionedashisaccomplice,but

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byleavingthemoutduringthenearlycatastrophicincidentatthedebate,andnotincludingthem

inthestrategyandprocess(ifthereevenwasone),theviewerislefttowonderthetruereliability

oftheirtrustedmaincharacter:isFrankplayingthemjustasmuchasheisplayingeveryoneelse?

Theviewerisputinthissituationagainatthebeginningofseasonfourafterthethirdseason

lefttheUnderwoodsinanunstablesituation,withClairewalkingoutonFrank.Chapter40,thefirst

episodeofseasonfour,presentsFrankasbeingclearlyaffectedbyClaire’slackofpresence.Frank

doesnotdirectlyaddresstheviewerbeforetheendofthesecondepisodeoftheseason,onceagain

leavingthemtotheirownhypothesizingandguessing.Theabsenceoftheasidesisdeafening,but

asFrankslowlybutsurelyreturnsincontrol,therearequickmomentswhereFrankseemstoalmost

addresstheaudience,butthenquicklylooksaway–almostasifheisteasingtheaudience.Atthe

endof“Chapter41”hefinallyfeelsenoughcontroltoaddresstheviewerdirectlywithastoryfrom

hischildhood(12:04),effectivelylettingtheaudienceknow,howhewillletClaireplayhergamebut

if shedoesnotknowwhen toquit,hewill (masterfullydiscreet,of course)manipulateher into

submission.

Theuseoftheasidesiscrucialfortheaudience’sattachmentandalignmentwithFrank.Mittell

(2015)notesthefollowingonthecharacterWalterWhite:

“Aswelearnabouthiscancer,hisunfulfillingcareer,andhisdirefinancialsituation,weare

fullyattachedtothecharacter,sharingknowledgethathekeepssecretfromothercharacters,

thusincreasingouralignment”(p.153)

ThisisthesamecaseforFrank.Throughtheasides,Frankputstheviewerinthepositionofa

confidante,onewithwhomheshareshisintimatesecretsandschemes–onewhohecanshowhis

true colors. Frank has several good qualities: he is career-driven, great at networking, and his

charismaandcharmingSouthernaccentcombinedwithhisloveforbarbequesportraysFrankasan

immenselyapproachableman–likeyoucouldgetabeerwithhim(orinthiscase,aplateofribs).

Butitisultimatelytheasides,whichincreasestheviewer’salignmentandandtrust.

Besidesexplainingtheplotandservingasguide-linesforFrank’strueintentions,theasides

(and maybe more importantly lack thereof) prove an important tool in the elaboration of his

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character.Mittell(2015)discussesseveralformsofchanges,fictionalcharactersmightgothrough

andargueshow“charactersrarelyshiftsignificantly,butourperceptionofthemdoes”,achangehe

dubs “character elaboration” (p. 136). This specific notion is important, when discussing Frank

Underwood,asthereisnorealtransformationinhischaracterthroughthefourseasons.Incontrast

toaseriessuchasBreakingBad,whichtellsthestoryofthegradualdemoralizationofthemain

protagonistWalterWhite,Frankisalreadydemoralized.Thatwhichin“Chapter1”presentsitself

asmoralambiguitymayattheendofthefirstseason,withthemurderofPeterRussoin“Chapter

11”,haveturnedouttobeflatoutimmoralitybutisitnotreallyportrayedasachangeinFrank’s

character,asmuchasanelaborationofhischaracter–heisnotsuddenlynowcapableofmurder,

heis justalsocapableofmurder.Heiscalmandcollectedinthecar,settingupthefakesuicide

situation,andshowsnosignofregretorfeelingsotherthanindifference.

Frank’s background is gradually fleshed out during the series. In “Chapter 8”, it is heavily

impliedthatFrankusedtobeinarelationshipwithhisoldmilitaryschoolfriendTimCorbet.Onthe

one hand, the introduction of Frank’s ‘sexual fluidity’ adds to his list of redeeming qualities,

portrayinghowFrankwas“alwayssodrawn”(21:35)tohimandcomfortableenoughtoactonit

andwhileFrank’sexpressionsofaffectionareusuallymanipulativeanddeceiving,theaffectionhe

felt towardsCorbet feltgenuine.This furthermoreaddstothenotionthatFrankwantswhathe

wantsandtakeswhathewants,whateverthepossibleconsequences,whileadditionallypointing

tohisandClaire’smarriageseemingmorelikeabusinessarrangementthanalovingrelationship.

AsmuchasthereisnorealchangeinFrank’scharacter,theeventsofseasonfourshowcase

whatmightmostresemblewhatMittell(2015)calls“charactereducation”(p.138),asFrankrealizes

hecannotgoonwithoutClairebyhisside.Attheendofseasonthree,Clairehasgrownwearyof

her assigned spot in the passenger’s seat and walks out on Frank. He is clearly affected and

distraughtbythesituation(heavilyimpliedbyhislackofcommentarytotheaudience),butitisnot

beforehistriptothehospitalthatherecognizesthatheneedsherbyhisside–ormaybeevenwhat

shecanaccomplicewithouthim.Theysaybehindeverygreatman isagreatwoman,butClaire

Underwood stands behind no one, and by walking out on Frank, she cements her need for

significance.WhileFrankishospitalized,shespendslittletimesittingbyhisbedsideandwhenFrank

awakensandisbroughtuptospeed,heseemstofinallygenuinelyappreciateandrespectClaire’s

hardworkandsignificanceinhisrisetopower.EspeciallynowthathealsolostEdwardMeechum,

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who was greatly important to him, Frank would truly be alone without Claire. This notion is

ultimately cemented in the final fewmomentsof season four: Frank,onceagain, looked to the

cameraandspoketotheviewer.“Wedon’tsubmittoterror.Wemaketheterror”(02:52).While

statingthis,heturnstoClaireathisside,whoreactstohiswords,andinasignificanttwist,bothof

themturntheirgazedirectlytowardsthecamera.Clairehasneverbeforebrokenthefourthwall,

andthisrepresentsafundamentalshiftindynamicsbetweenthem.Upuntilnow,Frankhasbeen

inthemostpowerfulposition,theoneincharge,butnowhehasfinallyrecognizedhowintegral

Clairehasbeenforachievingandmaintainingtheirsuccess.Thissharedbreakofthefourthwall

representssharedcontrol.Forthefirsttime,theyaretrulyequal.

