The changing workplace of 1920s America presented industries and businesses with an innovative new standard of operation : work smarter, not harder. These innovations included the popularization of the assembly line, women's right to vote (and, subsequently, the quest for the right to equal pay), and the invention and mass production of the automobile. It seemed that all aspects of the American workforce were advancing rapidly, but the practices were not entirely appreciated by the American public. Once the Great Depression shook the country, work became much more than just a day at the office; it proved that any day could be an employee's last and that to keep your job safe you had to toe the line at all times. Such a dire situation could reinstate the country's depression among the population, but for authors like Sinclair Lewis, an injection of cynicism and self-deprecation is therapeutic for the ills of the times. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned"?Get the original essayIn Lewis's Babbitt, the eponymous protagonist is a well-off Central American real estate agent with the most mediocre and ambitions possible, and its existence testifies to the way in which the relationship between work and worker has radically changed. Babbitt is also partly motivated by the politics of the time, emphasizing centrist moderation and condemning "extreme" political views of the left or right, which George Babbitt particularly dislikes among "the long-haired gentry who calls themselves “liberals” and “radicals”. "and 'nonpartisan' and 'intelligentsia' and God only knows how many other misleading names" (Lewis XV). In fact, a quick symbolic reading of Babbitt presents readers with the absolute state of 1920s America: always roaring anywhere but wherever they are Anyone living where Babbitt is, due to their location or state of mind, must roar of their own accord to make "normal" life interesting. Babbitt's satire plays on the expectations of the average worker of the time, highlighting the workforce's shift from an individual meritocratic approach to almost anonymous collaboration. although he spends most of his time appearing particularly ordinary Babbitt's rebellious fantasies of "knocking down a few mountains" are inaccessible as he struggles to climb the molehill that is his conformist nature (XIII). Babbitt's publication, times have changed. Forward was the battle cry of the business world as America entered the war for the second time. GDP spending on defense and technological advancement has increased by up to 40%, from the usual 1-2%, setting a precedent for industry-leading research and technological development American. To operate competently in this area, America needed all the help it could get. Lawmakers passed the Equal Pay Act of 1963, prohibiting a woman from being paid less than a man for the same amount of work in the same position. Also at this time, the civil rights movement had won a decisive victory as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 made it illegal to discriminate against a person based on race, color, religion, or national origin. . This great equalization has incredibly filled the populationactive of competent people. To combat all these new workers, designer Robert Propst invented the “action office” compartment, the ancestor of the cubicle. Once considered a more personalized office, Propst's creation has been manipulated by companies to accommodate more people in smaller workspaces in an effort to reduce costs. As if these workers didn't already feel small enough, the 21st century introduced computers and AI that automated much of the work, making some jobs and careers obsolete. The workplace of the 1920s was far more mobile and customizable than the modern cubicle could ever dream of having. Babbitt's idea of ​​the average, as an office space with room to maneuver and work that has "the class of poetry," seems luxurious in these modern times (VIII). In such an isolationist and insensitive context, it's no wonder that writers and directors have continued to poke fun at the "nine-to-five job" in the form of biting workplace and office comedies. The years since Babbitt have seen many major content releases centered around the man or woman who flips the proverbial script on their cruel bosses or horrible positions. Movies like Nine to Five (1980), where a trio of secretaries kidnap their tyrannical boss and run the company themselves, or shows like The Office (2005 - 2013), which shows the extravagant antics of a paper company medium-sized company run and employed by Americans. caricatures are important because of their relevance. Just as Babbitt points out the folly of striving to be mediocre, office satires like these use comic relativity to make something amusing out of the mundane. However, few works share the aspects that make Babbitt as poignant as they are funny. When it comes to Babbitt's power as a true examination of American laziness, anger, and pride in the workplace, Mike Judge's 1999 film Office Space seems the closest to showing all sides keys to the most important workplace satire of the 20th century. century. Office Space reflects Babbitt's satirical elements in many ways, but to truly prove the enduring influence of Lewis's work, it is important to examine the specific aspects of base aim, rebellion, and regret in order to better communicate the ideas instilled in the 1920s. Office Space is set in mid-1990s Texas, inspired by a short animation Judge had made called "Milton", a mumbling office worker who was becoming increasingly frustrated with his situation . The film follows the life of Peter Gibbons (Ron Livingston) as he suffers at the hands of a software company called Initech. Gibbons' job