Object

President Bartlet's Imagined Comic Prop Cabbage

A detailed representation of a comic prop conceived as a humorous weapon in dialogue.

2 appearances

Purpose

A common edible vegetable (Brassica) intended for cooking and consumption; in the processed material it is used rhetorically as an imagined prop to puncture tension.

Significance

Acts as a comic deflection and rhetorical device that diffuses Bartlet's irritability, reveals his improvisational humor, and shifts the scene from potential confrontation to levity; its invocation signals interpersonal familiarity and the use of absurdity to manage tension.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

2 moments

S1E19 · Let Bartlet Be Bartlet

Magnificent Vista Misfire — Bartlet's Impulse vs. Caution

Bartlet's joke about beating Mrs. Landingham with a head of cabbage functions as a comic, imagined prop that lightens tension while revealing his curmudgeonly mood and distractibility; the cabbage is invoked verbally rather than physically handled.

Before: Not physically present—an imagistic, offhand quip conjured by Bartlet.

After: Remains a tossed-off image that punctuates Bartlet's irritation and is not acted upon.

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S1E19 · Let Bartlet Be Bartlet

Bartlet Dangles for FEC Reform

Bartlet's comic invocation of beating Mrs. Landingham senseless 'with a head of cabbage' conjures a mental prop that lightens and humanizes the hallway exchange while also revealing his irritability; the cabbage is purely rhetorical but shifts tone and underscores his restless mood.

Before: Imagined by Bartlet as part of banter; not physically present.

After: Remains a comic rhetorical image that punctuates the conversation and offers a small, tense release.

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