ThePoweroftheAuthor

In regards to Frank’s reliability, thereareaparticular interesting scene fromseasonone’s

“Chapter13”,whichplaysfurtheronthenotionoftrustbetweenFrankandtheaudience.Frankis

sittinginhisoffice,waitingforthepresidenttofinishameetingthatwilldeterminethesuccessof

Frank’smasterplan.Helooksupattheclockabovehisdesk.Thecamera–andbyextensionthe

audience–isplacedinsidetheclock,behindthetickinghands.Frankasks:“You’veneverbeenan

ally,haveyou?”(13:33),andforabriefmoment,thiscommentseemstobedirectedattheaudience

–isFranknowblamingthebreachoftrustontheviewer?Itquicklybecomesclear,though,that

Frankistalkingabouttime,andheexplainstotheaudience,howagonizingwaitingcanbe.From

theunusualperspective,theviewerhasagreatoverviewofFrank’sdeskandthecontentthereon.

ThisincludesacopyofThePassageofPower,thefourthinstallmentofRobertCaro’sbiographyof

Lyndon B. Johnson, which was released the year before. Now, this is a rather loaded product

placement.LyndonB.Johnsonwasasouthernpolitician,aTexandemocrat,whowasknownforhis

skillfulmanipulations.Asthe36thpresidentoftheUnitedStates,hebecameanimmenselypowerful

manincongress(LBJ:Biography,nd.).ThePassageofPowerdocumentsJohnson’sclimbtothevice

presidencyand,followingtheassassinationofJohnF.Kennedy,thepresidency.Bythistime,the

audienceiswellaware,thatFrankwilldoanythingtogetwhathewants–evenmurder–butcould

the placement of this book indicate, that Frank is reading some kind of playbook? Is this

foreshadowingseasontwo?Giventheaudience’scomplicatedrelationshipwithFrank,thereisno

wayofknowing,ifhehasputthebookinframeasafriendlyreadingsuggestionorifthisisarare

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momentintothetruecharacterofFrank,unintendedfortheviewer’seyes.Goingwiththelatter,

thisshotisareminderfortheaudience,thatthereareseveralfunctionstoFrank’sasides.Yes,they

explaintheplotandservesasguide-linesforhistrueintentions,buttheyalsohelpsculptingthe

viewer’simpressionofhim.Frankisconstantlyensuringthatheisportrayedasasmartandsavvy

political strategist; however, if Frank fashions himself as Johnson, this suggests a new level of

vulnerability.Thisportrayshimnotasacleverconspirator,butmerelyanaspirant,andevenifthe

audiencehaspondereditbefore,theyarenowforcedtoconsider,whetherthey,throughtheasides,

arebeingmanipulatedbyFrank,justasmuchashehasmanipulatedeveryoneinthediegeticworld.

Inregardstothenotionofunreliablenarration,SeymourChatman(1990)hascoinedtheterm

impliedauthor,whichdedescribesas“theoverridingsourceofthestory”(p.131),thustheimplied

authorfunctionsastheoverallcreatorandisresponsibleforthetotaldesignofthenarrative(s).

WhileChatmandescribestheimpliedauthorasnotpartofthefictionalworld,Klarer(2014)argues

thefollowingforhowFrankcanbeconsideredtheimpliedauthorofHouseofCards:

“Thedrivingforcebehindallof[the]asidesistoidentifyFrankUnderwoodastheauthoror

creatorof theunfoldingaction. Like theauthorofa text,heputswords in themouthsof

charactersaswellasdirectstheiractionsaseverygoodauthorornarratorwoulddo”(p.213)

Withhismanipulations,Frankcreatesasenseofimportanceregardingvariouscharacterroles

inhisplans,onlytodisposeofthemwhentheyarenolongerneeded.FrankisresponsibleforZoe’s

growingpopularityandclimbuptheprofessionalladder,andthefateofPeterRussohasbeenin

thehandsofFranktheentireseason.Asamasterpuppeteer,Frankhascreatedpuppetsaround

him to do his bidding and just like the implied author, he orchestrates his surroundings and

manipulatesthepeoplearoundhimtofollowhisownconstructednarrative.Chatman(1990)has

furthermorecoinedtheterm“cinematicnarrator”whichhedefinesas“thecompositeofalarge

andcomplexvarietyofcommunicatingdevices”(p.134),includingelementssuchasmusic,lighting,

misè-en-sceneetc.–allessentialelementswhendeterminingtheintrinsicnormsofHouseofCards.

Iftheimpliedauthorisresponsibleforthedesignofthenarrative,thatmakesthecinematicnarrator

thetransmitterofthenarrative,andnotthecreator.Thisalsocorrelateswithhowthecinematic

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narrator expresses Frank’s version of the world. The underlying theme of power is visible and

highlightedinthecinematographyandthecinematicnarratorseemstoco-operatewithFrank,in

hisployofwinningovertheaudienceandconvincingthem,thattheUnderwoodsaretheheroic

protagonistsoftheseries.Frank,astheimpliedauthor,isincontrolofthecinematicnarratorand

thereforeincontrolofallthecommunicativedevicesandusesthemtohisownadvantagetoportray

himselfasthepowerfulcreator.

WhenPushComestoShove

Whilemuchofserialtelevisionaimstomakeaudiencecomprehensionaseasyaspossible,

complextelevisionhasincreasedthetoleranceforconfusionamongtheirviewersandencourages

themtopaycloseattentionandmaketheirownwaytocomprehendthenarrative(Mittell,2015,

p.164).HouseofCardsisdefinitelyguiltyofthisstrategy,andthissectionaimstotakeacloserlook

atexactlyhowtheydoit,bylookingatthefirstepisodeofseasontwo.Theepisodehasbeenchosen

forcloserexaminationbecause,witharatingof9.6,itisoneofthehighestratedepisodesofthe

seriesonIMDB(“Chapter14”).Itisfurthermoreinterestingtoexaminehowtheserieswelcomes

theviewerbackforthefirsttimeafterawholeyear(assumingtheviewerbingedthefirstseason

when it premiered).Additionally, this episode featuresbotha surprising absenceof fourthwall

breaksfromFrankandtheunexpectedmurderofZoeBarnes,Frank’ssecondkill,whichcontrasts

greatlytothemurderofPeterRusso–butthiswillbediscussedinmoredetaillater.Letusfirsttake

alookatthedifferentnarrativedevices.

