The tableau of the two elder senators putting aside their differences to stand together was a relic of bipartisan statesmanship.
The tableau of diners is like a casting call for a we-can-all-get-along! video.
The tableau of the lone woman testifying before a congressional committee of white men has become iconic.
The tableau of Obama at Dover evoked the last line of "The Great Gatsby:" "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past".
The tableau of the collapse was shocking, replete with a run on the bank, snaking lines of anxious customers and sober assurances from Washington.
The tableau of the women's faces, frozen between sisterly concern and feral wariness, holds her back but exposes everything about the tribal rules.
The tableau of the commander in chief speaking so forcefully at the end of a meeting with the Pentagon's top civilian and military leaders was a sign of the administration's concern with sexual assault and sexual harassment.
The tableau of the Council members onstage — an Italian-American, a Haitian-born American, a Chinese-American, an African-American with Caribbean roots and a Jewish Brooklynite — was an undeniable reflection of the city itself: diversity, ego and inevitable imperfections.
The tableau of Britain at the opening ceremony included suffragettes, hundreds of dancing nurses, a strident Mary Poppins banishing multiple villains and even a shot of the first lesbian kiss aired on prime-time television.
The tableau of the first Hispanic nominee to the Court — a veteran judge of impeccable professional and academic credentials — addressing the Judiciary Committee was a satisfying one for those who care about a diverse and inclusive society.
The tableau of bipartisan cooperation, and FEMA's highly visible role in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, has put Mr. Romney in an awkward position during the last week of a campaign in which he has fought Mr. Obama to a virtual draw.
