Double Agent: Exploring the Apparent and Hidden Cultural Values in Alias

Ali Wachutka

MWF 7:40

A woman in a tight leather dress and neon wig walks confidently through a dimly lit club and flirts unmercifully with a man standing in a dark corner. Little does he know that during this time the woman has stolen a keycard from his pocket and is going to use it to break in to the secret labs buried beneath the façade of the club. While trespassing, the woman is likely to single-handedly fight and defeat a handful of guards and break into a secure vault to steal secret information. It sounds farfetched, but it is merely routine for Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner), a secret agent in J.J. Abram’s Alias. The show revolves around the many missions Sydney and her team embark upon in attempts to “save the world” and the many agencies she works for, most of which are plagued by lies and deceit. Many cultural values are expressed through the show, some positive and many negative. Perhaps the most powerful of these values expressed in both the show and American culture are family, technology and deceit.

Perhaps the purest and most innocent value expressed in the show is its depiction of a strong, although distorted, role of family. In the first season, Sydney learns that her father, Jack Bristow (Victor Garber), is, like Sydney, a double agent between the CIA and a terrorist organization posing as the CIA (SD-6). Together the father-daughter team brings down the faux CIA, enabling the agents to live their lives working only for the CIA. However, the duo is not perfect. Soon after their accomplishment in taking down SD-6, Sydney learns that her father lied when he told her that her mom died in a car accident and possibly trained Sydney to be a super spy. As the show progresses, Sydney discovers her mom is really an active terrorist who only married Sydney’s father as part of a mission.

Despite the apparent flaws in the Bristow’s family, they make quite clear that they will always be there for one another. Even though her mother is a fugitive terrorist she lets Sydney know that she will always be there for her. Irina displays her care f when she tells her daughter, “Sydney, you may not see me at your wedding. But I will see you”. This quote illustrates that although Irina cannot always make her presence visible or known, she will always be in a position where she can watch her daughter and provide any assistance that may be necessary.

Jack, although typically seen as a cold and removed father, also has been proved always to have his daughter’s best interests at heart. Jack and Sydney’s relationship is best represented in the episode “Fait Accompli” where, in the beginning of the episode, Sydney expresses sorrow that her baby’s father, Vaughn, is not there to help her decorate the nursery; however, the last scene shows Sydney and Jack setting up the crib together. Jack’s presence in the scene illustrates the bond in the Bristow family and the common role a good father is supposed to take. In fact, when Sydney asks if he has ever set up a crib before he replies that he set up her crib, further illustrating Jack’s role as an ideal father.

The role of family expressed in Alias depicts a clear cultural value. In today’s society, high value is placed on family; however, families can often not spend as much time together as they would like due to activity and work schedules. In comparison to the Bristows, typical American families with stereotypical fathers who push their kids to far in sports and modern mothers who are spending less and less time at home with their families do not seem so bad. Fathers who push their children in sports or other areas do not seem nearly as intense when compared to Jack, who, as opposed just pushing his child, possibly brainwashed his daughter to be predisposed for a career in the spy industry. Likewise, working mothers who, like Irina, miss out on many significant moments in their children’s lives can look at the family role in Alias and rationalize that they at least are not fugitive terrorist who must hide from their children. Working mothers still come home and interact with their children and thus remain part of their lives. The Bristow family illustrates that, although the structure of the typical American family is changing, they can still be valued for their endless care and devotion.

As families become busier and busier they are spending less time together. This void is often filled by some sort of electronic device being that today’s American society is obsessed with gadgets, from video games to cell phones and MP3 players to digital cameras, if it’s electronic, it’s a must have. In Alias, gadgets, most commonly designed by computer geek extraordinaire, Marshall Flinkman (Kevin Weisman), play a huge role in the success of the missions. In “Out of the Box,” Marshall latest invention, a remote control spider-shaped robot with tomographic camera is used to read files kept in a secure cabinet. This element of technology appeals to the interests of many viewers who are constantly chasing after the smallest camera or the newest phone. Marshall’s character actually personifies the America’s obsession with the next best technological advancement. He is in a constant search for smaller, more effective forms of electronic devices as is illustrated when, after designing an outlandishly small digital camera, he says, “I have it at 42 exposures, but I wanna get it to 47 because...it's a prime number.” Marshall never quits striving for the next best technology nor does he ever use the same piece of equipment twice.

Technology is also presented in a less positive light in the initial plot of the show, which revolved around finding the Rambaldi artifacts, mechanical devices prophesized to have apocalyptic capabilities. Although legend has it these devices were designed centuries ago, their futuristic capabilities monopolize on American’s obsessive interest in technology. Thus far, the most famous Rambaldi artifact is likely the Mueller device, a futuristic mechanical device composed of a giant water-filled ball that is capable of an end of the world cleansing known as “The Flood.” This science fiction presentation of technology reflects the American cultural value of furthering the advances made in the field. For a culture that is largely based on technology, the Rambaldi devices provide an interesting look at furthering those advances and the potential consequences that the pursuit of technology may cause. The role of electronics in the show encourages society’s obsession with these devices, yet in contrast shows that electronics are dominating American’s lives and will perhaps one day end them.

Most dangerously, Alias displays values of blackmail and deceit. Particularly the character of Arvin Sloane (Ron Rifkin), the head and both SD-6 and later APO, projects the benefits of blackmail since he has used it as a manipulative device and a convenient means to gain personal advantages repeatedly. Sloan has repeatedly received pardons from the American government in exchange for his betraying past business partners and his betrayals have only lead him to success with in the government, such as winning him the position as head of APO due to his extensive contact list and his willingness to betray his former colleagues in a heartbeat. In “Mockingbird,” Sloan once again won his freedom, but this time through blackmailing a senator and agreeing to double agent within APO. Sloan’s constant lies to avoid trouble are speedily becoming a value of mainstream America, where the goal is merely to get to the top, not to worry about the people one hurts or morals one must abandon to reach that point.

Not only is deceit a weapon successfully used by Arvin Sloan, but also by many other characters. In reality, the entire show is based on deceit since all the missions rely on the agent’s ability to play a role as a completely different person. Besides just the agents deceiving their enemies, their enemies build complex schemes designed to mislead. Instances of deceit plagued the third season both with regards to The Covenant’s brainwashing Sydney in order to have her serve as an assassin and Sydney’s CIA handler and lover’s, Michael Vaughn’s (Michael Vartan), marriage to a undercover terrorist. This marriage, with the wife working as a secret agent and the husband working within the CIA, clearly resembles Jack and Irina’s relationship; however, in Michael’s case his dysfunctional family does not rest on pure love and devotion. Through this portrayal of deceit, Alias corrupts perhaps the most sacred value in American culture by taking the institution of the family, who are supposed to support one another, and plaguing it with doubt and distrust.

While the combination of morals in Alias lead to an interesting plotline and a compelling television series, they also serve as a reference to different values in American culture. Even though some of these values highlight positive aspects of America, such as family, most of the values focus on standards such as technology and deceit. These values are perhaps the most compelling in the series and the most damaging to our society, yet in Alias, and many other shows, they are presented in a positive light. When a show promotes such dangerous values it stops being simply a form of entertainment and becomes a deadly poison.