SeasontwoofHouseofCardsbeginswhereseasononeleftoff–withFrankandClaire’sjog.

Theopeningsequenceiscompletelydevoidofanydialogueandaimstheviewer’santicipationaway

fromanyplotquestionsandtowardstheemotionalconnectiontotheseries.Thedarkofnight,the

sound of cars and a dog barking is reminiscent of the aforementioned “Chapter 1”,where the

viewer’s firstmomentswith theUnderwoods also featureddogs and late nights. The sequence

showsFrankandClaireliterallyrunningintofocusandframe,takingashortpausetocatchtheir

breathandthencontinues,movingoutoftheframe.Besidescreatingagreatamountofcontinuity

acrosstheseasons,thisopeningalsofunctionasaforewarningtotheaudience,thatthisseason

intendstoraceforwardsfromwhereseasononeended.

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HouseofCardsholdsnoone’shandsastheseriesrushonwiththenarrative,andexpectsthe

viewertopayattentionandtokeepupontheirown.Iftheviewertunesintoseasontwoforthe

first time, they will be presented with a 3 min. recap of season one. This is the only form of

“previouslyon”,theaudiencewillbepresented,asNetflixdoesnotemployrecaps,astraditional

serialtelevisiondoes.Netflix’sContentChief,TedSarandosexplainstheirreasoningbehindthelack

ofrecapsasfollows:

“Wegetthisgreatluxury,thatwhenanepisodeitwritten,thatweassume,thatyousawthe

one justbefore it,andwedon’tspendanytimeremindingyouwhathappened lastweek,

becauseitjusthappened,youjustwatchedit,andthatreallygivesyou,youknow,literally15-

20 minutes an hour that you’re not spending doing exposition, or reminder, or artificial

cliffhangerstogetyoutrickedintonextweek,andyoureallydogetmorestorytelling,and

morerichness,andbythetimeyougetto13hours,youhavespentmoretimewiththose

people”(“Netflixshowsdon’tneedannoyingrecaps”)

Thisnotionisevidentinthenarrativeanddialogueoftheseries.Frank’sasideswillfromtime

to timefunctionasexposition,giving theviewerabrief introductiontonewcharacters,but the

seriesspendslittletimebringingthevieweruptospeedasidefromthisdevice,astheyareexpected

tokeepupontheirown.Fromthefirstepisode,theviewerhasbeentaughttopayattentionand

focusonthesubjectathand.ThewayHouseofCardsmanagestheinformationdistributionserve

tocreatenarrativeenigmasanddevelopcuriosityamongtheaudience,bylettingdifferentscenarios

playoutandonlyafterwardsprovidetheaudiencewiththeneededinformation.Whiletheviewer

isgrantedaccesstoFrank’sinteriority,theyarelefttomaketheirownhypothesizingwhenitcomes

to the other characters. One who is particularly difficult to read is Claire. She seems to be as

calculatingandruthlessasherhusband,butwithoutthedirectaccesstoherinteriority,herthoughts

andmotivesaredifficulttodeduce.In“Chapter14”sheisshownatthedoctor’soffice,lookingfor

information on genetic testing and fertility drugs for post 40 pregnancies (25:05). Throughout

seasonone,therehavebeenhintsatClairehittingmenopause,andthissceneinsinuatesthatshe

maybehavingsecondthoughtsaboutnothavingchildren.However,inalaterscenerevealedthat

Claireonlywent to theclinic togather information, soshecouldblackmailGillianColeoutofa

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lawsuit (18:42).Without direct access to Claire’s inner thoughts, there is no guidelines for the

audience’shypothesizing,andtherevealoftheblackmailaddsanewlayerofcomprehensiontoa

previousscene,whichintentionsseemedclear.Clairemakesherintentionscompletelyclear,when

shesays:“I’mwillingtoletyourchildwitheranddieinsideyou”(18:36),butjustastheaudienceis

confidentintheirhypotheses,yetanotherlayerisadded.Inthesubsequentscene,Clairecancelsall

furtherappointmentsandtestsattheclinic,andwhilethisseemsobvious,asitwasallaploy,Claire

hesitates(17:39),andthispromptsthequestion:wasitreallyjustatrick?

Asmentioned, oneof the series’ established intrinsic norms is the continuous fourthwall

breaking. Mittell (2015) argues how serial television can play with these norms to “create

pleasurablemomentsofconfusion,surprise,andtwistytrickery”(p.168),andthisisexactlywhat

happensin“Chapter14”withtheaforementionedabsenceoftheaside.Atthispointintheseries,

theviewerhasbeenaccustomedtobeingFrank’saccompliceandco-conspirator,butFrankstarts

thesecondseasonoffwithdeafeningsilence.Notuntiltheepisode’slastscene,doesheaddress

the audience directly. This absence of the asides serves two functions. Firstly, it highlights the

strengthofthestorytellingandcementshowtheaudiencebenefitsfromtheaddedexpositionand

intimaterelationshipwithFrank.Astheviewerisdowngradedtothebenches,watchingfromthe

side,theyareremindedhowimportantthefourthwallbreaksare,astheyspendtheepisodewaiting

forclues,anticipatingandhypothesizingFrank’sthoughtsandactions–whoisthisJackieSharpand

isFranktrulyinterestedinJackietakingoverasWhiporisshejustanotherpawn?Andforjusthow

longhashebeenplanningZoe’smurder -ascenariowhichwillbediscussedfurther inthenext

paragraph.Bynow,theaudiencehasgottensousedtoFrank’sexplanationsandsnarkycomments,

theyarepositivelylostwithoutthem.Frank’slackofconfidingintheaudienceportraysjusthow

dependenttheyareontheirrelationshipwithhim–somethingFrankwantstocement,asheshows

histruecolors.Heeffectivelyshowinghisdominanceandpowerovertheviewer.Secondly,itserves

asareminderfortheviewerthatFrankisanenigmaofhisown,maybeeventhegreatestenigma,

andheremainstruetoonlyhimself.Hemightlettheviewerplaythepartofintimateconfidante,

butasthisservestoremindthem,itisonlyonFrank’sownterms,aseverythingelseinHouseof

Cards.

