the most important and influential of which being the marriage of Claire and Frank Underwood.
This marriage is vastly different from the many “cookie- cutter” relationships that can be found
in today’s television shows. Unlike other relationships that are seen on TV, Claire and Frank’s
relationship can be described as almost a business deal. Both Claire and Frank are consumed
with advancing themselves in the political world and gladly use each other to do so. In addition,
Claire and Frank also both engage in extramarital affairs in the first half of the series, which both
partners are aware of and okay with, they even discuss their outside relationships …show more content…
All throughout the show, we see examples such as these two of how Claire and Frank are
the complete opposite of the typical television relationship. Why would the writers of House of
Cards have made the decision to create such an atypical relationship?
Perhaps by contradicting the traditional views that viewers have of love and marriage, the
writers were hoping to show that love does not always fit into the ideal images that are presented
in television. A marriage is not always a perfect love story, where husband and wife are happily
married with three children in their upper middle class suburban home. For some, love is …show more content…
By presenting us with such an unconventional
relationship and unusual love, the writers of House of Cards force their readers to ask the above
questions. In doing so, we might be led to question the stereotypes of a traditional love and
marriage. How often is it that the ideal love shown on television actually occurs in real life?
Although Frank and Claire’s relationship is certainly not the typical relationship, it gives an
example of a relationship on television that is not perfect, and in that way it is more similar to the
relationships that occur in the real world. No, most real world relationships are not based off of
political schemes and affairs, but they are similar to Frank and Claire’s relationships in that they
are built off of mutual trust and communication. In their political schemes, it becomes evident
how much the two trust each other, and how they hold each other’s trust above that of anyone
else surrounding them. Even in their affairs, we can see that Frank and Claire trust and
communicate with each other. Yes, they cheat on each other and sleep with other people, but they
each have each other’s approval to do so, and even discuss their affairs with each other.