Dilbert Explained

Thursday, Jan. 3rd - Receptionist 57

2008-01-03T12:18:00.000-08:00

TO: Larry Stevenson, West Coast Division Manager

FROM: John Smith, Assistant to the West Coast Division Manager

DATE: January 2, 2008

SUBJECT: Tomorrow's Dilbert Strip

In the first panel of this strip, Mr. Adams concisely explains the humor in the previous strip as Carol exclaims, "I might appear to be a receptionist, but I'm actually the director of first impressions." This panel represents a heightened awareness in contrast to Carol's previous sense of denial in yesterdays strip.

The second panel shows the salesman misinterpreting Carol's statement as if it was a joke. He indicates his belief that Carol is joking by repeating the framework of the joke, with the specific information slanted toward the relevant elements of his profession - in this case an HP salesman claiming to be the CEO of HP. Clearly he is not the CEO of HP, because a CEO would never have to wait at reception or wear a green suit. Effectively, he is saying, "I do not believe you, Carol."

The third panel can be read in two ways. First, as absurdist humor (clearly Mr. Adams' forte). The interchange of "Carly?," "You look like a 57," is obviously not supposed to make any sense, commenting on the meaninglessness of the workplace. The second way it can be read is as absurdist humor combined with the classic comedy trope of 'mistaken identity.' In this interpretation, the salesman has said that he is the CEO of HP, and Carol (shown in the previous strip to be very dimwitted) assumes that he is telling the truth, asking him if he is Carly Fiorina, CEO of HP. He then responds with "You look like a 57," which is obviously not supposed to make any sense, and comments on the meaninglessness of the workplace.

As always, let me know if you have any questions or concerns regarding this strip.

Wednesday, January 2nd - Director of First Impressions

2008-01-02T11:15:00.000-08:00

TO: Larry Stevenson, West Coast Division Manager

FROM: John Smith, Assistant to the West Coast Division Manager

DATE: January 1, 2008

SUBJECT: Tomorrow's Dilbert Strip

At first I was not sure what Mr. Adams intended to be funny about this strip. In the first panel, the boss makes Carol the "new director of first impressions." In the second panel, Carol confides her excitement regarding the new position with the viewer. In the third panel, she wonders why her new office is in the lobby.

I believe that this strip represents Mr. Adams' scathing satire of titles in the corporate workplace. The executive has tricked Carol into becoming a receptionist by creating the false (and somewhat misleading) title of "director of first impressions." Here, Adams is commenting on the use of grandiloquent job titles which make positions seem more important than they actually are (calling a secretary an 'office manager,' for instance).

It is possible the strip is also poking fun at women, whose relevance in the workplace as a man's equal is still questionable. Not only does Carol not realize the executive's trickery, but in panel two she externalizes her inner monologue, speaking even though no one is around to hear her. Boy, Carol sure is stupid!

On another note, this strip is indicative of Mr. Adams' flare for absurdist comedy. In the third panel, a business man enters asking to be directed towards the "nearest growler." This is an obvious non-sequitur, and is funny because it represents a shift from the normal things you would expect a business man to exclaim when entering a room.

Finally, though it is unlikely, it is possible that the business man who enters in the third panel is intended to be a caricature of Tommy Lee Jones. Again, unlikely, but something to think about.

Again, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns regarding the above strip.

Tuesday, January 1st - Catbert gives consolation DVD

2008-01-01T15:04:00.000-08:00

Dear Mr. Stevenson,

As per your instructions, I have carefully analyzed the 2008 Dilbert Calender, and provided explanation of the humor below. ~~I hope this will help you to be "in on the jokes around the water cooler" as you suggested you would like to be in your previous memo.~~ ~~I hope~~ Please enjoy. ~~I really don't think anyone cares if you don't "get" Dilbert. It's just something Dave and Kevin seem to like.~~ If you have any questions, please let me know.

Sincerely,

John Smith

Tuesday, January 1st - Catbert gives consolation DVD

TO: Larry Stevenson, West Coast Division Manager

FROM: John Smith, Assistant to the West Coast Division Manager

DATE: December 31, 2007

SUBJECT: Tomorrow's Dilbert Strip

I believe the heading at the top of the first frame is intended to introduce the character of "Catbert" who (according to the heading) is an "evil director of human relations." One joke Scott Adams is making here is that "evil director of human relations" is an actual job title. He is suggesting that HR staff is ubiquitously "evil." This person is also a cat. It is possible that Mr. Adams also dislikes cats and believes them to be evil.

The following panel shows Catbert attempting to comfort employees about down-sizing by telling them if they are fired, he will give them a complementary DVD with instructions for living off the land. This is funny for three (3) reasons. Firstly, it is humorous that an HR person would offer a DVD as condolences to someone who has been fired. Secondly, that this DVD teaches ex-employees to "live off the land" is humorous because it is a dated term and calls to mind the juxtaposition between the agrarian/rural societies of the 19th century on a format that is specifically late 20th century/early 21st century. Finally, the third joke is that the money spent to produce, film, edit, and package such a DVD is a gross misappropriation of company funds, especially considering the employee is being fired due to down-sizing, which is usually a symptom of budget cuts.

The third panel is a flash-forward to later in time showing an ex-employee watching said DVD. This panel serves to remind you of the humor in the previous panel and takes it one step further, by visualizing the ridiculous premise set forth in the previous panel. It is now real. It really happened. Catbert really did have this DVD, he was not being facetious. It is for real (within, of course, the context of a fictitious cartoon).

The content of the DVD is also amusing because it reveals that "living off the land" is actually a euphemistic understatement for shoplifting. Additionally, the assertion that the key to successful shoplifting is simply to run "very fast" is both a comical oversimplification of the nuances of shoplifting as well as the humorous assumption of one's failure to shoplift correctly. The DVD instructs the viewer to run fast rather than to pocket items deftly; this is funny because a DVD which is meant to instruct is fundamentally assuming ineptitude from its viewers. The assumption is that the viewer is destined to fail at even the simplest of tasks, which sheds some light on why they are being downsized in the first place.

Also, the whole strip is funny because Catbert is a cat - but yet they treat him like a person.

I hope this serves to answer any questions you may have had about the humor in today's Dilbert strip. Please let me know if you need any clarification.