In both A Dialogue Between An Englishman and an Indian, and The Candidate satire is used to create a commentary on different aspects of American society in the revolutionary era. A Dialogue Between An Englishman and an Indian the Englishman is blatantly less of an intellect than the Indian. This undoubtedly reflects the negative opinion of English during this period. The Englishman initially speaks with certainty of the poor mental capacity and disposition of Indians, but his position is completely reversed by the Indian after only a few lines of dialogue. This short piece shows the shifting of opinion in America about Indians from savages, to well monored and intelligent.
The Candidate expresses the belief that the American system of elections will naturally result in the worthiest candidate winning. Being the worthiest includes many traits, however the theme that was most prevalent was this idea of not wanting to serve as a representative but being obligated to. In the opening lines of the play Wou’dbe states “Must I again be subject to the humors of a fickle crowd? Must I again resign my reason, and be naught but what each voter pleases? Must I cajole, fawn, and wheedle, for a place that brings so little profit?”(14) Mr. Worthy is also reluctant to cast his name, and in the end these are the two who win a landslide victory.
A term that comes to mind is civic-duty, or the idea of self-sacrifice for the greater good. I think George Washington really embodied the characteristics. He served out of a sense of service to his nation. It appears to me, that office holding is focused more on duty than a career, something I think has been lost in the 21st century.
George Washington and Mr. Worthy are quite similar. Perhaps Colonel Robert Munford, who wrote “The Candidates,” based Mr. Worthy off of Washington. Munford had served under Washington in both the French and Indian War as well as the American Revolutionary War. He must have known Washington better than most on a personal level and recognized him as a very worthy political candidate. Both lead by tremendous example but may have been uncertain about how they would fare in politics. Nevertheless, they did it for the people they willingly served.
Another major similarity between George Washington and the politicians described in The Candidates is the reasons that they took and gave up power. Washington took his position as president because he knew he was the only man for the job, someone who was respected by all Americans regardless of whether they were from the north or south. Washington also was able to give up power both because he had tired of political life and he felt it was best for the country. It’s also worth noticing that Washington was a Virginian aristocrat like the politicians in The Candidates.