George Bernard Shaw was accused of being preachy in his plays. His characters, his critics said, were little more than stage props for his own political ideas. He sacrificed emotional development of character and complexity to philosophy and ideas.
He did write extensive prefaces to his plays, to develop and articulate the ideas which drove his stories. He did not deny the importance of ideas in his art.
Aaron Sorkin is a writer I have somehow not thought about much. He wrote A Few Good Men and The West Wing and now, The Newsroom.
In The Newsroom, there are some touches which are too facile, as when Sam Waterson tells Jeff Daniels about the importance of newsmen with a point of view, "Edward R. Murrow had a point of view, and he brought down McCarthy. Walter Cronkite had a point of view, and he brought down the war in Vietnam." Well, not really. Both were a day late and a dollar short in their opposition, and neither had all that much impact on events, and for far too long, they remained neutral, afraid to lose their audience or their jobs. But you make allowances for poetic license.
On the other hand, that disturbing hyperbole does not significantly undermine the power of Daniel's diatribe against the sorority sister who, all dimples, throws a softball question about what makes America the greatest country on earth. I did not see it coming, but when it came, the fireworks were wonderful to behold.
That whole stupid drivel which the great American moron loves to gush about, how we are number one, we are the greatest country on earth, is something liberals have never figured out a way to attack. Just once, I'd like to see a Democrat launch a blitz like the one Daniel's unleashes. The closest I've ever seen is Barney Frank, but he got tired and opted out of public office. But that garbage is damaging lie. If we think we have the best healthcare system in the world, then why change it? Why fix what isn't broken? If America is the greatest country on earth, why change anything?
To improve things, you have to understand there is something wrong. You have to be willing to dig deeply into the festering wound and dig out the maggots and clean it out, or it just gets deeper and uglier.
I don't mind the speeches. I love the speeches. They are statements full of truth and beauty.
Sorkin's grandfather was an active member of a dynamic union, the ILGWU, and the families of that union, and their descendants still carry a certain flame. I'm glad it still burns somewhere. The Newsroom, like most shows in development, has its flaws, but it is a fresh, invigorating breeze from left field, for which we can all be grateful.
Perhaps, over time, you will learn more from the newsroom than you learned from the wire - particularly in this election year. Stay tuned!!
ReplyDeleteI am hooked. I would like to think there is a show which could teach me as much as The Wire.
ReplyDeleteOf course, the great art of The Wire is that it did not tell you; it showed you and it trusted you to draw the proper conclusions. That is not The Newroom's tact, but it's still fun to watch.
--The Phantom