In the book Truth or Consequences: The Promise and Perils of Postmodernism, Millard Erickson said: “There is value in the postmodern emphasis on community versus individuality” (pg. 201). Both of these threads of postmodernism are captured within The Office’s genre of production, mockumentary.
What is mockumentary?
The Office is filmed in a particular genre of film called mockumentary. Merriam-Webster defines mockumentary as “a facetious or satirical work (as a film) presented in the style of a documentary.” In other words, “the mockumentary is presented as a documentary recording real life, but is in fact fictional…often used to analyze current events and issues by using a fictional setting around it” (Wikipedia). For those of you familiar with the show and not this genre of film will be able to readily identify how exactly this plays out in the program.
Mockumentary and The Office?
The producers of The Office film the show in such a way as to give the impression that the cameras are rolling around the clock. With the perceptible omnipresence of the camera crew they have caught “unintended” interactions between certain colleagues. For instance, in the episode Fun Run, the camera caught “Jim and Pam kissing, which leads to them admitting to the crew that they are in fact dating; however, they attempt to keep the relationship a secret from their co-workers, which doesn’t last long.”
Each program generally consists of interviews, confessionals, and commentaries on the day’s events by different characters, as well as shameless plugs for made-up businesses (Hence Bob Vance who uses the camera for his personal enrichment by advertising his business during interviews). With the camera crew appearing as another part of the cast, their presence is not denied by the characters, but rather acknowledged by them even if they are not the focus of the scene. For example there is Jan Levinson who becomes regularly irritated or uncomfortable by the cameras presence. Not only are the cameras present at the office of Dunder Mifflin, but the cameras take on an intrusive role in the life of the characters by following them home in certain instances.
My personal experience
While watching The Office for the first time, I felt as if this style of production was very effective in creating community amongst its viewership. What created my greatest sense of personal involvement with the program was the characters acknowledgment of the cameras presence. After becoming immersed in the program it felt as if I was observing the office of Dunder Mifflin through the lens of the camera. The subtle awareness of the camera by the characters gave me the impression that I was standing behind the camera.
When the camera crew would follow a character through the office and those in the peripheral of the scene acknowledged their presence, their body language gave me the feeling as if I was the one causing them to react in a certain way. On one hand, I got the feeling that if the characters were uncomfortable with the cameras presence, I was the one that made them feel that way. On the other hand, if the characters were confident with the cameras presence, I felt as if they were O.K. with my being there. I believe this is why Millard Erickson said:
It [community] may even be a matter of the viewership of a particular television program. During the time they are together, they experience a sort of common experience, although their perception of it and their interpretation of it may vary considerably from one person to another. When the event is over and the crowd departs, there is very little if any real communion or interchange between those who were together (Truth or Consequences: The Promise and Perils of Postmodernism, pg. 201).
Even though the community created through the medium of television is superficial and short-lived, the production of The Office is a powerful tool in creating a common experience of community amongst its viewership.
The Pre-em-i-nence of Christ in The Office
Our search for community is at the very heart of our being. Christianity teaches that mankind was created in the image and likeness of God at a defined point in the past (Genesis 1.26-27; 9.6). Since mankind is created in the image and likeness of God, we have been created in His representative likeness. In other words, we are similar to Him in essence (i.e. our being), but not identical with Him (Old Testament Survey: The Message, Form, and Background, pg. 23).
Considering that mankind has been created in the image of God, we may gather that mankind was created for the purpose of community with God and others (Stanley Grenz, Theology for the Community of God, pg. 112). This holds to be true when we consider that the One True and Living God of the Universe is a Triune God who is a communal Being of love and mutuality that eternally exists within the Trinitarian members, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Grenz, pg. 30). So, being created in the image of God means that we find our primary identity (i.e. who we are our) in relationship with God, and our secondary meaning in relationships of mutual respect and love with others.[3] In a sense we are human only in relationship with God and others, for God has not created us to be isolated individuals from Himself and others.
If community created by The Office (as well as other mediums such as MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter) is temporary, short-lived, and even shallow, where can we find community that is permanent, long-lasting, and deep? In response to an interview conducted by Eddie Gibbs in Emerging Churches: Creating Christian Community in Postmodern Cultures, Jonathan Campbell said:
In our current cultural crisis, the most powerful demonstration of the reality of the gospel is a community embodying the way, the truth, and the life of Jesus. Healthy community is the life of Jesus living in us and through us. For community to last, our love for one another must be surpassed only by our love for Jesus. If the relationships are grounded on anything other than Jesus, the community will fall – and the sooner the better! (pg. 89).
True and real community can only be developed through our personal faith in Jesus Christ and trusting in the grace of God rooted in Christ’s sacrifice for us in enabling us to love all others as ourselves (Matthew 22.39; Titus 2.11-14).
Enjoy this post? Get more like them by subscribing to Reformed and Reforming by E-mail or RSS.
Related posts:
- The Gospel Creates Community and Mutual Service This semester I’ve had the opportunity to thoroughly study the...
- How to Watch a Movie: Questions to Ask of Films From Christianity and Culture: Christians in our Culture by John...
- Defining Corporate Worship: The Role of Historical Tradition and Community Context Last week I ended my post on the role of...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
10 Steps Towards Understanding Culture and Applying the Gospel « Reformed and Reforming
on Feb 18th, 2010
@ 11:17 am:
[...] what people are seeing in them. For a brief example of how this works, you can see my piece on Finding Community in “The Office” 1. Try to comprehend a cultural text on its own terms (grasp its communicative intent) before you [...]