In class and in this blog, we've talked a lot about shows like CSI, Law & Order, Dexter, Monk, etc.
I'm a huge fan of NBC's The Office and I remembered an old episode in which they find out that a reformed criminal has transferred into the workplace. For anyone familiar with The Office, the episode is full of the usual laughs, but also makes us think about the attitudes and stereotypes we associated with those that have gone through parts of the criminal justice system.
In "The Convict", we see the office's reaction to having a reformed criminal in their midst. Contrary to Michael Scott's predictions, the office workers were very understanding and accepting of their new coworker. And as Michael Scott normally does, he makes things awkward with his uncomfortable comments and accusations. He tries to appear impartial and "anti-stereotypical". Here's a short except from a scene:
[Michael is in his office.]
"Close your eyes. Picture a convict.
What's he wearing? Nothing special. Baseball cap on backwards, baggy pants. He says something ordinary like, 'yo that's shizzle'. Okay, now slowly open your eyes again. Who are you picturing? A black black man?
Wrong. That was a white woman.
Suprised? Well shame on you."
Again, for those familiar with The Office, this quote is nothing you wouldn't expect from Michael Scott. Although his comments are awkward and often foot-in-mouth, as the audience, you understand why someone might think the way he does and what the writers were attempting to communicate to the audience about this particular subject matter.
I encourage you to watch this episode. It's only 20 minutes long. It's a great episode and even one of the funniest of the entire series. Here's a link: (Please let me know if the link isn't working for anyone)
This is one of my favorite episodes of the office. Michael ends up being hyper-anti-racist by clearly sending you up to picture a black urbanite, and then says it was a white woman. I can think of almost no woman who matches his description. By being hyper-anti-racist, he is just as bad as being a racist! Yet he feels better about himself.
Michael is more concerned about the former convict than anyone else in the office and makes the former convict feel very uncomfortable, resulting in his resignation. It's ironic, really.
I am familiar with the Office, though not with that particular episode. One thing that I have always admired about the writers of the Office is that they bring real issues to the surface (whether they be about race,sex, religion, or in this case being a convict) and deal with them in a way that is often comical and never over the top. The great thing about the Office is that is very relatable to anyone and people can easily identify with the characters, especially if you’ve worked in a similar office environment. This sort of universality that the Office brings is exemplified on an even greater scale when Michael Scott brings up taboo issues that others in the office wish not to discuss. Michael, though mostly by accident, brings these taboo issues to the surface and through his foot-in-the-mouth humor actually demonstrates a greater lesson that no matter what our background is we are all the same.
I think this is greatly demonstrated in the season 1 episode “Diversity Day.” In this episode Michael has everyone in the office randomly pick a race-card and (without knowing what the card says) place the card on their forehead. Each member of the office then goes around and makes stereotypical statements to each other based on the race-card that is stuck to the other person’s forehead. They are then supposed to try and guess what is written on their card based on how the others in the office have treated them. While Michael’s good-hearted plan ends chaotically, the writers have demonstrated an important point…
We all make discretionary calls based on race, sex, disability, religion, etc, etc and instead of trying to ignore it, the Office illustrates that we all make these sorts of preconceived notions about each other and it’s better to laugh about it and acknowledge that we all do it then to keep it taboo. The Office does a great job at picking at individual flaws and foibles that we all have and because of these we are all the same.
Getting back to the discussion on discretion we had on Tuesday, it is important to understand the psychological thought process people go through when making these sort of judgment calls; whether you were let out of a speeding ticket because you were female and the officer was male, or you were followed around in a shopping center because you were by yourself and you were a teenager. These sorts of discretion happen all around us it’s better to understand why it happens rather than to get upset about it because the fact is that we ALL do it every day in our lives. Even as children with our own families we make discretion calls; “Oh I should ask Dad if I can buy this because he is less strict than Mom and more likely to give me what I want, etc, etc.” or “I can get away with more goofing off in the younger more relatable teachers class than I would if I were in the older more conservative teacher’s class.” It’s all a matter of making judgment calls based on our preconceived notions.
Below is a link to that episode of the Office!
http://tvgorge.com/shows/the-office/season-1/diversity-day/
I love this episode of "The Office." One of my favorite parts in the episode is when the workers compare their office to prison, and end up (jokingly) deciding that prison would be better.