An Analysis of the Benefits of Television Based on The Office, a Popular Television Show
Television shows don’t serve just one purpose. They are not just for our entertainment or to please our visual needs, but they serve as an escape while also acting as the bridge that unites families, Coworkers, friends, foes, and more. A popular television show like The Office, for example has much deeper meaning than a 30-minute comedy NBC airs every week. It’s a television show I grew up with that leaves me feeling happy when I’m sad and is a time in which my family can break away from their busy schedules to sit and be together.
I notice some similarities behind the global popularity of Indian cinema and reasons as to why I watch The Office. One case in particular deals in the former Soviet Union. In Sudha Rajgopalan’s short essay, “Indian Popular Cinema and Soviet Movie Enthusiasts”, he discusses dark times in the former Soviet Union. World War II had come to an end, the environment was in shambles and Stalin had just ended his rule. The Soviet people needed an escape from the real world to a place were they could forget and be in high spirits. Indian films served as that escape. Indian films were filled with bright imagery with cheerful songs and dancing. The Soviet people could loose themselves in Indian cinema and flee their dreadful environment the moment they began to watch these films.
The television series The Office, serves a comparable role for me as Indian Films did to the former Soviet Union. The Office is a comedy about a “group of typical office workers, where the workday consists of ego clashes, inappropriate behavior, and tedium” (IMDb). It includes light and awkward humor in comical and often absurd situations. When I am in a bad mood, have had a rough day, or just want to relax I often turn to The Office. It is my escape from the real world. When I turn on The Office, my stress and anxiety are instantly erased and I am transported into an alternate world. I need The Office to act as a distraction the same way the people of the former Soviet Union needed Indian films to distract them in times of devastation and trouble.
This is not the only parallel I can draw from the points in Rajgopalan’s essay and this television series. The Office puts a spin on a significant commonality for a very a large part of the world’s population, work. In a typical office setting, there is an established hierarchy, people are working with other people whom they had not chosen and situations can often be strange or uncomfortable. The television show The Office, puts a humorous spin on the average workday and allows it’s viewers to come to the realization that having a corky boss or a bizarre coworker really isn’t all that bad. The audience is plucked from their original negative thoughts and opinions regarding how an office is and thrown into new and positive notions of what an office can be.
In an article I read titled “Why People Watch Comedy Movies”, it reports tht one of the main reason people watch comedies is because they want to be informed. Comedies can provide insight to the real world. They can easily educate people and open their eyes in a fun way. I have a specific example, which demonstrates how someone learned from the comedy series The Office.
My sister works at a hotel in New York City called The James. When she first started working there, she felt very uncomfortable, she didn’t like her peers and she thought her boss was dim-witted. She was never placed in a working environment before and didn’t know what to expect. I also had never worked before but I was able to relate to the working environment through The Office. I told her to imagine what it must have been like just starting out at Dundler Mifflin (the company in The Office). Surprisingly, this little piece of advice helped tremendously. She started having a different outlook of her boss and coworkers. She tailored her working environment for her and began to appreciate work. She now has been working at The James for three and a half years and still tells me she thinks about scenes from The Office while working.
I find this example to be very similar to the role Indian films played in the former Soviet Union. Indian cinema pulled Soviets out of their dark and dull times and placed them in an environment with
inspiration, deep, interesting culture, and bright colors. Indian films provided Soviets with goals and dreams. Soviets could take morals and messages from Indian cinema and use them in real life. It is as if the Soviets could look at their current situation of dire times with a different spin; perhaps they began to believe that times could only get better from here on out or that they can have lifestyles similar to ones shown in Indian films.
Along with providing an escape and diminishing unpleasant feelings, The Office is a method of uniting. In such a hectic and busy world we live in these days, it is often easy to forget about spending time with your loved ones. Currently, for instance, I am working, taking an online course, and studying for the GMAT. With so much on my plate, I often go a long time without really engaging or spending any time with my family. The Office is one outlet I can turn to that will always have me sitting with my family at the end of the day.
The Office is really an endearing show that showcases humor people of all ages can relate to, while occasionally displaying love and romance everyone enjoys. Although I want to believe this is the only reason my family sits down to watch it together every week, I secretly know it is not. My parents, I can tell, are not real fans of the show. However, it is an easy and fun way to get the entire family close together and share enjoyment.
This situation ties in directly with a situation described in len Ang’s “Gender and/in Media Consumption.” In this case, a mother sits down to watch sports with her son when she really finds no interest in sports. However, she will still pursue in an attempt at making contact” (Ang).
From readings in week 3, I know there are many characteristics (gender being one) that have extremely significant affects on the way an audience will perceive and respond to media like The Office. However, I don’t know for sure of all the characteristics that affect who views The Office, but I do know the number of viewers can be altered by something as simple as family contact.
Television shows like The Office provide transportation to an alternate world in which the audience can escape and resolve real world problems. They provide serenity while building and preserving a strong bond between people of all kinds and backgrounds.
