INTERPERSONAL POWER, STRUCTURAL POWER, AND THE NEED FOR POWER

COMMUNITY, S01E21, CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN POULTRY

Show Summary
Community centers on Jeff Winger (Joel McHale), a disbarred lawyer going to school for the first time after his bachelor's degree is revealed as fabricated. The series focuses on the experiences of Jeff and the study group he accidentally forms while pursuing Britta Perry (Gillian Jacobs), a student trying to get her life back on track. The other members of Jeff's study group include Pierce Hawthorne (Chevy Chase), a millionaire on a late in life voyage of self-discovery; Annie Edison (Alison Brie), a young straight-laced student; Troy Barnes (Donald Glover), a former high school star quarterback; Shirley Bennett (Yvette Nicole Brown), a single mother going to school to jumpstart her brownie business; and Abed Nadir (Danny Pudi), a pop-culture obsessed film student. Former Spanish teacher, now student Ben Chang (Ken Jeong) eventually is accepted into the study group.

Cast of Characters
Jeffrey Tobias "Jeff" Winger (Joel McHale) is a 33-year-old snarky, glib lawyer attending Greendale Community College. He was a lawyer until the Colorado Bar Association found out that he did not get a bachelor's degree from Columbia University but, in fact, got one that was "less than legitimate" and "better than real" from the country of Colombia. Jeff returns to college by attending Greendale Community College as a "deal" with the bar in order to prevent him from being disbarred. He consequently hopes to graduate as quickly as possible. Initially, Jeff forms and joins the study group because he is attracted to fellow student Britta whom he hits on, despite her rejection of his advances. While this dynamic slips into friendship, they eventually sleep together, despite denying any feelings they may have for each other to the rest of the study group. He also dates his statistics teacher, Professor Slater and, at of the end of the first season, kisses Annie, despite her being much younger than he is. Nevertheless, by the second season, it is apparent that Annie's age is keeping him from acting on any harbored feelings for her. Jeff is continually sarcastic and often displays much less enthusiasm for Greendale activities than other members in his Spanish study group. Because of his background as a lawyer and his compelling personality, many people, including Dean Pelton and Seor Chang, seek help from him. These ventures include stints as a member of the debate team and editor of the school paper and efforts to improve Chang's professional and love lives. Due to his competitive nature, he has difficult relationships with his accounting, billiards, and pottery teachers when he does poorly in their classes. He enjoys being in positions of authority and acts as the effective leader of the group. It
1 Starling D. Hunter III 2012 | starling@qatar.cmu.edu| Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar | http://qatar.cmu.edu

becomes apparent that several members of the group rely on him playing this role while Pierce tends to insult him whenever he can, despite his lack of wit. He shows an increasing maturity and tolerance for the viewpoints of the other group members, as indicated by his decision to let Pierce continue believing in his cult despite its ridiculousness in season two. Britta Perry (Gillian Jacobs) was born in Riverside, Colorado in October 1980. Britta has two older brothers, one of whom works with children with some type of special disorder in a hospital. On her eleventh birthday an eager-handed man in a dinosaur costume intruded in on her party at a restaurant. This event has haunted her into adulthood. Britta decided to drop out of high school because she thought it would impress Radiohead. After dropping out of school, she started vandalizing billboards around the area where she grew up. During the vandalizing she became friends with other people who liked to vandalize. The friends created a small group of "anarchist billboard vandals". When the group grew larger she was kicked out, due the democratic voting system the anarchists used to vote her out. Soon after her departure, the group developed into a high-end advertising firm. After her fallout she joined the Peace Corps, did some foot modeling, got teargassed at a World Trade rally and took an extended vacation in Africa. Realizing she needed to do something with her life, Britta got her G.E.D. and enrolled at Greendale. She is often the voice of reason within the group but is often mocked by fellow members for her excessively pronounced East Coast sensibilities, as well as her rigid moral code. Notably, the group makes fun of her for pronouncing the word "bagel" strangely, and for being a vegetarian. Additionally, while the group appreciates the role she plays, they sometimes refer to her as a "buzzkill" and the group's least fun member, something Britta initially bridled at but has since learned to take in stride. Although she has unceasingly tried to portray a lack of romantic interest in Jeff, one episode shows she may have recently given in to secret feelings for him. She eventually sleeps with him during a prolonged paintball match and later embarrasses herself by admitting her "love" for him, which in the end was merely the result of her compulsive competition with Professor Slater. Surprisingly, this false admission makes her more popular at the beginning of her second year by giving her a reputation for fearlessness. Britta and Jeff like to think of themselves as the group's mom and dad, and often assume they know what is best for their friends; this dynamic of their relationship is explored in several episodes, culminating in Troy's realization on his 21st birthday that they are just as dumb as he. Abed Nadir (Danny Pudi) is a trilingual (English, Arabic, and Polish) Palestinian American pop-culture junkie who aspires to become a director and is currently taking film directing classes at Greendale Community College. His original plan was to take business classes at Greendale to eventually help run his father's falafel stand, but this became his backup plan when Britta inspired him to switch professions. While he has emotion and sympathy for his new friends, he speaks with a rather detached and emotionless tone, as well as with a distinct straightforwardness lacking a mental filter, leading some of his friends to suspect he has Asperger syndrome. Despite his odd social behavior, Abed seems to be very popular with the ladies and he seems to glean certain insights on life by comparing his life to various television shows and movies. This talent translates into him usually meta referencing their lives in relation to the show, by commenting on the dynamic of the characters together, their story lines, and can sometimes predict exactly what they will do at a given time. Sometimes he uses this gift and combines it with his ability to personify anyone he chooses, and uses this ability to help his friends work out their mental baggage. He also
2 Starling D. Hunter III 2012 | starling@qatar.cmu.edu| Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar | http://qatar.cmu.edu