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Bordwell(2007)describeshow“Curiositystemsfrompastevents:whatleduptowhatwe’re

seeingnow?Suspensepointsusforwards:whatwillhappennext?Surprisefoilsourexpectations

anddemandsthatwefindanalternativeexplanationforwhathappened”(p.16).Withthemurder

ofZoe,HouseofCardsturnsthetraditionalmodelofsurpriseandsuspenseknownfromtelevision

around.Thismurder isalso ingreatcontrasttothemurderofPeterRusso inseasonone,which

slowly followed the model for suspense. As a contrast to Zoe, Peter was from the beginning

portrayedashavinglittlecontroloverhislifeandhisaddictions,whileZoe,lowonTheHeraldfood

chainshemightbe,isportrayedasaresourcefulgo-getter.EvenbeforehegotsweptupinFrank’s

schemes,Peterwaspracticallyuseless–andasFranklettheviewerknowin“Chapter1”,hehas

“no patience for useless things” (55:23). This is how the audience knows that when Peter has

outlivedhisusefulness,hewillbeputdownjustasthedogin“Chapter1”.Frankspendstherestof

seasononebuildinghimup,onlytoknockhimdownagainforhisowngain.WhenFrankplacesthe

razorblade(arazorbladethathaseffectivelybeenonthemantelsince“Chapter2”)byPeter’sside

in“Chapter6”,tellinghimto“cutalongthetracks,notacrossthem.”(04:20), there isnodoubt

anymore.Thissceneeffectivelyforeshadowsthemurder,asFrankbytheendoftheseasonwill

onceagainhavemanufacturedPeter’ssuicideandtheaudienceismerelyleftwaitingforcluesas

towhenthiswillhappen.ThemurderofZoe,ontheotherhand,abruptlypullstheaudienceoutof

theircomfortzone.Mostof“Chapter14”seemtoindicateacontinuedpartnershipbetweenZoe

andFrank,astheymeetanddiscussthisverytopic–“Let’sstartthischapterwithacleanslate”,

Franksays.Thisnotionisbackedupbythetrailerfortheseason,asthisparatextinsinuatesthatZoe

isfeaturedthroughthemajorityoftheseason–oratleastuntilafterFrankofficiallytakestheVice

Presidency.AddingtothisthoughtistheamountofpressKatieMaradidfortheseason,thecast

andcrewdidagreatjobconcealingthissurprise.ThemurderofZoeisasurprisingandshocking

twistofasizethat isusuallyreservedforandbefittingseasonfinales.Thistwistofthemodel is

additionallyportrayedquiteliterallyonthescreen,asFrankgrabsZoe,spinsher180degreesand

shovesherout in frontof the train (13:04). Theaction is surprisingand suddenandwith tricky

foreshadowing.Earlierintheepisode,FreddietellsFrankaboutdifferentwaystoslaughterpigs:a

slowandtorturousmethodandaquickandhumanemethod(21:06).Thisisclearlyforeshadowing

something,eventheleastattentiveviewercanfigurethatout,butwhilethedogfrom“Chapter1”

wasforeshadowingforFrankputtingPeteroutofhismisery(eventhoughhemanufacturedthe

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misery)manyepisodeslater,thiseventshitswithin10minutesofthesameepisode.Eventhough

the audiencewas expecting something happening to Zoe, it hit them before they had time to

preparethemselves.AnothertinyflickerofforeshadowinganattentiveviewercouldpickupisFrank

wanting a “fresh start” (20:10)with Zoe – the same phrase he used for Peter’s campaign. The

murderofZoefurthermoreprovidesananswerforwhyFrank,earlierintheepisode,refusedthe

extra securitybeforehewasofficiallynamedVicePresident–hehada looseend to tiebefore

security amped up.House of Cards was building up suspense for the audience, as they knew

somethingwas in theworks for Zoe, but as Peter’s storyline lasted awhole season, Zoe’swas

expectedtoalso.However,withoutthetrustedrunningcommentaryfromFrank, theywere left

guessing,unabletoprepareforthesurprisemurderattheendoftheepisode.

HouseofCardsemployslittletononenarrativedevices,suchasflashbacks,dreamsequences,

etc. – until season four. In a surprising twist, season four features several of Frank’s dream

sequencesandhallucinationswhileheisinthehospital.Thehallucinationsofferaccesstocharacter

interioritywhileFrankisunabletoprovidethathimself,andtheyoffermaybethemostin-depth

viewofFrank’scharacteryet,asitisseeminglyanuncompromisedandtruelookintoFrank’spsyche.

Heseescivilwarsoldiers,foggywoodsandintheOvalOfficeheisadditionallyjoinedbyhispast

victims, ZoeandPeter,whohelpedhimget there.While it couldbearguedhow theseare just

imagesofFrank’slife,flashingbeforehiseyesasheliesdyinginthehospitalbed,thereissomething

almostapocalypticoverthem,asifhissinsarecatchinguptohim–couldthismean,thattheend

oftheUnderwoodsisnear?ThedoctortendingtoFrankarguesthatthehallucinationsarecaused

byhisfailingliver,butif,asKlarerargues,FrankisindeedtheimpliedauthorofHouseofCards,he

himself would be in control of these images. Frank is used to using his words and telling the

audience,whatheisthinking,andinthesesequencesheisshowingthem–buttowhatpurpose?

