A Prudent Man By Katy Warner

In A Prudent Man, Katy Warner delves into the manipulative world of politics through the eyes of a typical male politician, while in Black Mirror episode The Waldo Moment, Charlie Brooker explores the influence that public image can have on perception and therefore affect people’s actions. Published in 2016, Warners A prudent man in an extended monologue talks about the trials and tribulations of a generic politician. Black Mirror episode The Waldo Moment, follows the story of a failing comedian who runs for office as one of his only successful characters Waldo (a cartoon blue bear). Despite their different formats, A Prudent Man and The Waldo Moment explore the influence that perception has on power, exposing the toxic nature of politics

Brooker employs high-angle shots and low-key lighting to reveal the inner workings of politics, whereas Warner employs anecdotes to reveal the types of hierarchies within politics. In the first scenes of The Waldo Moment, we are introduced to Gwendolyn Harris, a hopeful candidate, as she embarks on her journey to run for office. Gwendolyn is portrayed as naive in the story, with high-angle shots at the beginning of the episode emphasising her feelings of inferiority as she waits for her interview. In addition, The medium close-up shots give the audience insight into Gwendolyn's perception of herself. This is done through the ill-fitting tights, highlighting how she does not fit into whoever she is trying to be, and the nervous habits such as biting her nails and bouncing her leg. Contrasting this naive appearance of Gwendolyn to the discerning feel of the judges is how Brooker expresses the toxic nature of politics. Using low-key lighting to disguise the judge's face, prevents the audience from being able to read their facial expressions. This symbolises how many politicians conceal themselves from the public eye. In contrast, Warner does use anecdotes to explore the problems within politics, however, instead of focusing on hierarchies, as The Waldo Moment does, she explores the insincerity behind politicians' actions. In A Prudent Man, Warner uses anecdotes to highlight how the intentions behind politicians in the 21st century are often corrupt, emphasising the need to be more vigilant when choosing who we support in the office. Throughout A Prudent Man, anecdotes are told from our protagonist's point of view, highlighting his sceptical beliefs and demonstrating the toxicity of politics. One particular anecdote explores an encounter between the protagonist and an employee, where it is made clear he has made some insensitive