possesses many hidden talents that usually go overlooked such as being surprisingly athletic and coordinated. Abed and Troy share a uniquely close friendship, leading others in the group to comment on their "weird little relationship"; the closing credit sequence is almost always about them filming skits or pulling pranks together. Abed initially hurt Troy's feelings at the end of Season 1 by making it clear he did not want them to be roommates, but he later said that he did not want to ruin their friendship by living together. Abed quickly gained considerable popularity with fans and is the show's breakout character. Shirley Bennett (Yvette Nicole Brown) is a recently divorced mother of two who attends Greendale Community College. Shirley is a devoted Christian and is very sweet but also has thinly-veiled rage issues and gossips compulsively. She is proud to be an African American and a woman but appreciates not being defined by those characteristics. She is very friendly to everyone, but sometimes has problems minding her own business or keeping secrets. She was very slow to show tolerance for the faiths of the multiple non-Christian members of the study group (apparently, she also tried to covertly baptize Annie, who is Jewish and did not appreciate the attempt). She also feels uncomfortable sometimes about being a much more devout Christian than anyone at Greendale. At Greendale, Shirley is taking classes which will allow her to market her baked goods, specifically her famous brownies. Within the study group, she is particularly friendly with Annie and Britta, yet is often angry at Pierce given his tendency to accidentally say racist things and absentmindedly harass her. In the Halloween episode of season two, she and Chang hook up after bonding over how their costumes are misunderstood (she being Glinda the Good Witch and not Miss Piggy and he being Peggy Fleming and not Kristi Yamaguchi or Michelle Kwan). Beyond the evidence of a voice mail that Chang sent to Troy, however, no one remembers this incident due to the Army wiping their memory and blaming it on roofies after a zombie incident. During the episode 'Cooperative Calligraphy' it is revealed she has a home pregnancy test in her bag. In 'Asian Population Studies', Shirley's pregnancy is confirmed, with the father possibly being Chang. In 'Mixology Certification' it is revealed that Shirley once had a heavy drinking problem, and becomes furious when the group finds out despite them being pleased she once had a wild side. Annie Edison (Alison Brie), born in December 1990, is a straight-laced Jewish twenty-year-old who is in her second year at Greendale Community College. She lost her virginity to her high school boyfriend "to Madonna's Erotica on the floor of his walk-in closet", but due to him being a closeted homosexual, he refused to let her see his penis, an organ she has never laid eyes on. She lost her college scholarship and dropped out of high school due to an addiction to Adderall, having a nervous breakdown that culminated in her jumping through a window yelling "Everyone's a robot!" Against the wishes of her mother, she chose to confront the addiction and go to rehab, and is currently estranged from her family. Though younger than most of the group, she is also by far the most studious and the most serious, becoming very intense about grades and school activities. She has a talent for making the other study group members feel guilty, using her "Disney face." A noticeably cheerful person, she is enthusiastic when it comes to helping out the school, both writing for the school paper and participating on the debate team, along with organizing school events. She also takes the cohesion of the study group more seriously than the other members and, in trying to get the group to retake Spanish 102, gets Senor Chang fired for his fake degree.
3 Starling D. Hunter III 2012 | starling@qatar.cmu.edu| Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar | http://qatar.cmu.edu