Frankhasspenttheentireseriesprotectinghispersonaasruthlessandcalculatingandnowheisall

ofasuddeninpossessionofaconsciousness,andheiswillinglylettingtheaudienceknow?This

couldhintatashiftinthedynamicintherelationshipwiththeviewer.JustasClaireisfinallyhis

equal – so is theaudience.Maybe it is just another technique tomanipulate theaudience into

regardinghimasmorehumanethanbefore.Atthispointintheseries,Frank’sreputationishanging

byathread,andthehallucinationscouldbeFrank’swayofgainingtheviewer’sconfidenceone

more,bynotonlytellingthem,butshowingthemwithpowerfulimageryhowmuchherepentshis

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previousactions.Furthermore,theendingofseasonfourheavilyhintsthatseasonfivewillportray

Frankasevenmoremonstrousthanbefore–thehallucinationscouldbeFrankneedingtoensure

theviewer’sallegiancebeforefullyunleashinghisinnermonster.Whateverthereason,itwillbe

immenselyinterestinggoingintothenextseason.

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DiscussionNetflixandBinge

With the technological developments and changes in distribution, the introduction and rise of

different video-on-demand (VOD) services has lead to drastic changes in consumer behavior.

WilliamTrouleauetal. (2016)argueshowthesechangeshas ledto“theriseofbingewatching,

wheremultipleTVepisodes,andpotentiallyentireseasons,areconsumedinasinglesetting.”(para.

1). The rhythm of the traditional flow TV forced the audience to accommodate their schedule

aroundtheirfavoriteTVseries,usuallywaitingaweekforanewepisode,spendingmonthswatching

anentireseason,butNetflixembracedthisnewandgrowingtendencyamongtheaudiencewith

thereleaseofHouseofCards(Klingenbergetal.,2014,p.43).Netflix’suserinterfaceiscustomized

tothisviewinghabit,binge-watching,withdifferenttechnologicaltrickstomaintaintheviewer’s

focus, and the format of the platform is therefore hugely important when discussing this

phenomenon.Whenanepisodeisfinished,Netflixautomaticallystartsacountdownof15seconds

(the countdown varies depending onwhat device the viewer is using – tablet, computer, etc.),

before thenextepisodebegins,hereby reducing the formerwaiting time fromaweek tomere

seconds.Klingenberg-Nielsenetal.(2014)discusshowthisforcestheviewertoactivelydeselect

continuingtowatchtheseriesandtheshortinterruptiondoesnotaffecttheviewerexperienceas

much,asaweek’swaitwoulddo,givingtheaudienceacoherentexperiencewiththefictionalworld

(p.43).Netflixsupportthenotionofonelongstory,astheviewerisfreetoclickonebuttonand

startthenextepisodeimmediately.Onecouldevenarguethatbyturningthetimecodeonitshead

(countingdowninsteadofup),everyepisodeisessentiallycountingdowntothenext.Apartofthe

traditionalstructureoftelevisionseriesistoincludearecapofthepreviousepisodes(“Previously

on…”)beforethetitlesequenceandtheopeningoftheseries(Mittell2015,187).Othertelevision

seriesincludeacoldopeningwithashortintrototheeventsoftheepisode,orsometimesevena

quickscenewithnorelevanceforthesubsequentevents.This iscommonlyutilized inTVshows

suchasFriends,wherethecoldopeningsetsuptheplotfortheepisode.Asaresultoftheformat

oftheplatform,Houseofcardsdoesnotemployrecaps,whichsupportsthenotionofonestory.

Besidesasummaryofthelast13episodeswhenfirsttuningintoanewseason,theaudienceis

expectedtopayattentionandkeepupontheirown.Furthermore,thetimingofthetitlesequence

varies from episode to episode – sometimes it is the first element to show up on the screen,

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sometimestheepisodesincludesacoldopening.AsNetflixisnotdependentonaspecificsettime

and schedule as traditional broadcast television is, the platform allows themnot to care about

triggering the viewer’s memory with these recaps, as they have most likely just watched the

previousepisodeandthereforedoesnotneedtheirmemorytriggered.

Another important factor when discussing binging, is the text itself. Narratively complex

televisionseriesdemandacertainoflevelofattentionfromtheviewer,makingitnecessaryforthe

viewertomakeaconsciousdecisiontodevotetheirfocusentirelytotheseries.Thisisonlypossible,

iftheaudienceisabletoscheduletheirtimeautonomously.Mittell(2010)arguesthefollowing:

”ComplexcomedieslikeArrestedDevelopmentencouragethefreeze-framepowerofDVDsto

catch split-second visual gags and pause the frantic pace to recover from laughter. These

televisual strategies are all possible via scheduled flow, but greatly enhanced by viewing

multiple timesviapublishedDVDs.Havingcontrolofwhenandhowyouwatchalsohelps

deepen one of the major pleasures afforded by complex narratives: the operational

aesthetic.”

ThecomplexnatureofthenarrativeinHouseofCardsdemandsthefocusandattentionofthe

audience,andtheintertwiningplotsandstorylinescreatesaseamlesscontinuitythroughoutthe

season,whichonlyseemtoencouragebinge-watchingtogetthefulleffect.Anotherelementwhich

allowsformorecomplexnarrativeisthetechnologicalchangesanddevelopments,whichprovide

theaudiencewiththepossibilitytoclickpauseandrewind.Mittell(2015)argueshowthecomplex

narrativesaredesignedfortheviewertonotonlypayverycloseattentionbutalsoto“rewatchin

ordertonoticethedepthofreferences,tomarvelatthedisplayofcraftandcontinuities,andto

appreciatedetailsthatrequiretheliberaluseofpauseandrewind”(p.38).Thecreatorsarefreeto

create evenmore complex narratives, as the technology allows the viewer to easily pay close

attention.

Netflixhasrecentlyreleasedwhattheycall“theNetflixbinge-scale”(Netflix&Binge),asurvey

on their subscribers and their viewing habits. Netflix’ Vice President of Original Content Cindy

Hollandexplainsthatthescale,whichrangesfromdevourtosavor,“indicates[that]theviewing

experience can range from the emotional to the thought-provoking” (Netflix & Binge).

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Unsurprisingly,theseriesrankedhighestonthe‘devour’endarethrillers,horrorandsci-fishows–

genreswhichgeneratealotofsuspenseandemotionalresponses.Thelistfeaturedtitlessuchas

Dexter(2006),AmericanHorrorStory(2011)andOrphanBlack(2013).The‘savor’endfeaturedthe

more thought-provoking dramas and “irreverent comedies” (Netflix & Binge), such asArrested

Development(2003).HouseofCardsisalsofoundonthisendofthescale,alongwithotherpolitical

andhistoricaldramassuchasTheWestWing (1999)andMadMen (2007).Whilethenoveland

movielikestructureofHouseofCardsdefinitelyencouragesbinge-watching,thecomplexityofthe

narrativeandcharactersseeminglyleavestheviewerinneedofbreakstocatchtheirbreath.