is to rewrite the code in anticipation of the "2000s change," which involves changing thousands of lines of code to have four digits instead of two. As if the monotony wasn't enough, Gibbons' office is right across the street from shouty receptionist Nina, and he has to endure the same vocal assault of "company accounts payable, Nina is speaking, just a moment" every once in a while. seconds of the day. Gibbons has eight different bosses ("eight, Bob") who don't care about him, as evidenced by the droning speech of boss ringleader Bill Lumbergh. Every day of his life is constant criticism, annoyance and uniform suffering, and one day this pushes him over the edge and to act against his employers. The only ways for Peter to escape this daily torture are his office friends Samir and Michael, his next door neighbor Lawrence and awaitress named Joanna, seemingly the only characters who sympathize with him. Peter, like Babbitt, cannot physically master the unfair and arbitrary rules of the office environment to advance without being disciplined by his supervisors. Peter's inability to buck the system reflects Babbitt's only resistance to acting against the agency, which is the possibility that "the people of Floral Heights will sit up and pay attention...to little old Georgie" (XIII ). For both of them to escape the banality of it all, they amuse themselves with enlarged fantasies. Babbitt, who considers his average production car "poetry" and a "perilous shore excursion", valued his standard car to the same degree that a Rolls-Royce or Pierce Arrow of the period normally would have (III). He also pursues a "fairy" in his mind, a beautiful, white, "eager" young thing who has distracted his attention from the present moment (I). Peter Gibbons has his “fairy” and she too reflects the humble desires of the worker. During a conversation with Lawrence after a long day at work, Peter asks a common office question: "What would you do with a million dollars?" Lawrence is quick to respond, crudely suggesting that he always wanted to have "two girls at the same time." Peter laughs at the sentiment, but Lawrence is dead serious. Lawrence thinks that having a million dollars will make him more desirable, to the point where he won't even have to spend it to achieve this ideal shape. When the question inevitably turns to Peter, he asserts that with a million dollars, "I would relax, sit around all day and do nothing." Peter's fairy is the idea of ​​doing nothing, and like Babbitt's fairy, she represents an ideal of fleeting escape that is impossible given their current work environment. Babbitt would love nothing more than to chase the fairy all day, while Peter would be thrilled at the idea of ​​doing nothing all day. As Lawrence later says, "you don't need a million dollars to do nothing," a quote that sparks an idea in Peter that leads to the next point. After a while, Peter breaks with the monotony of his situation by deciding to rebel against the system that had imprisoned him. The first phase involves taking a day off and sleeping in unexpectedly, which draws phone calls from the ever-unenthusiastic Bill Lumbergh. When Peter realizes how ineffective this form of rebellion is, he deliberately shows up to work in casual clothes, knocks down the walls in his office, takes time off to hang out with the waitress he just met, and throws guts of fish on it. its TPS report cover sheets. All these discrepancies attracted the attention of the office, as well as that of the performance evaluators who came to carry out the dismissals. While the rest of the company becomes nervous about their performance reviews, Peter feels no sense of fear in his body, because he has armed himself with "the truth" about his job and has not not afraid of what the reviewers think. He admits to his multitude of bosses, the fact that he does “fifteen minutes of effective work a day” and that he “does not care” about his work. This latest admission stuns critics, who ask for clarification. Peter obliges, saying he has no motivation to succeed because he sees no gain in working hard. The critics meet with two of Peter's bosses and claim that he has "senior executive" qualifications, which his bosses (who are clearly unhappy with his profligacy) vehemently refuse to believe. Babbitt has an equally remarkable experience involving his own awareness of the ordinariness of his average life. When presented toTanis and the "Group", he realizes what rebellion can look like and willingly accepts their company. The group was known for drinking excessively (something that would not be acceptable during the Prohibition era) and indulging in formalities in conversation. Babbitt realizes how deeply wounded the world of work is and sincerely rejoices in “going wild for a change” (xiii). His desire for rebellion grows and soon he transfers his desire for Tanis into an illegitimate relationship, going behind his own wife Myra's back to do so. Babbitt ups the ante on his own rebellion in order to feel like an individual, and soon finds himself consumed in contrarianism to stand out. Even his own company, which respects him enormously after he gave a speech for the SAREB presidents, is not safe from his rampage. During a required lecture on the importance of immigrants, which prompts colleagues like Finkelstein to ape his overly sensitive approach, Babbitt becomes furious and makes a scene to subvert these anti-immigrant sentiments. Despite how easy and popular it is to reduce the number of immigrants in the labor force, and despite Babbitt's own past opinions on the subject, the momentum of rebellion overcomes him when he remarks: "'Four-flusher!' ' Hot wind! And what's the problem with immigrants? My