The Promotion: Character Analysis, Essay Example

Structure (Richard)

The structure emphasizes the meaning conveyed through the use of rules and convections and aims to present the essence of the film. Structural techniques involve using elements such as facial expressions that grab the attention and curiosity of the audience (Conrad). Richard is clearly superior in command in the movie, where he is seen recovering from alcoholism and drug addiction. Richard is on a self-destruction mission of getting promoted in the supermarket. The supermarket’s organizational size is small, as there are lesser people who are up for the promotion, where only Richard and Doug were up for the promotion.

Solution

It is clear that Richard is a nice person in the film, and I believe that he should be the one to be given the promotion. To understand Richard, the audience should study his behavior through his personality and his emotional patterns. Richard focuses on becoming a better man and working for the best; however, he has a habit of saying the wrong things at the wrong time.

Subjective (Doug)

This means to express one’s personal opinion and taste where the character portrays what he or she wants them to see to the audience. The subjective theory aims to please and satisfy the audience through an elemental connection. In the film, the character Doug portrays the subjective theory. Doug is a young man, who is willing to do anything to get the promotion, and in the film, we see him hit a black man in a parking lot and apologize to a board of directors, and his apology is accepted. His subjective behavior shows his desperation to get a promotion (Conrad).

Solution

Doug’s main goal is to get the promotion and prove to his wife that he can more. He is willing even to speak ill of Richard to get the promotion, and we see him lying to his wife that he won the job. Based on the subjective theory, Doug is self-centered, and this gives the audience a chance to grasp the tension between the characters. The subjective theory provides knowledge about Doug’s behavior that is useful for his effectiveness, in this case, the promotion.

Moods and emotions (Laurie)

Emotions and traits make up an individual’s unique character. Richards’s wife, Laurie, shows emotions in the film where we see her move to her parents’ house with her daughter when she sees Richard relapsing to his previous behaviors (Conrad). Laurie is willing to put her emotions out there to let Richard know that he needs to get the promotion. Her moral emotions push Richard to be vulnerable and act irresponsibly to get the promotion.

Solution

Surely, Laurie does not think of what Richard is going through at his workplace, and she seems to be putting much pressure on him. To manage the emotions and behaviors, Laurie should practice empathy for Richard; Laurie would achieve this by studying Richard’s behavior. This will help Richard avoid the emotional labor he goes through at work trying to get the promotion.

Composite (Doug and Richard)

Most organizations have more different stories attached to the film. In the promotion, Doug and Richard each have different stories that make up the main story. These independent stories have different plot lines that portray connection within the film for Doug (Conrad). He is a local employee who has worked in the store, and Richard is an immigrant from Canada searching for a better life for his wife and daughter. The composite theory runs the nature of the film.

Solution

The deviation of different stories within the film allows the audience to have different expectations of the characters. The promotion revolves around two employees who are after the same promotion, and each one of them is willing to go to different lengths to achieve their mission. The significance of the composite theory is to provide diverse plots, aspects, and themes. To study how both Doug and Richard think, feel, and does will allow the audience to study their behaviors within the organization.

Culture (Scott)

Each organization has different cultures that provide the core values that reflect on the organization’s wins and losses. Scott plays an important role in the culture theory, where he allows Doug and Richard to fight for the promotion with no rules. This gives the two coworkers reason to try their best, through good and bad ways, to earn the promotion. Richards’s arrival in the supermarket causes the abuse of the culture and the climate in the organization.  Scott gives both of the coworkers and opportunity to show their managerial skills, which gives room for promotion (Conrad).

Solution

Scott creates an organizational culture within the supermarket that revolves around Richard and Doug getting the promotion. Instead of creating a truffle between the two employees, Scott should have created an effective method of choosing who would have gotten the promotion without fighting for it. The idea of causing two friends to fight for the same job is unorthodox and goes against the organizational culture since both of the employees are willing to take a huge risk for the promotion.  The study of behavior within the organization will allow Scott to understand Doug’s and Richard’s behavior to know who deserves the promotion.

Works Cited

The Promotion. Directed by Steven Conrad, performances by Seann William Scott, John C. Reilly. 2008. Dimension Films, 2008.