Character

Mahatma Gandhi

inspirational transformative principled

Bartlet and Will debate Gandhi's quote 'You must be the change you wish to see in the world' for the Georgetown commencement address, contrasting its cultural tone with Eudora Welty's. The line underscores themes of personal transformation and responsibility, aligning with Bartlet's public role amid private paternal anxieties over Zoey. Gandhi emerges as a source of concise, universal wisdom on activism and self-change, invoked to inspire graduates and resonate in political speechwriting.

2 appearances

Mahatma Gandhi's Journey

A timeline through the narrative

2 moments

S4E22 · Commencement

Welty vs. Gandhi — A Father's Anxiety Before the Podium

Not emotionally present; functions as a rhetorical benchmark for universality and activism.

Referenced as the existing quote option — the Gandhi line is discussed for suitability and cultural tone, creating a contrast with Welty as potential phrasing.

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S4E22 · Commencement

Pocketed Anxiety — Final Edits and the Walk to Commencement

Not applicable — invoked as rhetorical contrast.

Mentioned as the alternative quotation source (Gandhi); invoked in the debate over tone and cultural resonance for the address.

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