Lead Blog Post #1

I’m sure by now that everyone is tired of reading their 20th straight blog post about the famous TV show, “The Office”, and It’s even worse for those who don’t even enjoy the show in the first place. Either way, whether you love watching the show, or if it’s at the the bottom of the Netflix queue, it is valued by the comedic community due to its great use of satire and dry humor. For those who do not even know what The Office is, it is a comedy set in Scranton Pennsylvania where a documentary crew (a fictional one) films the day to day life of a paper supply company called Dunder Mifflin. Many may wonder why this show is so funny and beloved by millions of people. I used to wonder that myself until I learned about the three theories of humor, and how the superiority and incongruity theory are so distinguishable throughout the series. I believe this is due to the fact that some members of the cast thrive off these theories while others contribute to the plot by hardly using them at all, and there is no better way to analyze this claim than to flash back to the best scenes and episodes.
Michael, Dwight, and Jim make the most use of the superiority and incongruity theory in The Office. In one of my favorite episodes, Stress Relief, Dwight intentionally starts a fire in the office in order to educate his co-workers on a fire safety. During this chaotic moment everyone panics for their lives as they cause substantial damage to their workplace. Witnessing that scene for the first time instantly startled me and kept my eyes glued to the screen. Nearly every episode, the audience expects Dwight to something out of the ordinary. Yet, this scene was so outrageously illogical and crazy that it caught everyone by surprise, and is where the incongruity theory was at its peak. Michael and Jim on the other hand express most of their sense of humor through the superiority theory. Countless times Michael has ridiculed toby for no good reason, done things to benefit himself at the expense of numerous people, or has even had his own actions backfire which resulted in his misfortune. Jim Halpert is probably most famous for his pranks on Dwight. During the intro of one episode in particular, Dwight comes to work only to find all of his belongings in a vending machine. He is then forced to buy back everything one nickel at a time. Whenever anyone describes The Office, it’s hard to not mention Jim as his antics and use of superiority humor towards Dwight contribute to the show’s popularity.
Characters such as Pam, and Stanley are also very important in The Office, yet their roles are much more different than the rest of the cast. Their responsibility is to react to the actions of Jim, Michael, and Dwight so that the incongruity and superiority theory have a greater impact on the plot as a whole. More often than not, Pam is in attendance of Jim’s pranks and often participates in them as well. As time flew by in the series, these interactions that Jim and Pam had together strengthened their romantic connection as they eventually got married in season 6. Stanley Hudson on the other hand often reacted negatively towards the behaviors of Michael and Dwight. When he didn’t have is head buried in his crossword puzzles, he was very abrupt and had moments of hysteria that viewers loved. Taking it back to Dwight’s fire safety presentation, Stanley had a heart attack in the middle of the office, which made those few moments of chaos even more bizarre. I’m also fairly certain that everyone has heard his famous, “Did I Stutter?!” remark towards Michael. 

Obviously, there are many more instances where the incongruity and superiority theory is displayed in The Office. Yet, I believe that these characters and moments in particular deserve a lot attention because they signify why millions of people fall in love with the show.

Comments

  1. Shane HerronSeptember 12, 2018 at 9:22 AM

    I like the idea that Michael and Dwight's comedy is explainable by the superiority theory. It seems like you are implying that we could almost see them as attempting to laugh at other people, and we laugh at their laughter. A kind of incongruity-relief at superiority humor.

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