How I learned Philosophy

Don't tell my boss: until last month, I didn't know a thing about Philosophy.

Well, that's not entirely true. I know how many university students enroll in Introduction to Philosophy courses annually. I'm fluent in the pricing of Introduction to Ethics readers (anthology textbooks). I'm familiar with Philosophers, classic to contemporary, and how to spell their names correctly in a Table of Contents.

That counts, right? Not when I'm on the phone with an author, who eagerly pursues a conversation about Epistemology or Metaphysics with an Editorial Assistant who just wants to get back to her Google Reader. (Dude, not at work...)

Anyway, while I was at the American Philosophical Association conference in Chicago last month, this was the same conversation I had with another Editorial Assistant who was manning the Wiley/Blackwell booth. "Yeah, I didn't study Philosophy in college or anything," was the mutual confession. Though not very guilt-inducing, we still felt that it made our job hard sometimes, especially if we were expected to talk (eek!) about Philosophy: its topics, its significance, what the philosophers are actually saying.

As we chatted, I surveyed the various books she had displayed, and (miraculously) came upon something I would read: The Office and Philosophy (Blackwell, 2008). I know, I'm a little late with the whole The Office fad. You can really tell, since the book pubbed back in 2007. This means the authors wrote it one or two year prior. (Like I said, I'm slow to fads.) Dan and I have been bona fide Office addicts for a few months now - recording it on DVR whenever it's on, and then devoting a good portion of the week to sporadic marathons. Dan's even downloaded the whole series illegally on the internets (don't tell NBC!).

I bought the book without a whim - I had to have it. Not just because it's about The Office, but because I would finally, FINALLY, learn something about my profession (besides page counts and sales forecasts).

Edited by J. Jeremy Wisnewski, this funny and accessible book features a compilation of essays by (real) contemporary philosophers on the various philosophical subtopics that relate to characters, themes, and events in The Office (both the UK and US series. I, um, skipped the essays about the UK Office. I've heard it's good, so I'll probably Netflix it).

The Office and Philosophy was truly an entertaining and educational read. The book discusses morality, by examining Michael Scott's complete moral blindness. It touches on self and self-deception by examining Dwight's power struggle in the hierarchy of the office, and his life as a Schrute (some kind of superpowerful, pseudo-Amish family) which he takes very, very seriously. It examines Affirmative Action in the context of Michael's "special" (racist) treatment of Stanley. Sexual Harassment is discussed in relation to Jim and Pam, Kelly and Ryan, Michael and Ryan. Not to mention, a lot of discussion on business ethics (remember the XXX-rated Mickey Mouse/Donald Duck watermark?).

One of the more interesting essays (Chapter 3), covered the idea of "feeling by proxy", which is the term that defines how we, the audience, are sometimes unable to physically keep watching as Michael Scott endures (more like provokes) a humiliating scenario.

For example, how can we ever forget Michael's noble kiss he lands on poor Oscar in "Gay Witch Hunt"? The scene was hard for me to watch; I wanted to turn away, because I really couldn't endure Michael's eager self-humiliation. He was completely blind to the embarrassment the kiss (in front of the rest of the staff in the conference room) would bring upon Oscar AND himself. He's going past the limits to prove to his staff that he's not a homosexual, when simultaneously he looks more like a fool than before. The reason it's hard for people to watch the scene is because they're feeling Michael's humiliation for him. Since Michael has absolutely no qualms about kissing Oscar, despite any repercussions (Toby knows) or awkwardness, the audience feels everything for him and can't actually go through with what he's about to do. We take on his position and try to change his behavior, but, we're just the audience...

For an Office fan and an EA in the Philosophy discipline, I found it completely satisfactory.