Response to Lead Blogger #1


I couldn't agree more with the examples and evidence that you presented as to why The Office will remain a genius act of comedy. The staged, yet seamless transitions of banter between character allows individuals to fall in love with the show and cast throughout each episode. Although, The Office might not be everyone’s cup of tea there are scenes that allow anyone to have a sense of comic relief. The use of the superiority theory is present in many of the characters. For example Dwight, a beloved character, demands power. Dwight is a perfect example of an individual who would have followed Hobbes during his era. Hobbes believed that greed was good and was forceful in his ways of trying to obtain power, just like Dwight, leading them to both look ludicrous. Dwight constantly wants to obtain the highest position in Dunder Mifflin Paper Company, and will knock down anyone in his path to do so. Dwight often refers to himself as the Assistant to the Regional Manager which is funny because it is a made up title that he gave himself to gain some kind of power that he doesn’t have. Dwight constantly wants the power he will never acquire which leads viewers to witness the superiority theory. When an individual wants to obtain a certain amount of power that is unreasonable or out of reach they end up looking like a fool. By being so serious about wanting to be in charge in ends up becoming comical which is exactly what Dwight does. He  constantly follows around Michael Scott, the actual manger, as his sidekick. Dwight constantly is searching for any information that he can mooch off of Michael to get a leg up on his other co-workers. Ultimately looking foolish, because not to mention Michael Scott does not always have the brightest ideas up his sleeve either. Michael Scott and Dwight are a comedic duo due to their obliviousness to their surrounding and how absurd they sound together. The comedic due allows viewers to experience the superiority theory throughout episodes of The Office.  

Comments

  1. Shane HerronSeptember 12, 2018 at 10:14 AM

    It's interesting to think that we might actually be laughing at someone who thinks they are superior to us, not because we think we are superior to him. This would transform superiority theory into Hutcheson's incongruity theory, which says that we laugh at people with self-important or pompous conceptions of themselves because they are incongruous and stick out from the group.

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  2. UnknownSeptember 14, 2018 at 11:28 AM

    I'm glad that you enjoyed the ideas that were presented in my lead blog post. I also really like how you compared the personality of Dwight to Hobbes and his philosophy on superiority theory.

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  3. Abigail BarfordSeptember 14, 2018 at 7:52 PM

    I think this response was very well written. I agree with your points about the examples; they were very good ways to explain the theories.

    ReplyDelete
  4. NikoletaSeptember 18, 2018 at 2:42 PM

    I really like what you have to say about the Office. The fact that you point out how The Office isn't for everyone, yet the comedy is so thoroughly present is a nice touch.

    ReplyDelete

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