Based on your viewing of our screening of Thirtysomething as well as Feuer's analysis of the program--what role do you think yuppie guilt plays on the show and how is it represented?
Yuppie guilt plays a very interested role in Thirtysomething due to the different ways in it represented throughout the characters and the conflicts. From the outside, the show it very yuppie itself. It is about a younger, middle class family, who is more like the higher middle class. The main conflicts of the episode we watched in screening where very materialistic and not too serious. For example, the wife wants to get the kitchen remodeled and then the possibility of an affair of sorts with the construction man. Or the husband has to choose where to expand his business to or whether to fire his employee. All of these conflicts can be seen in a positive light. They have a home and the money to remodel the kitchen. The husband has a job and not only does he have a job, but it is a job that is growing and expanding. Therefore, this show can been seen as very yuppie. However, there is this element of guilt that is seen throughout of the episode. There is the neurotic dream the husband has of his friends and family dressed hippie-like and all chanting how he is a yuppie now. Occasionally, there are comments by his friends also addressing how he has changed his radical ways since his college years. All of these issues address his guilt. Additionally there is a scene where the wife yells at her husband about how could he be angry because he has a home, a job, and a happy, healthy family. Overall, in my opinion, Thirtysomething was a yuppie show especially with the conflicts. It almost came across as whiny at moments. Yet there is this element of yuppie guilt and this issues that the middle class faces. All in all, I enjoyed Thirtysomething. It was probably one of my favorite screenings so far.
In the show Thirtysomething, the protagonist neglects his family in a way because he is preoccupied with his devotion to his work, which, in the larger picture is him focusing his energy on trying to impress his coworkers and also trying to make an executive decision about a business arrangement. The show creates an aesthetic out of yuppie guilt. The show expresses self loathing over his achievements. The plot in the pilot is based on a domestic and profession situation. It focuses on the protagonists crises, which is not his failures but his success. The protagonist is loathing over not building an over the top breakfast room in his new big house. He wants to impress his coworkers in his housewarming party and is afraid that his breakfast room will ruin peoples impression of him. He is also in a conflicting position where he has to fire his secretary where he can not bring himself to do it. In these two situation, he is dwelling on how he thinks everything is going wrong for him. While in retrospect, he does not acknowledge his privilege of his entitled position at his work and his comfortable living situation in the domestic context. The yuppie guilt plays in with middle-upper class cisgendered white male not acknowledging what they have and instead diverting their focus on what more they want. It’s maximizes on the minimals of his successfulness instead of maximizing on all he has.
During the showing of Thirtysomething, the husband is owner and operator of a growing advertisement agency, a new homeowner, and a young father. He has a bright future and a good life with a loving family. His wife is loyal and stays at home while a young carpenter remodels his kitchen area and makes passes at his wife. His wife turns him down and remains loyal. Essentially he’s on the road to success with plenty of wealth yet is constantly worrying about his choices in expanding his business, remodeling his house, and handling his incompetent assistant.
Despite his wife’s assurances, he dreams about being ridiculed for wanting success and having the means to achieve it as a representation of Yuppie guilt. The episode focuses on his concerns about everyone’s opinions even as he sarcastically talks about his guest list for a housewarming party he and his wife proceed to obsess over (him more so than her).
In the end, his guilt is unfounded and he seems to end up more confident in his decisions with no ultimate change to his life for the duration of the presentation. Overall, the entire show was about the husband’s Yuppie Guilt and how it was generally pointless.
The show Thirtysomething depicts a yuppie in a comfortable, upper middle class familial and financial environment. The pilot that we watched in class addresses the self-perceived difficulties that the protagonist undergoes in his management job at a burgeoning agency and his father/husband roles at home. These trials, which admittedly are pretty tame relative to the problems of other people, come in the forms of indecision in the workplace (what to do with an incompetent office assistant, how to conduct himself in front of his co-workers) and at home (how to remodel his house). He constantly worries about his image, this stemming from an insecurity about other people’s impressions of his property. In the fantastic dream sequence, we see his friends and wife dressed in hippie clothing. They put him on trial for desiring material wealth. These narrative pieces emerge out of what Feuer calls ‘yuppie guilt.’ The protagonist focuses on the small, insignificant shortcomings in his life and blows them out of proportion. His wife notices this behavior and in a bedroom scene shouts at how he needs to wake up and stop over analyzing his life. At the end of the pilot, we see him with his wife, child, and surrounding friends. Though not everything is totally resolved (the construction man places a romantic kiss on the cheek of the protagonist’s wife), he has a better grip on reality.
They yuppie-ness in the show Thirtsomething is evident through the situations and problems that plague the main character, Michael. Some of these include opportunities that he views as problems, such as remodeling part of their house and expanding his business. The author describes yuppie guilt as guilt stemming from success and material things. This contradicts the extreme materialism they engage in. The renovation, for example, showcases this change in desires and goals. Their struggles with it stem from this guilt.