PlatformandFormat

TheformatofNetflixprovidescreatorswithbrandnewpossibilitiesforthenarrative

structureofseries.HouseofCardsfeaturesseveralelements,whichdrawsparallelsbetweenthe

structureoftheseriesandthestructureoramovieornovel.DavidFinchercommentsthe

followingontheseanalogies:

”Andit’scrazy.It’slikeabook.It’slikeyoureadingachapter,setitdown.GogetsomeThai

food,comeback,fireitupagain.Itworksinadifferentway.Thepaceofconsumptioninsome

wayinformsakindofrelationshipthatyouhavewiththecharacters,whichisverydifferent

fromdestinationtelevision.Oryouknowthe(“ILoveLucy”rerun)at7:30atTuesdaynights.”

(Sepinwall,2013)

Theparallelsbetween the structureofHouseofCards and thenovelandmovie is further

accentuatedbythetitlesoftheepisode–“Chapter1”,“Chapter2”,etc.–withwhichtheseries

itself calls toattention thestructuraloverlapbetweentelevisionandnovel: justasanovelwith

numerouschapterscanbereadattheviewer’sownpreference,HouseofCardscanbeconsumed

intheviewer’sowntime(Klarer,2014,p.215).Anotherelementwhichaddstothecomparison

betweenHouseof Cards and thenovel canbe found inNetflix’s user interface. If the viewer is

interruptedordecidestotakeabreakinthemiddleofanepisodeormovie–eveniftheyturnthe

servicecompletelyoff–theywillbepresentedwiththeexactspot,theypausedthefilmwhenthey

leftit.Thisfunctionevenwithseveraldifferentmoviesorseriesatthesametime.Wheneverthe

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audiencestopsaviewingofsomethingandpicksitupagainatalatertime–days,weeks,months

later–Netflixstarttheviewingattheexacttime,theyleftit;justasiftheviewerhadleftabookmark

inanovel.

AsinFincher’smusingsabove,‘binge-reading’isnotanewphenomenon–therehavealways

beenpeoplereadinganentirebookinonesitting–ashavetherebeenpeoplepreferringtoread

only one chapter at a time. Derek Kompare (2006) argues how the terms bywhich the viewer

consummatesthetextaremovingawayformabroadcastingandtowardsapublishingmodel:

“People have long been regarded in media studies as “spectators”, “viewers”, and

“audiences”,butmuchlesssoas“users”,“consumers”,and“collectors”.Astheexpansionsof

home video markets, the continued merging of media industries, and the significant

technological changes of the early twenty-first century indicate, the latter categories are

claimingprecedenceinindustryrhetoricandeverydayexperience”(p.353)

AsKompare indicates,as ithasalwaysbeenwith thepublicationofnovels, thechangeof

models switches thecontrolofconsummation fromthepublisher to theviewer.Thispublishing

modelallowsviewerswithaccesstoDVDsetsordownloadedfilestomimictheconsummationof

books,astheyareabletoconsultearlierepisodesorseasons.Thismodelherebygreatlyenhances

thestructuralpossibilitiesofstorytellingby lettingNetflixcreateshowsspecificallyaimedatthis

formatandthusbreakswiththetraditionsoftheclassicstructureoftelevision.HouseofCardshas

mergedelementsfromtraditionaltelevision,film,andthenovelintoahybrid,whichdisassociates

itselffromtheboundariesofcategorizationandfocusessolelyonthenarrative.

Anotherinterestingelementtoaddtothediscussionofnarrativeistherulesandrestrictions

traditional television isassigned to.Broadcast televisionhavestrict rules to follow,as thereare

rigorousregulationsasforwhatcanbeshownonnationaltelevision.Asmentioned,asaNetflix

series,HouseofCardsarenotboundbythesamerestrictionsascabletelevision,andareableto

usethistotheirstorytellingadvantages.Althoughsignificantlylessthanitscablecounterpart,HBO’s

GameofThrones,HouseofCardsfeaturegraphicsex,nudityandsmoking–elementsusedtofurther

fleshoutthecharactersortoadvancestorylines.In“Chapter9”,FrankquotesOscarWilde,saying

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“agreatmanoncesaid,everythingisaboutsex.Exceptsex.Sexisaboutpower”(05:44),aquote,

which is definitely true when discussingHouse of Cards. Throughout the series, rather than a

portrayalofloveandintimacy,sexisdepictedmostlyasthemeanstoanend–abargainingchipor

actofviolence,assexinHouseofCardsreallyisaboutpower(e.g.thepowerstrugglebetweenZoe

and Frank). Simultaneously, the seemingly lackof sexwithin theUnderwoodmarriage arguably

mightbethemostcompassionateandwarmeststoryarcoftheseries,asitisclearlyshownhow,

whiletheymightseekoutsidetheirmarriageforphysicalsatisfaction,thereiswithoutadoubta

deepintimatebondbetweenthepair,symbolizedbythenightlycigarette.Dependingontheeyes

of theviewer,Frank’s fluidsexualityandtheopennessof theirmarriagecanbothact to further

complicate and humanize the characters, or simply cement the characters as a power hungry

sociopathiccouplewhoprioritizespoweroverpassion.SmokingisanotherelementHouseofCards

isabletousetoadvancethecharactersandtheirrelationship,asthenightlycigaretteClaireand

Frank share is vital to the symbolization of their relationship. Prime-time broadcast television

generally does not show lead characters smoking cigarettes. Criminals, villains and generally

untrustworthycharacterswilloccasionally smoke (anexamplecouldbeCigaretteSmokingMan,

main villain on The X-Files (1993)), main characters on television is rarely seen indulging

(Gildemeister,2008).AlthoughthenightlycigarettefurtherstheportrayaloftheUnderwoodsas

villains,thesesituationsarethemostintimatemomentsoftheirrelationship.Itisalsoworthnoting

how,aftertheymovetotheWhiteHouseinseasonthree,thesharednightlycigarettestops–just

astheirmarriagebeginstodeteriorate.

