Burke's Pentad

Kenneth Burke’s Pentad is a method that can be used to determine the motive behind an action. Burke’s pentad consists of the act, agent, agency, scene, and purpose. The act is what happened, why they did it, and why it’s meaningful. The agent is who did it and takes into account their beliefs. Burke refers to the agency as a way to refer how the act happened/ was transmitted. The scene is described by Burke as the time and location of the act. Finally, Burke states that the purpose is why the agent acted upon the act and what they wanted their end result to be.

Beginning of Conversation

In a scene from season 2 episode 1 of Marvel’s Agent Carter, Agent Carter sets out to find out new information on the mystery surrounding season 2, involving Calvin Chadwick and his wife Whitney Frost. Calvin Chadwick is running for the U.S. Senate and is at a racetrack to promote his campaign when Agent Carter approaches him in a polite manner without divulging the real reason she is there. Agent Carter was very careful in picking the location she did because there were a lot of cameras around and there would be no real threat against her since it was a public place that was being visited by many that day. As Chadwick’s wife is taken to the side to speak with someone else, Agent Carter begins her conversation by charming Chadwick with her beauty and eloquence. Once she has gained his trust she begins using interrogative questions such as, “Are you aware that Miss Scott is dead?” and “When was the last time that you saw Miss Scott?”, because it has been widely speculated on the show that he had an affair with Jane Scott and might possibly be involved with her death. She brings up Jane Scott unexpectedly, which makes Chadwick nervous, and in that moment she knew that he knew more than what he was willing to tell because his demeanor changed from being charming, polite Chadwick to nervous, disrespectful Chadwick. As an agent who is dedicated to her job, Agent Carter felt like she was successful although she did not get the information she wanted, but was able to get under Chadwick’s skin to know that something was going on and that he knew about it. The motive behind Agent Carter’s appearance at the racetrack was not to solve the mystery, but was to gather any new information she could use to continue piecing the evidence of the case together so that she can finally decipher the real mystery. 

         Mid way to end of Conversation