Frank Underwood
Frank Underwood is a democratic congressman in the American Netflix television show, House of Cards. He is an experienced, weathered politician and he plays a vital role in moving things along in Congress.
In the first season we learn that Underwood is married to Claire, a lobbyist and CEO of an environmental nonprofit organization, leading the audience to assume Underwood is a straight male. Underwood appears to be the epitome of Michael Kimmel's idea of hegemonic masculinity. He holds high power in his position and uses particulary chosen diction and rhetoric to easily sway his colleagues to vote or support one way or the other on different topics depending on what will best benefit his position in the White House. He is a predator in the White House - a dominant force to wrecked with - and his colleagues know it but they do not know to what extent.
Laura Mulvey introduced us to the 'male gaze', a term used to describe the way a woman is portrayed to the audience's eyes from behind the camera. It portrays women as sexual objects from the perspective of a heterosexual male. House of Cards doesn't necessarily use the 'male gaze' in terms of Mulvey's definition but the show does use somewhat of a 'power gaze' from Underwood's perspective. He views his colleagues according to power and influence in the House, not excluding his wife and other women in the show. We never feel as though Underwood is lustfully looking at a woman, instead we see him analyzing their power in his world.
Underwood plays a dominant role in the White House. According to Anthony Easthope, there are different types of masculinities, namely dominant and subversive. As the show goes on, we see that Underwood seems to have the last word in most situations in the office and he takes initiative to get things done in the House. We can compare Underwood to a wolf pack leader - he takes charge and nothing can happen without his say or his approval. If anyone is out of line, Underwood puts them back in their place. Although many of the people working with him in the House may have dominant roles in other parts of their lives, when Underwood is around they are subversive, rolling on their backs to show respect. Underwood is the under-the-table shot caller in the House.
In the first season we learn that Underwood is married to Claire, a lobbyist and CEO of an environmental nonprofit organization, leading the audience to assume Underwood is a straight male. Underwood appears to be the epitome of Michael Kimmel's idea of hegemonic masculinity. He holds high power in his position and uses particulary chosen diction and rhetoric to easily sway his colleagues to vote or support one way or the other on different topics depending on what will best benefit his position in the White House. He is a predator in the White House - a dominant force to wrecked with - and his colleagues know it but they do not know to what extent.
Laura Mulvey introduced us to the 'male gaze', a term used to describe the way a woman is portrayed to the audience's eyes from behind the camera. It portrays women as sexual objects from the perspective of a heterosexual male. House of Cards doesn't necessarily use the 'male gaze' in terms of Mulvey's definition but the show does use somewhat of a 'power gaze' from Underwood's perspective. He views his colleagues according to power and influence in the House, not excluding his wife and other women in the show. We never feel as though Underwood is lustfully looking at a woman, instead we see him analyzing their power in his world.
Underwood plays a dominant role in the White House. According to Anthony Easthope, there are different types of masculinities, namely dominant and subversive. As the show goes on, we see that Underwood seems to have the last word in most situations in the office and he takes initiative to get things done in the House. We can compare Underwood to a wolf pack leader - he takes charge and nothing can happen without his say or his approval. If anyone is out of line, Underwood puts them back in their place. Although many of the people working with him in the House may have dominant roles in other parts of their lives, when Underwood is around they are subversive, rolling on their backs to show respect. Underwood is the under-the-table shot caller in the House.
Throughout the first two seasons, more towards the back end of the first season and in a couple instances in the second season, Underwood's sexuality is brought into question. We know Underwood is married to Claire and they have been for a long time, but we also know they don't have kids. We know their relationship is peculiar in the way that they seem to click as a duo-power force more than romantically. Nonetheless, the audience doesn't question his sexuality because nothing is stated verbally and he embodies dominant hegemonic masculinity.
We also know that Underwood has been messing around with Zoe Barnes, a young reporter from The Washington Herald, for the purpose of political sway. Zoe refers to him as a "pimp" at one point, saying she pays him for information through sex and that he is a pimp for asking for sex for information. Again, these instances lead the audience to believe that he is straight.
Then in Chapter 8 of season one we see Underwood return to his alma mater to receive an award and reveal a new library under his name. His best college friends were there and they caught up after the ceremony only to get wasted and repeat history with their on-campus shenanigans. Once the four separate into two's, we see Underwood and his closest friend, Phil, chatting. Underwood says, "The library doesn't matter, but I want to think this place did." His friend replies with, "I think it meant a lot to us." Underwood's shield is down and we see a part of his heart for the first time.
They continue to talk about the memories and Underwood says they were closer than brothers, followed by his friend saying that they messed around a couple times back then. Underwood says, "I was so drawn to you." This incites in the audience the idea that maybe this extremely powerful man isn't straight. Underwood then says, "If I want someone, I want them. It's attraction," meaning it doesn't matter if it's a woman or a man, if Underwood is attracted to that person then that's that. This represents Judith Butler's idea of gender as performance.
Moreover, in the second season of House of Cards, Claire gets drunk at home. The head of their secret service party was about to leave and Claire asked him to stay for a drink. When Underwood got home their security man had cut his hand and Underwood and Claire helped patch it up, but they did so very tenderly. Before we know it all three are looking into each other's eyes and silently decide to have a menage a trios after Underwood approves with his eyes. This again makes the audience question Underwood's sexuality, but still nothing has been verbally stated about his sexuality besides the conversation between his college friend and him. All the audience has to base their standpoints on his actions. Butler's idea that gender is defined by how you act and not what parts you have is expressed throughout Underwood's sexual endeavors.
Underwood is also a prime example of Kimmel's idea that there is more variation among than between genders. At this point the audience can assume that Underwood is at the very least bisexual, but as Underwood said, "If I want someone, I want them. It's attraction." Underwood is attracted to whoever sparks his intrigue. To take it a step further, Underwood is not straight, gay, or bisexual - he is what he needs to be when he needs to be it in order to show power and become more powerful in another's eyes. Beneath political layers, Underwood is most likely bisexual, but throughout his political career he has had sexual relations based upon power and motives. As Oscar Wilde said and as quoted in House of Cards by Underwood at the beginning of the first season, "Everything in the world is about sex except sex. Sex is about power."
Researched and Written by Alana Lauren