WiththeplatformofNetflix,theviewerisincompletecontroloftheirownviewinghabits.

Whilebroadcasttelevisionrequirestheaudiencetotuneinatspecifictimesanddaysregardlessof

theviewer’sownschedule,Netflixallowsthemtowatchtelevisionatanytimeorplace,hereby

ensuringtheynevermissanepisode.Thischange inviewerhabitsallowsNetflix tocreatemore

complex serieswithmore depth thanbroadcast television, as they are not boundby the same

narrativestructure.Withthedifferentnarrativestructure,HouseofCardscanforexampleaffordto

dedicatewholeepisodestocharacterdevelopment,asthemainstoryline in“Chapter8”,where

Frank visits his alma mater exists purely for adding character depth. The technological

developmentscombinedwiththechangesindistributionallowsNetflixtocreatetelevisionaimed

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attheattentiveandobservantviewer,whotakesanactiveroleincomprehendingthenarrativeand

whowantstobechallengedtokeepup.

NetflixandHouseofCardsinthePost-NetworkEra

Lotz’definitionofthepost-networkerafunctionsasajumpingoffpointforadiscussionofthe

narrative of current television. Though technically situated within the post-network era, Lotz

hesitatestoincludeNetflixinherdefinitionoftheeraforthefollowingreasons:

“TherealitiesoftelevisioneconomicsandthefactthatNetflix–atthispointinaquintessential

middleman–ownedneithercontentbeyondahandfulofshowsnortheconnectionintothe

homemadeapparentthatNetflixwasunlikelytoovertakethosewhoproducedcontentor

coulddelivertoaudiences,butitcouldforcearevolutiononthosewhodid”(2014,p.70-71)

However,atthispointintime,Netflixhasnearly100originalseriesfeaturedontheirservice

(Netflix&Binge),andasLotz ina laterarticlehasnotedhowinternetsubscribershassurpassed

cablesubscribers(Lotz,2015),itseemssafetoargue,thatNetflixfinallyisapartofthepost-network

era.

Thereareseveral importantaspectsof thepost-networkera–oneof them isadvertising.

Fromtheearlydaysofradio,therelationshipbetweenadvertisersandnetworkshasgonethrough

manychanges,andLotz(2014)noteshowproductplacementandintegrationshasbecomeamajor

partofthetelevisionmediuminthePost-Networkera:“Thoughmanyexamplesofpaid,unpaid,

basic and advanced placement appeared across the networks throughout the early twenty-first

century, these techniques mostly supplemented rather than replaced thirty-second

advertisements”(p.188).ItisinterestingtodiscussadvertisinginregardstoHouseofCards,asthe

seriesissolelyfinancedbyNetflixandthereforehasnodirectsponsors.Furthermore,itdoesnot

featurethe30secondadvertisements,asisrequiredwithnetworktelevision,andisthereforenot

obligated to build the narrative structure around these commercial breaks. It does, however,

featurealargeamountofproductplacement,mainlyafairlylargeamountofappleproducts.The

series’creditsoffernodisclosuresofanyproductplacementtheymaybenefitfrom–sowhythe

useofunpaidproductplacement?Lotz(2014)argueshowitisarelationshipofconvenience:

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“In the case of unpaid placement, or what Twitchell refers to as “product subventions”,

companiesdonateproductsneededonthesetforreasonsofverisimilitude–ifascenetakes

placeinthekitchen,thatsetneedstobedressedwithproductsthatmakeitrecognizableas

akitchen.”(p.187)

In thecaseofHouseofCards,which features theWhiteHouseasoneof theseries’main

locations, the series appeals to the notion among the audience that Apple products equals

technologicalsophistication–ofcourseallofthepoliticianswoulduseAppleproducts,astheyare

themostcuttingedgeproductsonthemarket.Asadvertisinghaschangedwiththepost-network

era, Mareike Jenner (2014) argues that Netflix is not subject to the ‘traditional’ rules of

advertisement and markets their own services to subscribers, rather than advertisers (p. 6).

However,byofferingalargeamountofcreativeandbudgetaryfreedomtotelevisionauteursand

hiringbig-profileactorsandproducers(asKevinSpaceyandDavidFincher),NetflixfollowsHBO’s

exampleandcreatestheirbrandidentityonqualitycontent(Jenner,2014,p.7).Bypromotingtheir

content througha famousauteur,Netflix legitimizes their television serials to anaudiencewho

wouldotherwiseseektomoviestofulfilltheirneedforentertainment.InthecaseofHouseofCards,

Fincherhasonlydirected the first twoepisodes,butby linking their content to thehighprofile

director,Netflixseemstobeadaptingmarketingstrategiesfromthefilmindustry,whichismore

orientedtowardsthedirector,thanthewriterorproducer.Theutilizationofthisbrandingstrategy,

andtheemploymentofseveraldirectorsfortheseriesgivesHouseofCardsanartisticandcreative

sealofapproval,additionallylinkingittothefilmindustry.

ThenarrativeinHouseofCardsisfurthermoreanexampleofthechangesinpracticeswhich

interconnect toexpand the rangeof stories thatcouldbeprofitably toldonU.S. television,and

additionallypointstoimplicationsofthisexpandedstorytellingfieldfortheindustryandtheculture

(Lotz,2014,p.19).ButinorderforaseriestofitunderLotz’definitionofthepost-networkera“the

majorityoftheaudience”(Lotz,2014,p.10)wouldneedtohaveenteredthepost-networkeraby

usingtheopportunitiesnewtechnologiesand industrialpracticesmakeavailable,andasstudies

fromearly2014shows(Lotz,2014,p.8-9),thathasnotyethappened.However,Lotzdoesnote,

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thatthedominanceofthePost-NetworkEraseemsinevitable(2014,p.10)anditcanthereforebe

arguedthatNetflixasof2014fitswithinthePost-Networkera,butinthesensethatisdoesnotrely

on conventional programming distribution and as a platform caters to more viewer control.

