Social Phobia: Chandler Bing, F.R.I.E.N.D.S.
The following paper is a closer look at the fictional role of Chandler Bing, (played by Mathew Perry), a character that is by far, the most popular and best loved, in the hugely successful TV series FRIENDS. The sitcom that was the brainchild of David Crane and Marta Kauffman, ran for ten, long years and was an uproarious depiction of the life of six friends in Manhattan, New York City. The show was an insightful view into their lives, loves, quirks and eccentricities, and managed to strike a chord with viewing audiences across the world.
Chandler Muriel Bing, with a name that if not for anything else would have been responsible for a panic attack, plays an integral role in the series: at the beginning of his role, he is portrayed as an executive with a large, faceless, multi-national corporation, trudging his way up the corporate ladder, not particularly loving his job, yet raking in the money. The audience can identify with him the most for his failed attempts with women, his social awkwardness, his wry sense of humour, his strained relationship with both his parents and a quality that his friends on the show call, ‘being dead inside’. While Chandler’s character was the most award-winning, and generated the most number of laughs, it was also the one that was most complex and lends itself to a great deal of psychological analysis.
This paper suggests that Chandler Bing, inadvertently suffered from the psychological disorder: Social Phobia. Over the span of a decade, Chandler goes on to display to his audience most of the symptoms of the disorder. Marked and persistent fear of one or more social performance situations Chandler displays on several occasions: in his inability to ask a girl out on a date, his helplessness when cornered by people in positions of power, unable to say no when the situation calls for it, and his persistent fear of marriage and all long-term relationships. Chandler is the centre of several social phobic situations: unable to converse normally on the telephone, make eye contact, dealing with authority, etc. (Stein 5) Another symptom of social phobia is displaying anxiety symptoms that are humiliating and embarrassing: Chandler has several instances of this when he talks about bed-wetting as a method of dealing with his parents’ divorce, and when he openly confesses to hiding behind self-deprecatory jokes when embarrassed. Another characteristic of this disorder is the inability to form social relationships: on the show, Chandler is often ridiculed for having only one friend right through school and college, almost no friends at work, and even those closest to him don’t know what he really does or likes, and even completely forget his birthday, year after year! (Stein 12) Panic attacks are always seen in this disorder: on numerous occasions, Chandler’s panic attacks are on display – when he has to attend an important interview, when he disappears before his wedding, when he’s unable to stay in the same room as his divorced parents and when he’s at the verge of losing the love of his life to another stronger, more masculine character.
Given the above examples of how Chandler fits into the mould of someone suffering from social phobia, it is also interesting to note how his behaviour stems from a past that also fits the mould: his mother is an erotic novelist and overtly intrusive in her son’s sex life, his father is a cross-dressing showstopper at Vegas, and his parents choose Thanksgiving Day to announce to him that they are divorcing. Chandler Bing, also exhibits the symptoms of social phobia at a time when it is most likely to be seen in individuals – typically the onset of which occurs during childhood or adolescence (Heimberg, 143). What ensues is the depiction of a child who fails to react to the world normally, and has his relationships, and social etiquette heavily influenced by the parody that is his childhood.
Chandler Muriel Bing, with a name that if not for anything else would have been responsible for a panic attack, plays an integral role in the series: at the beginning of his role, he is portrayed as an executive with a large, faceless, multi-national corporation, trudging his way up the corporate ladder, not particularly loving his job, yet raking in the money. The audience can identify with him the most for his failed attempts with women, his social awkwardness, his wry sense of humour, his strained relationship with both his parents and a quality that his friends on the show call, ‘being dead inside’. While Chandler’s character was the most award-winning, and generated the most number of laughs, it was also the one that was most complex and lends itself to a great deal of psychological analysis.
This paper suggests that Chandler Bing, inadvertently suffered from the psychological disorder: Social Phobia. Over the span of a decade, Chandler goes on to display to his audience most of the symptoms of the disorder. Marked and persistent fear of one or more social performance situations Chandler displays on several occasions: in his inability to ask a girl out on a date, his helplessness when cornered by people in positions of power, unable to say no when the situation calls for it, and his persistent fear of marriage and all long-term relationships. Chandler is the centre of several social phobic situations: unable to converse normally on the telephone, make eye contact, dealing with authority, etc. (Stein 5) Another symptom of social phobia is displaying anxiety symptoms that are humiliating and embarrassing: Chandler has several instances of this when he talks about bed-wetting as a method of dealing with his parents’ divorce, and when he openly confesses to hiding behind self-deprecatory jokes when embarrassed. Another characteristic of this disorder is the inability to form social relationships: on the show, Chandler is often ridiculed for having only one friend right through school and college, almost no friends at work, and even those closest to him don’t know what he really does or likes, and even completely forget his birthday, year after year! (Stein 12) Panic attacks are always seen in this disorder: on numerous occasions, Chandler’s panic attacks are on display – when he has to attend an important interview, when he disappears before his wedding, when he’s unable to stay in the same room as his divorced parents and when he’s at the verge of losing the love of his life to another stronger, more masculine character.
Given the above examples of how Chandler fits into the mould of someone suffering from social phobia, it is also interesting to note how his behaviour stems from a past that also fits the mould: his mother is an erotic novelist and overtly intrusive in her son’s sex life, his father is a cross-dressing showstopper at Vegas, and his parents choose Thanksgiving Day to announce to him that they are divorcing. Chandler Bing, also exhibits the symptoms of social phobia at a time when it is most likely to be seen in individuals – typically the onset of which occurs during childhood or adolescence (Heimberg, 143). What ensues is the depiction of a child who fails to react to the world normally, and has his relationships, and social etiquette heavily influenced by the parody that is his childhood.
Categories:
Chandler Bing,
friends,
Social Phobia
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