He’s so preoccupied with his problems that he neglects his family and becomes so absorbed in the issues. His guilt because of this is clear, especially in the scene where he dreams of his grandfather chastising him. It’s made especially evident when Michael’s wife, Melissa, needs to tell him that he has a loving family, a house, and a job and he doesn’t need to be upset. His extreme stress and displeasure with his life is an example of this yuppie guilt.
Yuppie guilt plays a very two-sided role in thirtysomething. The first role yuppie guilt plays is played as a place of sympathy for the viewer. A lot of the character development on the show is driven by their guilt over their success in spite of their moral positions of their youth. For example, during the scene of Michael’s trial, he mentions that he wanted to become a writer and that he didn’t want to go into advertising. He only “sold out,” as Feuer analyzed, to be able to make a living. Being able to make a living is something that everyone can relate to; most people would want to go to college like the characters did to be able to have a better life than they have. Since no one wants to be called a “yuppie,” it becomes complicated when you see them having these conflicts but the conflicts are something to be ashamed of. So in a way, yuppies have a sympathetic portrayal in the guilt that they supposedly have. The second role yuppie guilt plays is both parodying and criticizing yuppies, which gives the show a sense of credibility amongst the show’s critics. The characters complain about, for example, how their breakfast room will be and how people will perceive it at a party, even though Michael doesn’t want to have the party. This ignores the fact that they can afford to do these things to fix up their home. Michael gripes over his business doing well and being able to afford a nice space to do a commercial that will boost their exposure even more.
Thirtysomething, in it's whining and constant angst over material wealth, speaks to yuppie guilt directly. The show itself depicts yuppie guilt in many different instances. My favorite being shown in a hallucination/dream that the main character has with his grandfather from the old country. In it, Michael is contemplating what to do about his job, house, and upper middle class life in general. Should he redo his house? Should he work for commercials and continue working for "the man"? While angsting, his grandpa from Russia or Poland appears and tells him that in his old days, he came to America with nothing but a few cents and a will to work hard, so Michael should essentially suck it up. But this doesn't immediately make Michael happy or come to a conclusion. This discrepancy between his and his grandfather's life is forcing Michael to confront his yuppie guilt that feels sorry for his objectively unsad life. Michael feels guilty for selling out to his old self because of his current success. By showing a hysterical hallucination, thirtysomething is aware of its audience, and gives the show a certain ethos that connects viewers problems to those on screen, and thus lets the yuppie guilting Americans a sympathetic ear to their not so awful issues.
Yuppie guilt plays a very interested role in Thirtysomething due to the different ways in it represented throughout the characters and the conflicts. From the outside, the show it very yuppie itself. It is about a younger, middle class family, who is more like the higher middle class. The main conflicts of the episode we watched in screening where very materialistic and not too serious. For example, the wife wants to get the kitchen remodeled and then the possibility of an affair of sorts with the construction man. Or the husband has to choose where to expand his business to or whether to fire his employee. All of these conflicts can be seen in a positive light. They have a home and the money to remodel the kitchen. The husband has a job and not only does he have a job, but it is a job that is growing and expanding. Therefore, this show can been seen as very yuppie.
ReplyDeleteHowever, there is this element of guilt that is seen throughout of the episode. There is the neurotic dream the husband has of his friends and family dressed hippie-like and all chanting how he is a yuppie now. Occasionally, there are comments by his friends also addressing how he has changed his radical ways since his college years. All of these issues address his guilt. Additionally there is a scene where the wife yells at her husband about how could he be angry because he has a home, a job, and a happy, healthy family.
Overall, in my opinion, Thirtysomething was a yuppie show especially with the conflicts. It almost came across as whiny at moments. Yet there is this element of yuppie guilt and this issues that the middle class faces. All in all, I enjoyed Thirtysomething. It was probably one of my favorite screenings so far.
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ReplyDeleteIn the show Thirtysomething, the protagonist neglects his family in a way because he is preoccupied with his devotion to his work, which, in the larger picture is him focusing his energy on trying to impress his coworkers and also trying to make an executive decision about a business arrangement. The show creates an aesthetic out of yuppie guilt. The show expresses self loathing over his achievements. The plot in the pilot is based on a domestic and profession situation. It focuses on the protagonists crises, which is not his failures but his success. The protagonist is loathing over not building an over the top breakfast room in his new big house. He wants to impress his coworkers in his housewarming party and is afraid that his breakfast room will ruin peoples impression of him. He is also in a conflicting position where he has to fire his secretary where he can not bring himself to do it. In these two situation, he is dwelling on how he thinks everything is going wrong for him. While in retrospect, he does not acknowledge his privilege of his entitled position at his work and his comfortable living situation in the domestic context. The yuppie guilt plays in with middle-upper class cisgendered white male not acknowledging what they have and instead diverting their focus on what more they want. It’s maximizes on the minimals of his successfulness instead of maximizing on all he has.
