Television and the whole self
Over the last few decades I have become aware of a formula used in stories, movies, and TV shows, especially sit com's, that has fascinated me. It has to do with the human psyche, the whole self actually.....OK, let me back up a bit. Many would agree that we exist as multi functioning creatures, that is to say that we operate from different levels of consciousness. The fabric of our whole "being", or self, is the soul, mind, emotions, and body. Now to be a complete and balanced entity, to operate at a peak level, we must function from all four of these levels, or sources of our self. If any are missing, then there is a part of the story of who we are that is missing. I say "story" because that is what I am relating this to, how this formula of self is used in story telling. Now in real life most of us operate from all of these levels and do so somewhat in balance. However, in story telling, characters must be exaggerated so that any given character will lean towards representing just one (or maybe two) of these aspects of the human psyche. And to get the complete human embodiment (the whole self) it will usually take four characters. Here are some examples I've noticed over the years.
"Star Trek" is a classical example. You have Scotty the mechanic. He is the one who keeps the Enterprise working. He is concerned with the nuts and bolts side of things. He represents the "physical". Then there is Bones the high strung doctor who is always at odds with Spock because of his "logic". Bones is always saying something like "Damn it Jim, I've got 430 lives aboard this ship and I won't let you jeopardize them with some dangerous tactic like that!" Bones represents the "emotional". And of course Spock, with his over use of logic, represents "mind". Captain Kirk is the main character who brings all of these other characters together to balance them out. He is the over view, or the "soul".
Now lets look at a couple of sit com's where the formula is obvious. "Cheers" is classic example. You have Norm who is a large physical presence, not much of a thinker, and he loves his food and beer. He is the "physical". Then there is Diane Chambers who is always upset at Sam, always angry or extremely happy. She is the "emotional". Cliffy, the post man, is always spouting off trivia. He is the "mental". And of course Sam, the owner of the establishment, who brings all of the characters together represents the "soul". Now these characters do slip in and out of their roles and often embody 2 of these characteristics but you will usually notice that they stay pretty much assigned to exaggerate one character. It was interesting on "Cheers" when they bought in the "Frazier" character. He was a combination of the emotional and the mental. I think he was thrown in to add to the color of those characteristics that were already being represented by Diane and Cliff.
Sienfeld has four main characters. Kramer is the physical, always sliding thru the door. His humor is based on the exaggerations of his body language. George is the emotional, always irate about something. Elaine is the mental, always trying to figure out what is going on with her job, her relationships, etc. And Jerry is the over soul. Now Elaine and Kramer do share their physical and mental characteristics often. You see Kramer often trying to figure out a new angle to make some money or Elaine being just plain beautiful, which gives her a strong "physical" presence.
OK, lets look at one more. "Malcolm in the middle" spreads the four characteristics around a little more. We have Reese, bullying brother, low functioning, definitely the physical. Lois, the mother, is always emotional, and Malcolm, the genius, is the mental. Hal is an interesting character because he embodies an extreme of all of these characteristics. Also, the "soul" or over view is shared by the mother, the father, and Malcolm, mostly Malcolm.
I've also noticed an exaggerated use of this formula on a lot of cartoon shows. South Park, The Simpson's, King of the hill, Rugrats.....actually, you can see this formula in varying degrees on just about any movie or TV show. Probably the most classic use is in the classic stories like Cinderella, Sleeping beauty, and of course, the Wizard of Oz. I'm not sure if any of this is good for anything, but I've always thought it was interesting. I know, you are probably thinking that I need to get a life. I would have to agree.