The West Wing
S1E12
· He Shall, From Time To Time...

Temperature, Typo, and a Quiet Kiss

Abbey, in her dual role as First Lady and physician, fusses over a feverish President Bartlet — repeatedly insisting on one more temperature check. Bartlet deflects with light, self‑deprecating humor, using wit to hide real vulnerability. Their intimacy briefly softens the crisis: he removes her glasses and kisses her. That private tenderness is ruptured when Abbey spots a glaring typo in the speech ('hallowed' replaced by a pound sign), pivoting the moment from domestic care to the looming public duty and political pressure.

Plot Beats

The narrative micro-steps within this event

3

Abbey insists on taking Bartlet's temperature again, showing her medical concern despite his resistance.

concern to irritation ["The President's Bedroom"]

Bartlet deflects Abbey's concern with humor, lightening the mood and hinting at intimacy.

tension to playfulness

Bartlet removes Abbey's glasses and kisses her, blending personal affection with professional partnership.

practicality to tenderness

Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

1
Josiah Edward 'Jed' Bartlet (President of the United States)
primary

Feigns lightness and humor to hide fatigue and vulnerability; affectionate and slightly resigned; privately anxious about the speech but unwilling to surrender intimacy to panic.

Physically present at Abbey's side, he deflects concern with humor, allows her to fuss, removes her reading glasses, and returns a private kiss — then concedes to the textual problem when prompted. He masks illness with levity and tenderness while acknowledging the intrusion of political work.

Goals in this moment
  • • To reassure Abbey and maintain a calm, intimate connection despite his illness.
  • • To deflect and minimize attention on his symptoms — preserving privacy and dignity.
  • • To momentarily reclaim domestic normalcy before returning to the political task at hand.
Active beliefs
  • • Personal vulnerability should be smoothed over with humor to protect loved ones and the office.
  • • Intimacy with Abbey stabilizes him and is a necessary counterbalance to public pressures.
  • • Small acts (a kiss, a joke) can contain anxiety long enough to focus on duty.
Character traits
witty protective affectionate evasive self-aware
Follow Josiah Edward …'s journey

Objects Involved

Significant items in this scene

2
President Bartlet's State of the Union Draft (Full Speech Packet — includes NEA proposal)

The stapled State of the Union draft is physically present as Abbey reviews it; it functions narratively as the trigger that converts a private medical moment into political urgency when Abbey spots a mistyped word ('hallowed' replaced by a pound sign). The manuscript shifts the scene's focus from bedside care to imminent public consequence.

Before: In Abbey's hands, being reviewed at the bedside; …
After: Still in Abbey's possession and the focal point …
Before: In Abbey's hands, being reviewed at the bedside; pages marked and annotated by staff.
After: Still in Abbey's possession and the focal point of concern, its typo having interrupted the intimate exchange and redirected attention to the speech's public ramifications.
Abbey Bartlet's Reading Glasses (President's Bedroom)

Abbey's personal reading glasses sit on her face as she reads the speech; Bartlet removes them gently before kissing her, transforming the glasses from functional reading aid into a prop that punctuates the shift from professional scrutiny to intimate exchange.

Before: Worn by Abbey while she studies the speech; …
After: Removed by Bartlet and briefly out of place—no …
Before: Worn by Abbey while she studies the speech; serving its reading function.
After: Removed by Bartlet and briefly out of place—no longer on Abbey's face—symbolically marking the move from work to private tenderness (presumably held or set aside).

Location Details

Places and their significance in this event

1
President's Bedroom (Executive Residence)

The President's bedroom contains the private nexus where domestic care and national duty collide: a bedside setting for medical triage, intimate exchange, and the discovery of a politically consequential typo. It allows a compressed scene where personal vulnerability and institutional pressure meet in close quarters.

Atmosphere Warm, intimate, slightly tense—soft bedside intimacy undermined by an undercurrent of professional urgency.
Function Sanctuary for private care and a staging area where private moments are interrupted by the …
Symbolism Embodies the collision of personal vulnerability and institutional responsibility—the domestic space invaded by the mechanics …
Access Effectively restricted to the President and his closest confidante (First Lady); not a public or …
Dim bedside lighting suitable for intimate conversation Rumpled bed and bedside objects (speech, glasses) that juxtapose domesticity with professional artifacts

Narrative Connections

How this event relates to others in the story

No narrative connections mapped yet

This event is currently isolated in the narrative graph

Key Dialogue

"Abbey: "I want to take your temperature one last time.""
"Abbey: "Why is 'hallowed' spelled with a pound sign in the middle?""
"Bartlet: "I stopped asking those questions.""