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Elisabeth Porras
Professor Banks
English 1A
18 October 2015
Life And Television
Television shows arent realistic. That was the mindset I was in when I first started this
assignment. Every tv show I considered watching seemed to go with the theme of the essay The
Social Networks by Neal Gabler that can be found in Signs of Life. In it he claims that shows
are pure wish fulfillment. (p 318) This essentially means it gives/shows the people what they
want, especially when it comes to relationships. But one tv show I watched brought a point up I
was not thinking of was Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. The thing I liked about this show is how
current and real the issues the characters in the tv show were dealing with. Yes, most television
shows are far from reality but the thing is, we look at the show I Love Lucy and Leave it to
Beaver to see how the culture was like in the 50s and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is just one of
those television shows that do convey aspects of today's society well. Thats why I think that
television is just more than an escape, but it can also portray issues of todays society and teach
us some valuable lessons.
The television show that Ive chosen was Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. This television
show is probably the most bizarre situational-comedy Ive seen. Its set in todays society and the
main character is obviously Kimmy Schmidt. For fifteen years, shes been trapped underground
and brainwashed by Rev. Richard Wayne Gary Wayne who convinced her and three other women
that the world had already ended. Despite being controlled for so long, Kimmy Schmidt has
always been oppositional towards the Reverend. Shes caring, strong-willed, open minded and a

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little too optimistic (you either love or hate her). When she and the rest of the Mole Women
were found by authorities, they go on a talk show where she realizes she does not know what to
do next with her life. So impulsively, Kimmy decides to stay in New York and start her new life
there where she finds a job working for an egotistic (but likeable) trophy wife named Jacqueline
Voorhees as a nanny for her nine year old son Buckley and teenage daughter Xanthippe. She then
finds an apartment in the slum of New York where she becomes roommates with Titus, talented
struggling actor who is struggling to pay rent to their nutty landlord named Lillian (who
apparently killed her husband on accident in the 70s). From there the series kicks off with
Kimmy adapting to todays society with an education of a middle schooler and a maturity level
of an eight year old. Though the basis of the show seems unusual, the issues that she and the rest
of the characters face are very real.
First off theres Titus. Just his character alone already has society against him. Besides his
obvious struggles of being an actor in New York, his character represents the struggles of being
two still controversial things; being gay and black. Obviously being Black isnt controversial but
the injustice happening to Black people is. For instance, theres a specific episode where he starts
working for a horror themed restaurant and has to dress as a werewolf. While walking in the
streets of New York with his work clothes on, he realizes that people were treating him better as
a werewolf than a black man. Though this example just sounds ridiculous, the point they were
making with the joke is evident in todays society. Especially when it comes to police brutality.
You can see everywhere, on the news or in social media, the social injustices that seem to
happening all the time towards Black People. Its these types of things that inspire trends like the
saying Black Lives Matter in the internet.

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Then there's Kimmy. Throughout the whole series, Kimmy faces issues that a lot of
Americans are affected by today as well. For example, when she tries to go Adult School to get a
High School Diploma, because of budget cuts she gets the worst teacher. Even one of the
students, whose name is Dong, faces the fear of being deported back to Vietnam because of
being an undocumented immigrant which is one of the most debated topics today in congress.
But one example that stands out among the rest is the episode where shes helping Jacqueline
(her boss) feel better after having suspicions that her husband is cheating on her.
In the episode, Jacqueline is trying to make herself feel better by practicing a technique
where if she looks happy on the outside, that happiness will eventually sink in. Kimmy sees her
doing this and suggest using her technique where she would jump up and down saying Im not
really here! with a smile on her face. After trying both those techniques, Jacqueline realizes its
not working to she decides to go to a plastic surgeon just to fix her feet, thinking that will make
her feel better. After all of this, Kimmy realizes that it's all nonsense, and realizes that she was
just helping Jaqueline cover up her feelings instead of dealing with them. This is an issue that
both men and women face today. Instead of dealing with our issues, we like to cover it up and
indulge in material things trying to get rid of our problem that way. Thats when Kimmy
convinces Jacqueline to confront her husband about it.
Overall the show has many messages, but the main point that the show is trying to
convey is perseverance. Kimmy, who lost 15 years of her life, start a new life. Despite the fact
that she has been through the traumatic experience of being trapped underground, shes still
looks on the brightside of things. Also, the cast itself shows how our society is progressing with
the lead character being a strong independent woman and the fact one of the main characters is
gay-black man.Beside the obvious messages, the show also contains a number of underlying

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messages. Topics like immigration, injustice towards blacks, independence of a woman are all
covered in this series.
Neal Gabler wrote in his essay These shows are pure wish fulfillment. The offer us
friends and family at ones beck and call but without any of the hassles. It is friendship as we
want it to be. Hes essentially saying that we watch shows to give us what we dont have or
what we what. I do agree with this statement, how tv shows are almost an escape from our own
personal lives and how it provides instant gratification. But I feel some shows are more than just
that which is why I chose the tv show Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Yes, the friendship between
Titus and Kimmy does play into what Gabler is saying, but besides that the show has so much to
offer than just fufillment. It includes relevant topics that Americans today are struggling with and
overall has valuable lessons that can be learned from.
Television over the years has gained a reputation of being fictitious and far from reality.
Some, like Neal Gabler believe that the shows are watched just so that people can get what they
dont have through the lives of the characters in the show. But in reality, these shows that arent
what you would consider to be an accurate portrayal of society, do in fact do a good job of
exhibiting life in the 20th century while, at the same time, teaching valuable lessons.

Work Cited

Gabler, Neal. "Video Dreams." 2015. Signs of Life. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2015.
N. pag. Print.