Jack Bauer

Jack Bauer is a fictional character played by Kiefer Sutherland as part of the television series, 24.

Character

Jack Bauer has been described by some as an uncompromising patriot of the United States of America due to the dedication he shows for his job, although his political and ethical perspectives are never really revealed in great detail. One recurring theme however, is Jack's belief in the mantra, "the ends justify the means": that is, he believes obtaining a desired result is more important than how he obtains it, and he frequently performs controversial actions if he thinks they will achieve an important goal. His philosophy was perhaps best expressed after he shot and killed a restrained criminal in front of George Mason, director of CTU. George expressed dismay at Jack's extreme action, and Jack replied: "That's the problem with people like you, George. You want results, but you never want to get your hands dirty." Jack's motive was later revealed, when it turned out that murdering the crook allowed him to gain the trust of a criminal gang, which unwittingly supplied him with the information he needed to prevent a nuclear attack on the US.

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Jack has routinely put his own life on the line, as well as the lives of those close to him, in order to serve the common good. Notably, he was faced with a situation where a terrorist threatened to release a devastating biological weapon if Jack did not execute one of his superiors, Ryan Chappelle. Once it was confirmed that the terrorist was not bluffing, Jack killed Chappelle with a bullet to the head. In another notable example, during the events depicted in Season 4, Bauer was told to extract a Chinese scientist named Lee Jong from the Chinese Consulate in Los Angeles, who had vital information needed to stop an imminent terrorist strike. During the illegal raid, Lee was shot and needed immediate medical attention to stop him from dying. When he arrived at CTU, Bauer learned that the doctor there was already working on Paul Raines, the ex-husband of Audrey Raines (Jack's then girlfriend) who had been shot earlier trying to save Jack's life. Much to Audrey's horror, Bauer drew his weapon and ordered the doctor to begin surgery on Lee. Raines went into cardiac arrest and died shortly afterward. Bauer is rarely seen showing remorse for such actions, although this is largely due to his suppression of such emotions so that he can concentrate on his job. He has on occasion revealed his more vulnerable side, including a notable scene at the end of Season 3 when he breaks down crying after the traumatic events of the day. It is, perhaps, this vulnerable side that is most meaningful to the character- to remind us that Jack too, is human, with emotions and a sense of morals.

Related Topics:
Ryan Chappelle - Consulate - Cardiac arrest

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Following the death of his wife at the end of Season 1, he sometimes seems to live a life that has little personal purpose. To Jack Bauer, there is no seperation of his personal life and his duty. As he said to Chase Edmunds, his co-worker in field operations during Season 3, who was having a romantic relationship with Jack's daughter: "You can not keep this job and lead a normal life at the same time." Although Bauer is still attached to his daughter, he seems to be living his life mostly without her in Season 4, as she relocated to Valencia, California with Chase Edmunds.

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Through the years of his good service, Jack becomes a semi-personal friend of the fictional (and first African-American) President of the United States, David Palmer, largely due to Jack having saved his life more than once. A very descriptive factor of their relationship is that the President refers to him as Jack, while Jack addresses the President solely and professionally as "Mr. President." Palmer, however, felt close enough to Jack that he was one of the first people to learn Palmer would not be seeking re-election.

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