Help a fangirl out?

[rivkat]

I'm looking for pop culture examples (TV, movies) of professionals doing their jobs because they're professionals, even though they know -- or strongly believe -- that there's no point to it. An example would be the final episode of Angel. (That might be an example of "the point is that this is all there is," but I hope you get the idea -- you treat the patient because that's your job, not because you think it will help or because you think it makes you especially noble. You investigate the crime not because you're doing justice or because you have a personal stake but because that's what it means to be a cop. Greg House and L&OL's Jack McCoy are, therefore, counterexamples.)

Specific episodes/arcs, please! The point is to have some examples to show students, so the more specific, the better.

Comments

[marici.livejournal.com]

The episode where House cures a prisoner on death row was actually the first "doing my job because it's my job" example that jumped to mind. I suppose you felt differently about it? I mean, I also thought he was pretty deeply opposed to the death penalty in general, but he didn't go so far as to say so.

[rivkat.livejournal.com]

The reason I excluded him was actually that he sees illness as a puzzle and a personal affront to him. He wants to solve puzzles so, though he doesn't care about people as people, he also has no particular regard for the strictures of his professional role. And the role is what I'm trying to zero in on. I did think about him; maybe I should consider Cuddy instead -- but she not only respects the rules, she thinks they're good, and that may be too much.