The book talked about the show The Big Bang Theory a few times and I have never seen it so I chose that show. I watched the first episode.
At first I honestly could not tell what the relationship was between the two main characters, Leonard and Sheldon. When I saw they lived together I thought they might be a couple. Though when I watched their nonverbal language when they first met Penny, I started to question if they were gay because they both acted nervous. After I watched it with sound I realized they were just friends. It was interesting to see Sheldon's behavior when Penny sat on the couch when there was no sound. At first I thought he was acting so weird because she was staying and he was nervous having a girl there or scared to sit next to her. Once I watched it with sound I realized it was all because she sat in what he considered to be his spot. When Raj met Penny it was very obvious he was nervous around girls. His whole body seemed to tense and his mouth just seemed to glued shut. I could also tell that Howard was trying to hit on Penny though I thought she might be reciprocating the feelings because when they were riding in a car sitting beside each other she was smiling really big. Even after watching it with sound it was hard to tell how she was feeling because she never actually brushed him off, but I do not think she was feeling the same towards him. At one point, Penny's ex-boyfriend was in the episode, but I could not figure out who he was until I watched it with sound. He was in one scene and based off of something Leonard and Sheldon said to him, he took their pants. This part was very confusing until I watched it with sound.
It was really hard watching the show with no sound. I did not know who the people were or really have any idea what was going on. Without the sound I did have to focus more on body language and facial expressions so I did have to watch more closely than I normally do when I watch television. I hardly ever watch tv, but when I do I am usually trying to do other things at the same time. When I watched the show the second time with sound, I found I paid attention more because I was so curious about what had actually happened in the scenes. If this had been a show I normally watched it would have been much easier because I would have known who the people were and what they were probably saying to each other. I definitely realized that we can not make judgments based on nonverbal cues alone and I have a whole new appreciation of being able to hear.
Jennie,
ReplyDeleteThis is a show I watch often. I can see why this would be hard to interpret because the actions of these characters is not along the range of normal. If we read cues based on what they mean for most people, the men in this show do not always exhibit normal behavior. For instance, Sheldon does not respond to romantic passes Amy makes at him, and those she makes are subtly verbal without the facial and body gestures most people use when making a pass at someone they are interested in.Great post!
I agree without the sound of the TV that it is harder to comprehend. Therefore, we most focus more on body and face expressions in order to get a little understand of the television program. For that reason, it is imperative to convey the correct message. We expect children to have the strength to deal with nonverbal skills without a problem and to grow up strong enough to handle life.
ReplyDeleteJennie,
ReplyDeleteWhile visiting my son recently I watched this program many times. I could understand why you made many of the assumptions that you did. I watched a few episodes with the sound on and it took me a minute to grasp what the program was all about. So I could not imagine watching this show without sound I would of been totally lost. Enjoyed your post.
Jennie
ReplyDeleteI have watched the show only a few time and the group dynamic is different. This goes to show that you sometimes need to take a closer look, before we come to conclusions.