What is there to admire about Archie Bunker

I go to the gym most days, and Al, the guy who's always there when I get there at 5:30 in the Blessed AM, often talks to me about stuff that comes to mind. The other day, the subject got around to formulas for various kinds of writing and if you talk about formulaic writing, you have to talk about the television situation comedy.

Sitcoms are formulaic, but the formula sometimes changes. Shows that change the formula are riskier than average, but when they win they're a big win and they can spawn dozens of imitators. One show that changed the formula was "All In the Family". When I mentioned "All In the Family", Al said that he didn't like it because Archie Bunker was bigoted and autocratic and several other things that I don't remember.

But it got me thinking about how such an unsympathetic character could become such an icon. That, of course, led me to think about the other characters in the show, and I think I've figured it all out.

In "All in the Family", each of the four main characters was the embodiment of some characteristic. Edith is wisdom, Gloria is Passion, Michael is Intellectualism, but what is Archie? Archie is Courage or Persistence in the face of opposition. The thing is, narrative is driven by conflict and since the conflict has to be between the members of the household, that means that Archie is going to steadfastly defend a position that is unwise, unenlightened, or passionless. (Actually, since passionless anything is boring, Gloria was rarely at the center of the narrative. Her main reason for existing was to bring Michael in the household. I digress.) Since persistence is often in conflict with the wise or the smart, Archie's actions and beliefs often drive the plot of the show.

In "All in the Family", each character has what I think of as their moment. For me, the defining moment for Edith is when she explains to Michael why he and Archie argue. Michael doesn't want to hear it, but Edith insists because it is important. Archie's defining moment is when he sneaks his grandson Joey out to be baptized against the wishes of the entire family, and Reverend Felcher. ("I hope that took, Lord, because they're going to kill me when I get home.")

Michael's defining moment, at least for me, is when his smarter friend visits. Michael wants to play chess and do "smart things", but his smarter friend wants to just hang out and have some fun. Gloria suggests charades and Michaels is opposed to the idea even as his friend is all for it. This is defining for me because my beliefs are sometimes described as "anti-intellectual", but I think of an intellectual as someone who can't get over how smart he is. At its core, intellectualism is a phony belief in one's own superiority. What matters about the intellect is what you do with it, not using it to prove your superiority. What's important is what problems you solve. I find that a refreshing attitude about intelligence from a not particularly bright, although often intelligence-obsessed, media culture.

So, I think Archie turns out to look pretty good in Media's lens. Yes, he's bigoted and anti-Semitic, but if you're family he'll stand by you (even if your last name is Stivic) because you're family and he won't waver. I get the sense that he's doing his best to be steadfast in a world where his values are out of step with everyone else's, but that's because he's out of his depth or hasn't managed to keep up during a time of rapid change. He's a sometimes inconvenient rock in a river, not a wall.