She used to pine after Troy, on whom she had a crush since high school but stops when she begins dating another student, Vaughn. While she initially intends to transfer from Greendale and join Vaughn in Delaware, she decides to stay for the second year. At the end of the first season, it appears as if she has developed a romantic dynamic with Jeff, whom she kissed both to win a debate competition and at the end of the season. While she is interested in Jeff at the beginning of the second season, she then thinks of him as "gross" after the study group learns about Jeff and Britta's paintball episode. There have been indications that Annie may still harbor feelings for Jeff, but so far her age, relative immaturity and some new found scruples on Jeff's part have precluded any further expressions of it. Troy Barnes (Donald Glover), born December 4, 1989, is a former high school football star who now attends Greendale Community College. Born and raised in Greendale, Colorado, Troy made a name for himself as the varsity quarterback of his high school football team, and was also prom king. He injured himself during a "keg flip" in high school that cost him a football scholarship, an injury he later revealed to be intentional because he could not take the pressure of a talent scout at a big game. He now plays quarterback for the nonathletic Greendale Human Beings, saying he would rather play football for fun. While he starts off hanging out with Pierce at Greendale, he becomes best friends with Abed who shares his peculiar sense of humor. The two spend most of their time at Greendale together and most episodes end with one of their antics. As the two hang out over the course of the first two seasons, Troy gradually discounts his identity as a jock and embraces the notion of being a nerd. In doing this, he saves the whole school in season two's Halloween episode. Troy's fondness of Abed is such to the point that he dumps an attractive librarian immediately after she calls Abed weird and becoming jealous when he suspects Jeff and Abed will become best friends after Jeff throws Abed a Pulp Fiction themed birthday party and gets him a replica briefcase from the actual movie. Instead of being Abed's roommate for their sophomore year, however, Troy decides to live in Pierce's mansion. While living with him over the summer, Troy started up a Twitter account documenting unintentionally funny things Pierce says at "oldwhitemansays," which Pierce was originally angry at but embraced after learning the account had 600,000 followers. Troy often feels the need to assert that Shirley is not his mom. Long oblivious to the crush that Annie has on him, Troy later makes a few broad attempts at wooing her. Troy is a Jehovah's Witness, as revealed in the episode "Comparative Religion," and he also shows hints of political conservatism and rides his bike to class. Though he tries to deny it, he is extremely talented at plumbing. He also plays down his serious interest in interpretive dance, which conflicts with his image as a football player. Notably dimwitted, Troy has a number of unique opinions and beliefs, such as that there are only boy dogs and girl cats. He has evolved from the start of the series as a cocky, selfish, image-obsessed boy to a silly and emotional yet good-hearted and responsible man. His lifetime idol is actor LeVar Burton. Pierce Hawthorne (Chevy Chase) is a moist towelette tycoon attending Greendale Community College. His father created Hawthorne Wipes, the award-winning moist towelette company. He claims to be a world traveler, a toastmaster, magician, keyboardist and self-styled hypnotherapist, and considers himself a "quality of life person". He enrolled in Greendale looking for companionship and popularity, but is held back by his clumsiness and his lack of tact. Much older than most Greendale students, he is sometimes disoriented by youth culture while still trying to embrace it. He also
4 Starling D. Hunter III 2012 | starling@qatar.cmu.edu| Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar | http://qatar.cmu.edu

unknowingly buys into many sexist and racist stereotypes which often lead him to unintentionally make offensive statements, the nature of which he's completely unaware. Much of this is directed at Shirley, whom he sometimes mistakes for other black women; Abed, whom he suspects being a terrorist because he is Muslim; and Jeff, whom he actively tries to insult in an attempt to be cool, despite his inability to do so with wit. This leads Troy to start up a popular Twitter account with 600,000 followers called "oldwhitemansays", documenting anything outrageous said by Pierce. Given his age and his eccentricity, Pierce occasionally surprises his friends with wise insight and support when they truly need it. Though he considers himself to be a "Reformed Neo-Buddhist," he is actually a member of an obscure religious cult (a veiled reference to Scientology). This plays an important role when his mother dies in season two and Pierce believes his "Buddhist" teachings that she will be reborn, carrying a canister of what he thinks is his mother's soul around. When, along with Jeff and Troy, he listens to a CD made by his mother telling him she's gone and encouraging him to let her go and live his life, Pierce simply shrugs it off as her losing her mind. At the same time, Jeff decides he's better off with that rationale and lets him continue with his belief. Pierce has been married seven times and has 32 "ex-stepchildren" he tries to be close with, though most of them either avoid him or take advantage of him for his wealth. He is the author of Greendale's unusual school song and was for a brief time a member of Vaughn's band. He is also incredibly claustrophobic. Because of his moist towelette business, Pierce is very wealthy and owns a mansion, where Troy also lives over the summer and during the second year. It has been shown that Pierce may often act out due to the utter lack of attention and care his father, also a business tycoon, showed him as a child. His father even went to the extent of hiring another child to play Pierce in a commercial while berating and insulting the real Pierce.i

