Don Draper of Mad Men emblematizes the rise of twenty-first century antiheroes, in what appears to be a very self-conscious continuation of earlier Noir archetypes. Moral ambiguity and witticisms abound in other protagonists cut from the same cloth as Don, such as Walter White of Breaking Bad and Dexter Morgan of Dexter. However, Mad Men‘s 1960s setting facilitates the stylistic component so essential to classic film noir. Furthermore, the rampant sexism of Noir, which serves as a crucial vehicle in promoting traditional patriarchal values and demoting feminism, finds a historically amenable home in Mad Men. However, the case for Mad Men as a film noir is best made by examining Don Draper’s existentialism in the face of modernity, as well as his contempt for the consumerism that he paradoxically propagandizes.
“I hate to break it to you, but there is no big lie, there is no system, the universe is indifferent.” This quote, from the first season of Mad Men, perfectly articulates the apathy that permeates much of Don Draper’s mentality toward life. In context, Don is addressing a group of stereotypical ’60s bohemians who have just criticized his submission to both capitalism and the omnipotent “man.” Much like traditional film noir protagonists – Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe, to name a few – Don Draper has accepted the truth of a seemingly passive world and adapted accordingly, and thus attributes the inability of others to do the same to their idealized, delusional perceptions of reality. Of course, Don also acknowledges that his detached disposition does not cultivate happiness, but rather allows for mere survival by forcing him to confront the transient nature of life. As he states in another episode of season one, “I’m living like there’s no tomorrow, because there isn’t one.”
Arguably the most iconic – and ultimately prophetic – line of Mad Men’s inaugural episode came as Don shared drinks with a potential client. This client, distinguishable simply because of her gender, apparently displayed a glimmer of the naïve optimism that Don Draper disdains so ardently. “What you call love was invented by guys like me…to sell nylons,” he declares. Clearly, though Don recognizes the persuasive power of advertising campaigns, he views the field – the field in which he is a prominent player – with a degree of cynicism. This inherent conflict lies at the heart of much of classic Noir. Perhaps Walter Neff of Double Indemnity best evidences such a contradiction. Walter Neff is an insurance agent. Walter Neff murders his lover’s husband in an attempt to swindle his own insurance agency. In both Double Indemnity and Mad Men, forces within the protagonist provoke a singular fascination that manifests itself through disparate means.
“We’re flawed because we want so much more. We’re ruined because we get these things and wish for what we had.” Once more, Don Draper voices the quintessential film noir adage: contentment is illusory, and its attempted attainment will be our downfall.