All the Kings Men and the American Political Culture - Essay Example

Narrated from the perspective of Jack Burden who is an employee and friend of Stark, the novel is set during the 1930s providing a glimpse of the intricacies and scandals of American politics during that period. Even though the political setting of our days has significantly evolved, it is irrefutable that the novel still emphasizes most features of the American political culture. Gaining statewide popularity after an accident in his hometown, he was asked to run for governor. Realizing that he was only being used to split votes for one of the other candidates, he backed out and began campaigning for the candidate he was supposed to take votes from.

This puts him in the spotlight facilitating his entry to the world of politics in the next election. The narrator in the story, Jack Burden, is a reporter assigned to cover the campaign and governorship of Stark. From this responsibility, he ends up being Stark's right hand, aiding him in unveiling the "dirty secrets" of the latter's political enemies. Thus, Jack becomes instrumental in forcing Stark's enemies into submission through bribery, threats, persuasion, and other "dirty works." This job leads to his discovery of the flaw of Judge Irwin whom he looked up to as his second father and whom he regarded as perfect.

This event triggered a chain of events including Adam Stanton's acceptance of a lead job in Stark's hospital and Anne Stanton's affair with Stark. Towards the end of the story, Stark has fallen prey to his scheme. His enemy, MacMurfee has threatened to publicize that Stark's son is a father of an illegitimate child. This is supposed to bar Stark from running for senator. However, Stark used Jack to persuade Judge Irwin to make MacMurfee back out. Realizing that it is better to die than to live up to his past and submit to the blackmail, Judge Irwin committed suicide.

Jack then learns that Judge Irwin is his biological father. Desperate to be a senator, Stark gave the hospital contract to MacMurfee even though this was canceled when the former's son became paralyzed in a football game. Adam Stanton was angered at the discovery of the affair between Stark and his sister Anne. Thus, he killed Stark even though it also cost him his life. Jack later married Anne and wrote a novel about the Confederate soldier. All the King's Men largely mirror the tenets of the American political culture.

It is irrefutable that this nation upholds that the government is answerable to citizens, who may change it through elections (Dye 25). In the novel, Stark becomes so obsessed with his power as a politician that he devoted much of his time and money to making his enemies submit to him by discovering their "dirty secrets." He recognizes that if these flaws were made public, the voting population will respond negatively to their campaigns. This strongly highlights the fact that even though politicians control society, the sole decision of who will reign still rests on the citizens.

In one aspect, this also mirrors the prevalence of classical liberalism which is central in American political culture. Classical liberalism holds the dignity of the individual and their rational ability to control their destinies. In the case of politicians, it is their dignity and reputation which dictate the length of their stay in office.