God, they are not all ignorant, and I have the impression that we are all descended from immigrants ourselves” (XXXII). George thinks that this feeling will make people see him differently, but it achieves an unexpected result because his colleagues admire his special honesty. Babbitt was even approached by the Good Citizen's League, who asked him to join their group. In the tailwind of his rebellion, Babbitt scolds them, and the narrator cites that "something dark and unknown and fierce spoke of Babbitt: 'Now look here, Charley! I'm damned if I'm going to be intimidated into joining anything, not even by you plutes!' » (XXXII). As they try to get him to join, Babbitt realizes inwardly that he may have taken this contrarianism too far, but also realizes "that if he gave in this, he would give in everything" ( XXXII). Between the two scenes of Office Space and Babbitt, the emphasis on rebellion by subverting the worker's expectations and their appreciation by others shows the power of "the Truth" that Office Space's office drones must hide to guarantee their job security. and Babbitt's agents must ignore in order to keep their reputation consistent. The main characters' two standout acts reflect the archetype of a hero telling it like it is and being rewarded for his honesty (even if that's not the intended effect). However, at the height of the two characters' rebellion, something happens. crooked. Some aspects require them to “let go” of everything that has been going on inside them, and this aspect usually involves a friend or loved one. This is key to the satire aspect, because just as things were starting to improve for the character, an outside force stops him from continuing on this heroic path. This brutality should make readers angry, as they realize how close the character came to achieving his goal of making his life interesting and individualistic. The step that takes Babbitt out of the game against the grain occurs when he realizes that Tanis is becoming exactly what Myra had been "an emotional escape" (XXXI). Eventually, Babbitt returns to his wife Myra, and at a fortuitous and consequential moment when she suffers from appendicitis. Babbitt calls the doctors (despite his fear of doctors) and they want to operate on himbefore things get worse. Myra is panicked, but Babbitt shakes off the appearance of rebellion to confess, "'I love you more than anything in the world!' I was a little worried about business and everything, but it's over now and I'm back” (XXIII). Babbitt stays with her during the ambulance ride and during her hospital stay, despite his desire not to be cramped and burned by the ambulance heater from time to time. Babbitt matured here and rejected the "tell it like it is" truth for his own personal truth. Babbitt's regret, as previously stated, is a key aspect of the satire, as it shows how close Babbitt was to being an individual as he had previously wished, but instead he chose to be a better person for the sake of his wife. Peter's unfortunate rebellion took a turn for the worse. Peter's final act comes after he is recommended for promotion by supervisors, meaning his friends Samir and Michael will be fired in order to compensate. Peter and his friends concoct a nefarious plan to ensure they'll be in good hands after they're fired (after venting their anger over a faulty fax machine) by creating a scheme that siphons off company profits "in fractions of cents.” This way, an imperceptible part of the profits goes to them and they can have control over Initech without ever having to work there again. The code goes awry, however, when the friends discover that the program has used commas instead of decimal points, thereby taking away huge profits from the company (to the tune of $30,000 an hour). Peter begins to see that, like Babbitt, he has officially taken this campaign against Initech too far when he realizes that it could land him and his friends in federal prison. Peter wants to rectify the situation, abandoning any hope he had of returning to Initech so as not to get him and his friends in trouble. After much deliberation, he realizes that the truth must come out again and that he must show the program to the Initech bosses to ensure that he alone takes the fall. It’s “giving up everything,” just as Babbitt had proposed, but it’s for the safety of others that he confesses like this. As he arrives at Initech's office for this fateful moment, he notices something different in the office: it is engulfed in flames and all the colleagues are gone. It turns out the office was burned down by none other than basement-dwelling Milton, who grew tired of Initech's mistreatment and had a rebellion of his own. Milton's arson burned the records of the transactions, expunging Peter and his friends of their crimes. Peter's desire to do the right thing was rectified by Milton's actions, allowing him to escape unscathed and find more satisfying work by joining Lawrence in the construction field. Their first objective: to demolish the charred hulk of the Initech. The film here ends the story of Peter, who escaped the rebellious lifestyle and was put back to work in a field that, so far, is not so bad. Both plays evoke the key elements that Lewis had set as precedent for work satire, with the low purpose of the average American worker, the attempts to break away from the system, and finally the regret of how far we have come and the return to normalcy in service of the main plot arc. Both Babbitt and Peter lead less than extraordinary lives in their fields of work and face their superiors and peers who judge them. A pivotal event determines "the final straw" for living in this unfulfilling life, and both pursue intentional forms of debauchery.