From the moment I read the first page of Christopher Buckley's comedic novel, until the day I finished his last satirical sentence, I could not keep the satisfied smile off my face. Thank You For Smoking is a hilarious book that deserves credit for it's satirical humor. However, this book did far more than merely provoking laughter. As I dove deeper and deeper into the politics, corporate power, and media manipulation that build this story's foundation, I could not help but notice it's accurate portrayal of the brightest, and darkest, aspects of American government. .
In a very truthful way, Thank You For Smoking displayed the pluralist theory, one of the most significant concepts in terms of what our country stands for. This fundamental and basic idea states that groups of people with similar beliefs can influence our public policy by sharing their concerns. When our protagonist Nick Naylor "fights back" against a health official, as one news article proclaims, (Buckley 52), he is standing up for smokers around the country by defending their common interests. Nick feels that by supporting his legitimate group, he can be heard to a crucial extent and maybe even sway some people to his side in the process. The entire world may not agree with his viewpoint, but he is pressing his concerns about an issue and attempting to make public policy work for everyone. When Nick endorses his opinion and attempts to achieve a compromise, he is merely putting the pluralist theory to practice.
On the contrary however, Thank You For Smoking also shows the hyperpluralist theory, which is the very dark and somewhat worrisome side of our government. It says that if too many groups become unmanageable and dogmatic, a troubling stalemate can occur. When such a thing happens, it divides our government and it's authority. As the book presses onward, each side of the smoking controversy simply keeps retaliating to a previous offense.
