Office Space (Mike Judge, 1999) Finding Fulfillment

[sbirkinshaw]

Meaningful existence is an idea that is at the heart of this film. Peter Gibbons is a person who easily fits into the realm of alienation (in the Marx sense of the word). He hates his job and feels that his work is absolutely meaningless and mundane. He even admits in the film that he has no motivation to do a good job because he would not be the one reaping the benefits of his hard work. He only works to pay the bills he hates to pay and he only does a good enough job to not get fired. As the movie points out, this is a situation which many people find themselves in everyday and they do nothing to change it. I feel that Peter’s experience with the occupational hypnotherapist gave him the courage to finally look at his life and attempt to find his autonomy. It doesn’t matter whether or not if he was a truly autonomous being with a fulfilling job by the end of the movie. The fact is that he was light-years ahead of the average Joe because he at least gained the momentum to try. He may not stay at his new construction job. He might even feel more alienated there after a time. The fundamental difference now is that he can muster up the courage to make drastic changes in his life in attempt to improve its quality. People are so afraid to lose their jobs they will be miserable all day everyday in order to keep their cable on. Until people see what is truly important, they are trapped in trivial pursuits.

We see a drastic change in Peter’s attitude about life after his experience with the hypnotherapist. He was walking on air, so to speak. But after Peter learns that the woman he loves slept with his nemesis Bill Lumbergh, his disposition changes once again. From that moment on Peter is struggling with anger and guilt. These feelings are not caused by his job or his unpaid bills. He becomes seriously concerned with the relationships he has with his friends and his girlfriend. This shows you that Peter did not just become some careless bum. Instead we see a transition in him from caring about his horrible job to caring about having meaningful relationships. And this is what the bit of dialogue between Peter and Joanna in the Flingers parking lot was about. Joanna said life is about finding what makes you happy. Peter said that he may never find meaningful and fulfilling work but he thinks that meaningful relationships are more important. However, this does not mean Peter will just settle for some horrible job that he complains about everyday. As I said, his search may continue but he would neither jeopardize the people he cares about nor risk his physical freedom in another get rich quick scheme.

[R.Davis-Larry]

I think the last part of your critique provides a true statement that I can agree with. Peter realizes that if he does not find fulfillment in his job, then there are other ways in which he can find it-relationships. I would have liked to have seen more of Joana and Peter together because their relationship seemed to be made up of temporary feelings. Peter is in the “zone” because he has been hypnotized, so it makes me wonder if his relationship will be meaningful once he snaps out of it. Will Joanna still be interested in him? Perhaps he will not snap out of it, but I was waiting for him to.

Another interesting comment that was made in the first thread was that people go to work in order to pay their cable bill. This may be true, but I do not think it is a bad thing. Television provides an opportunity for people to escape reality, much like Peter did once he was hypnotized. So, to criticize someone for working in order to pay the bill for something that provides a chance for him to find enjoyment is almost contradicting when mentioned that Peter needs to find fulfillment. Peter represents a group that is very much present in today’s world. He is the person who must work at a place that they dislike in order to provide for himself or in order to provide for a family. Most low paying jobs are not enjoyable and I think the message is that if one must do something he does not like, then it should be done with dignity and self confidence. To add to the idea of fulfillment being something that one should make their priority in life is interesting. Peter mentioned his teacher asking her students that, “If you had a millions dollars what would you do” Office Space (Mike Judge, 1999). I liked the answer that the teacher gave to the students about the meaning of their own answer. Then this goes back to what was said about meaningful relationships. If one were to choose an answer such as the neighbor’s then how could the teacher respond? I am not sure, but I think that if someone were to choose that answer then at least they may have meaningful and concrete relationships with others.

So, to sum up what I am trying to say when I mention that the choice to pay a cable is okay is that: there is more than one way to to find fulfillment in life.

~R.Davis-Larry

[mhollis]

I agree with both your posts. I feel like what Peter is feeling in the beginning is an emptiness that he desperately tries to fill by searching for something to solve all of his problems. He, like everyone else in the world, feels helpless and miniscule and believes that somehow the world itself has the power to magically change his life and he is waiting for it to do so. That is why in the beginning he is so inactive and passive aggressive.

After his “epiphany” during the hypnosis I think he was more awakened by the power of the doctors death. Instead of reacting to it he was affected by it and it caused him to have an authentic experience about his own meaningless life. He realized the only way to find satisfaction in life is to do whatever the hell you want. He makes a conscious decision to forget about the common rules of society. He stops caring about what other people think and instead starts taking chances and going for what he wants (ex. Asking Joanna out).

This change in attitude unexpectedly boosts him up in the corporate ladder. Ironically, he is the only one not striving for excellence and the only one who is rewarded for it. Because of his expression of hatred for the company and his boss he gains respect. This just shows that when you are honest about whom you are and forget about what people tell you to be or how they tell you to act, that’s when life starts working your way. When you don’t care about what you have to loose, you never can really loose anything.

M. Hollis

[A. Bengel]

[Mike Judge][Office Space]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this post because it didn't merely examine how the American Dream works, but questioned its authenticity. When Peter goes to work for construction with Lawrence, he discovers something that he might never have thought of: Maybe happiness doesn't come from having a stable job, or a high-paying one. Maybe advancement up the corporate ladder doesn't bring someone increased joy in life. Happiness comes from being able to do something. Updating software for the 2000 switch doesn't give Peter the impression that he's doing anything at all which is why he only does 15 minutes of work in a given week.
While Peter worked at Initech, he was a product of the system that told him that his job was meant to be a means to an end. All stable jobs in the U.S., all that fit under the blanket term "American Dream" come with a nice retirement plan. It's a promise that eventually you won't have to do anything. This imprints the notion on the minds of every middle-class American that the most joyous thing that he or she can, and eventually will be able to do is to sit around. So we all catch little previews for retirement every day when we come home and turn on the television. We do nothing.
Lawrence is freer than Peter. Is he less intelligent? Yes. Are his ambitions less than Peter's? Yes. While Peter wants eventually to have everything go his own way (by being able to do nothing), Lawrence is content to simply live for the day, watching naked ladies and drinking beer, or going fishing, but working hard during the day for balance. But is that a bad thing? Lawrence seems content and genuinely at peace in a way that Peter is not. He doesn't need success or free time, both societally implemented parameters of contentment, to be happy.
What Peter's hypnotism does for him is to remove the pressures and worry that society has placed on him every single day of his adult life. He was spiraling down to a level of depression and self-loathing that may have one day reached a Miltonic level. Without society over his shoulder, he is free. He doesn't have to have an office space.