Do you agree with Gracia's claim that the success of the television sit-com Seinfeld ('the show about nothing') lies in its attention to the 'insignificant'?
About Gracia’s claim I agree that the insignificant in Seinfeld becomes significant. But to claim that this alone justifies the unusual success of Seinfeld, I cannot confirm. There are many more comedy series out there that take the same approach and are/were very successful: Two and a Half Men, King of Queens or even the classic Bewitched. In all of these series nothing of significance happens, but I think, this is what most people’s lives are like. Rather than looking at their life as an ongoing tragedy, because everything significant seems to happen in high places (Partridge Family, Dallas, Denver), shows like Seinfeld provide some identification for the average person. Characters like Seinfeld are human rather than superhuman, just like you and me.
Do you agree that comedy therefore shares something with Garfinkel's ethnomethodology?
I agree to this about comedy in the vein of Seinfeld. However, there is other comedy out there. When you look at Southpark, Simpsons or the Italian Signor Rossi, those are animated comedies that play with the tragedy of the average person, their little feats and their little David triumphs over Goliath. Those I would not relate to Garfinkels ethnomethodology, as they mix everyday life experience with outright ridiculous events that are not possible in real life. Still, I know humans who relate to these cartoon characters and see parts of themselves featured.
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