Episode Recap
Jeff tries to rush the Spanish Club along so he can get to the cafeteria on time for chicken fingers. Hoards of students start running out of the building and the rest of the Spanish Club follows, leaving vegetarian Britta behind. Jeff and the Spanish Club get online for lunch and just as Jeff and Pierce are being served the cafeteria runs out of chicken fingers. Annie, Shirley, Abed and Britta wait at a table for Jeff and Pierce to bring a pile of chicken fingers. Shirley checks a younger student with dreadlocks who she is crushing on. Jeff notices the college cafeteria always runs out of their favorite food. Jeff sees fry cook Starburns, the old-rocker cafeteria guy, is hoarding chicken fingers and portioning them out for his favored friends while the rest of the students go without their delicious chicken. Jeff decides to take action about the chicken finger shortage at Greendale. Jeff tells the Spanish Club that they must get Starburns fired and have one of their group take over the fry station. Jeff convinces Abed, who worked in his fathers falafel restaurant, that he must take over the fry cook position so they can control the chicken finger situation. Jeff tells Britta to sweet-talk Starburns into giving her take-out chicken fingers. Pictures are taken of Starburns giving the contraband to Britta and he is fired. When posters for the fry cook job are posted around school, Shirley rips them down so Abed is the only qualified applicant. Troy interviews in a golden pharaoh helmet and garb to appear crazy and gives the worlds worst interview so Abed will appear to be the ideal candidate for the job. The Spanish Clubs plan works and Abed is hired as the fry cook for the cafeteria. The next day Abed brings a plate full of chicken fingers to the Spanish Clubs table at the cafeteria. As the group enjoys the tasty fingers, Abed slips a box of chicken fingers to
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Senor Chang. When Jeff objects, Abed tells the gang he made an agreement with Chang so they all get a 10% bump on the Spanish tests in exchange for the chicken fingers. The group is impressed and Abed feels all powerful in his new fry cook position. Abed sets up deals throughout campus with students and staff to get perks and freebies in exchange for chicken fingers. Abed begins to think of the Spanish Club as the family (much like the mafia) and provides leadership as the Spanish Club runs errands and collects the goods. Abed makes sure Dean Pelton, campus security and other higher ups are taken care of by paying them off with chicken fingers so his business can run effectively. Jeff becomes jealous of Abeds leadership and power over the Spanish Club and the rest of the campus. Jeff visits Abed in his dorm room and finds him making deals with students in exchange for access to chicken fingers, working the supply/demand concept that Jeff taught him. Jeff realizes Abed is the big man on campus now. As things spin out of control the Spanish Club are not getting the perks that they want from Abed and they all start arguing with Abed, who is not pleased. Abed decides to take retribution on them, showing the Club members he is still in control. Jeff tells an angry Spanish Club that they must bring down Abed from the fry cook station. Jeff is given a key that shuts down the valve on the fry station from Starburns, who wants revenge. Jeff and Abed meet in the cafeteria after hours where Jeff admits to Abed he came to shut down the frying station. Jeff tells Abed hes jealous of all the attention Abed is getting as big man on campus and frankly hes tired of chicken fingers. Abed still likes chicken fingers but wants to be in control like Jeff, hes afraid letting go of the fry station will render him back to his nerdy self. Jeff and Abed agree they should let go of the fry station, then sit on the cafeteria counter and eat tater tots. After Abed quits the fryer job, the cafeteria continues to run out of chicken fingers and everything is back to status quo.ii

Discussion Questions
1. Which of the characters has the highest need for power? 2. Which of the five bases of interpersonal power does each member of the team have? 3. Which characters have resource, information, or decision-making power?

Solutions
Write to starling@qatar.cmu.edu for to obtain a copy of the solution to this case.
i ii

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Community_characters#Main_characters http://www.tvrecapsreviews.com/community-season-1-episode-20-contemporary-american-poultry/

Starling D. Hunter III 2012 | starling@qatar.cmu.edu| Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar | http://qatar.cmu.edu