ReplyDeleteDuring the showing of Thirtysomething, the husband is owner and operator of a growing advertisement agency, a new homeowner, and a young father. He has a bright future and a good life with a loving family. His wife is loyal and stays at home while a young carpenter remodels his kitchen area and makes passes at his wife. His wife turns him down and remains loyal. Essentially he’s on the road to success with plenty of wealth yet is constantly worrying about his choices in expanding his business, remodeling his house, and handling his incompetent assistant.
ReplyDeleteDespite his wife’s assurances, he dreams about being ridiculed for wanting success and having the means to achieve it as a representation of Yuppie guilt. The episode focuses on his concerns about everyone’s opinions even as he sarcastically talks about his guest list for a housewarming party he and his wife proceed to obsess over (him more so than her).
In the end, his guilt is unfounded and he seems to end up more confident in his decisions with no ultimate change to his life for the duration of the presentation. Overall, the entire show was about the husband’s Yuppie Guilt and how it was generally pointless.
The show Thirtysomething depicts a yuppie in a comfortable, upper middle class familial and financial environment. The pilot that we watched in class addresses the self-perceived difficulties that the protagonist undergoes in his management job at a burgeoning agency and his father/husband roles at home. These trials, which admittedly are pretty tame relative to the problems of other people, come in the forms of indecision in the workplace (what to do with an incompetent office assistant, how to conduct himself in front of his co-workers) and at home (how to remodel his house). He constantly worries about his image, this stemming from an insecurity about other people’s impressions of his property. In the fantastic dream sequence, we see his friends and wife dressed in hippie clothing. They put him on trial for desiring material wealth. These narrative pieces emerge out of what Feuer calls ‘yuppie guilt.’ The protagonist focuses on the small, insignificant shortcomings in his life and blows them out of proportion. His wife notices this behavior and in a bedroom scene shouts at how he needs to wake up and stop over analyzing his life. At the end of the pilot, we see him with his wife, child, and surrounding friends. Though not everything is totally resolved (the construction man places a romantic kiss on the cheek of the protagonist’s wife), he has a better grip on reality.
ReplyDeleteThey yuppie-ness in the show Thirtsomething is evident through the situations and problems that plague the main character, Michael. Some of these include opportunities that he views as problems, such as remodeling part of their house and expanding his business. The author describes yuppie guilt as guilt stemming from success and material things. This contradicts the extreme materialism they engage in. The renovation, for example, showcases this change in desires and goals. Their struggles with it stem from this guilt.
ReplyDeleteHe’s so preoccupied with his problems that he neglects his family and becomes so absorbed in the issues. His guilt because of this is clear, especially in the scene where he dreams of his grandfather chastising him. It’s made especially evident when Michael’s wife, Melissa, needs to tell him that he has a loving family, a house, and a job and he doesn’t need to be upset. His extreme stress and displeasure with his life is an example of this yuppie guilt.
Yuppie guilt plays a very two-sided role in thirtysomething. The first role yuppie guilt plays is played as a place of sympathy for the viewer. A lot of the character development on the show is driven by their guilt over their success in spite of their moral positions of their youth. For example, during the scene of Michael’s trial, he mentions that he wanted to become a writer and that he didn’t want to go into advertising. He only “sold out,” as Feuer analyzed, to be able to make a living. Being able to make a living is something that everyone can relate to; most people would want to go to college like the characters did to be able to have a better life than they have. Since no one wants to be called a “yuppie,” it becomes complicated when you see them having these conflicts but the conflicts are something to be ashamed of. So in a way, yuppies have a sympathetic portrayal in the guilt that they supposedly have.
ReplyDeleteThe second role yuppie guilt plays is both parodying and criticizing yuppies, which gives the show a sense of credibility amongst the show’s critics. The characters complain about, for example, how their breakfast room will be and how people will perceive it at a party, even though Michael doesn’t want to have the party. This ignores the fact that they can afford to do these things to fix up their home. Michael gripes over his business doing well and being able to afford a nice space to do a commercial that will boost their exposure even more.
Thirtysomething, in it's whining and constant angst over material wealth, speaks to yuppie guilt directly. The show itself depicts yuppie guilt in many different instances. My favorite being shown in a hallucination/dream that the main character has with his grandfather from the old country. In it, Michael is contemplating what to do about his job, house, and upper middle class life in general. Should he redo his house? Should he work for commercials and continue working for "the man"? While angsting, his grandpa from Russia or Poland appears and tells him that in his old days, he came to America with nothing but a few cents and a will to work hard, so Michael should essentially suck it up. But this doesn't immediately make Michael happy or come to a conclusion. This discrepancy between his and his grandfather's life is forcing Michael to confront his yuppie guilt that feels sorry for his objectively unsad life. Michael feels guilty for selling out to his old self because of his current success. By showing a hysterical hallucination, thirtysomething is aware of its audience, and gives the show a certain ethos that connects viewers problems to those on screen, and thus lets the yuppie guilting Americans a sympathetic ear to their not so awful issues.
ReplyDelete