Frank Capra's controversial 1939 film "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" tells the story of a young, naïve and inexperienced politician who is brought to Washington to replace the recently-deceased fictional Senator Samuel Foley. The film has a number of themes, but one that stands out beyond most is the idea that the press controls the public's opinion of a politician. They can make one out to be either a dedicated, hard-working public servant or a self-centered, power-hungry individual. Through the use of characters such as Governer Hopper, Jim Taylor, Senator Paine, and Chick McGann, we see how Capra views politics in Washington.
When Mr. Smith (James Stewart) is appointed, he is unable to recognize why he was chosen. However, we soon find out that it is not because of Smith's desire to work in Washington that he was hired- or his values- but rather the fact that, as a young and naïve "kid," Hopper and Taylor feel that he'll be an easy person to influence and vote for their......

Join Now to view the rest of this term paper!
Members: Login to view this research paper.

Title: Mr Smith Goes To Washington
Approximate Word Count: 376
Approximate Pages: 2 (250 words per double-spaced page)

With the Term Papers Lab Membership Pass, you get instant access to every essay on this site, including this essay on Mr Smith Goes To Washington, for as long as you remain a member.

Other essays sites charge almost $100 for a single term paper. At Term Papers Lab, you can get instant access to over 100,000 research papers for as little as $29.95!