However,asNetflix’ssubscribercounthasincreasedbyapproximately43millioninthelastdecade,

andastheirmembershipbasenowcoversmostoftheworld,itcouldfurthermorebearguedthat

these50millionsubscriberscountsas“themajorityoftheaudience”(Lotz,2014,p.10),andNetflix

thereforehasevolvedandgrowntofitthedescriptionofthepost-networkera.

InthefirsteditionofTelevisionwillberevolutionized,Lotz(2007)notesfivekeywordswhich

havedefinedthepost-networkera:choice,control,convenience,customization,andcommunity(p.

245).Thesefiveconceptsareallstillverymuchrelevanttoday,astheyallrelatetonewviewing

habitsandthegreateraccesstoalargerselectionofcontenttheaudiencecanconsumeontheir

owntimeandschedule.Netflixcatersdirectlytothenewviewinghabitsoftheiraudienceandthe

platformoffersalargecollectionofcontent(accordingtoTheAtlantic,Netflixhasmorethan76,000

categories of TV series andmovies available in their online library) (Madrigal, 2014),making it

possible for the viewer to customize their own entertainment experience. At the Guardian

EdinburghInternationalFilmFestival,KevinSpaceydeliveredaspeechontheNetflixmodel,andhe

commentedthefollowing:

“Clearly thesuccessof theNetflixmodel, releasing theentireseasonofHouseofCardsat

once,provedonething:Theaudiencewantsthecontrol.Theywantthefreedom.Iftheywantto

bingeasthey’vebeendoingonHouseofCardsandalotofothershows,weshouldletthembinge.

[…]Andthroughthisnewformofdistribution,wehavedemonstratedthatwehavelearnedthe

lesson,thatthemusicindustrydidn’tlearn:Givepeoplewhattheywant,whentheywantit,inthe

formtheywantitin,atareasonableprice,andthey’llmorelikelypayforitthanstealit.”(Smith,

2013)

Giving the audience what they want is clearly the key to success in the new age of

entertainmentandtelevisionandtheNetflixdoesexactlythat.Withtheirplatformandformat,the

streamingserviceembodiesLotz’sfiveC’sandtheirsuccesshasprovedachallengetothetelevision

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industry,forcingthemtochangestheirwaysbygivingtheconsumersmoreflexibility,iftheywant

tokeepthem.

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Conclusion

From the analysis, it is clear how the different production and distribution schedule

surroundingHouseofCardshashadanimpactontheseries’narrativestructure.AsNetflixisnot

restrictedbythesamescheduleasbroadcasttelevision,theyareabletocreateseries’structured

by theassumption that theaudiencewillwatch severalepisodes, ifnotawhole season, inone

setting.Thisassumptionisfurthernoticeableinthenarrativestructure,astherearefewmemory

cuesfortheaudience,andtheseriesspendslittletonotimecatchingthemupbetweenepisodes–

theyareexpectedtodothatontheirown.

TheformatandstructureofHouseofCards fitsMittell’s theoryofcomplextelevision.The

seriesseemstointegratenarrativetechniquesbothfromtraditionaltelevisionandthenovel:House

of Cardsutilizes an embodied narrator figure traditionally found in literature – the first person

narrator.Theaside,thoughithasstrongtiestotraditionaldrama,isfurthermorestronglyrelated

to the novel and it seamlessly combined with the traditional filmic narrative techniques and

incorporatedinthenarrativestructure.Byemployingthenarrativetraditionoftheliterarynovel

while simultaneously breaking from the traditional television serial format and narrative

conventions,HouseofCards’useofnarrator,author,andcharacterplacestheserieswithinMittell’s

theoryandfurthermorematchesthechangeswithinthetelevisionindustryinLotz’sdefinitionof

thePost-Networkera.Bycombiningtraditionalfilmicstorytellingdevicesanddrawingonthatof

thetraditionalnovelwiththeincorporationoftheaside,HouseofCardssetsitselfasidefromthe

traditionalformatandstructure,mergingthedifferentnarrativestructuresintoacomplexnarrative

structure,fitforthenewonlineserialformatandaudience.

Lotz’definingC’softhepost-networkera(choice,control,convenience,customization,and

community)canbelinkeddirectlytotheplatformandformatofNetflixandthusplacestheservice

withinthePost-Networkera.Thestreamingserviceoffersaplatformfitforcontemporarytelevision

whichmatchestoday’sneedforselectivity.Theplatformoffersalargeamountofcreativefreedom

forauteursandtheformatenablescomplexnarrativestructureofserieslikeHouseofCards.Many

ofthecriticallyacclaimedseriesofthepastdecadehaveadaptedthisnovel-likenarrativestructure

asmodelforsuccess–BreakingBad,MadMen,Dexter–andNetflixhasfollowedinthefootsteps

ofthistrendwiththestructureandformatofHouseofCards.However,withthefullseasonreleases

oftheiroriginalseries,Netflixchallengesthenarrativestructureofbroadcasttelevisionseries,as

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they do not have to cater to the weekly schedule, but instead offers (and encourages) their

subscriberstheopportunitytobingeseveralepisodes,oreventheentireseason,inonesitting.With

other streaming services following the samepatternwith original content (e.g. Amazon Instant

Video’s Transparent (2014)), the successful format and platform of Netflix has challenged and

influencedthetelevisionindustry.Atthe67thEmmyAwardsin2015,Transparentwasnominated

forMostOutstandingComedySeriesalongwithNetflix’sownUnbreakableKimmySchmidt(2015)

andbothHouseofCardsandOrangeistheNewBlackwerenominatedforMostOutstandingDrama

Series.Thus,itisclearthatNetflixnotonlyhasinfluencedandrevolutionizedtheindustrywiththeir

platformand format,but theyareclearlyalsoa seriouscontenderwith their successfuloriginal

content,consequentlycreatingaloyaluserbaseandbrandidentitythatequalsqualitycontent.In

theirlong-termview,Netflixclaimsthatwithinthenext20years“InternetTVwillreplacelinear”

(Netflix’sView,2016).WhileNetflixmaynotnecessarilybethemarketleaderinstreamingservices

twodecadesfromnow,atthetimebeingtheyareapioneerintheeraofentertainmenttelevision

andseemtohaveirrevocablychangedtheindustry.

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