Pam's strength is clearly growing and becoming part of her persona. Ever since Cocktails, Pam seems to have found a niche in being honest and self-assertive. Her steps may be small, but they are steadily progressing into big strides. In both Safety Training and Product Recall Pam began behaving with heightened subtlety to exhibit her warm personality and FNB attributes.
She learned the hard way in The Negotiation that Jim isn't ready for a full-out confrontation. She knows she has to lightly tap at his boundaries rather blast through them to bring him back to her corner. Progress has been slow, but nonetheless it's still progress. The goal is to weaken Jim's defenses enough to make him more susceptible to the truth when she chooses to unleash it.
Pam's relations with Karen in particular provided immense insight into Pam's strength. Not only did she stand up to her, but she also sent a pretty strong signal that left Karen reeling. Obviously, Pam has taken her self-assertiveness to a new level. Heightened subtlety is no longer directed solely at Jim. Pam has few messages to send to Karen as well. This is the third episode where Pam has refused to let Karen intimidate her on any level. In fact, Pam is making sure Karen knows she won't be intimidated. This is a huge transformation for Pam, that undoubtedly stems from her standing up to Roy in Cocktails. Once she stood up to the most intimidating person in her life, Karen became small beans.
Strength shows up in Pam's humor as well. On her own volition she initiated a prank on Dwight. She didn't as for Jim's help or wait for him to come to her as she went solo on this one. Pam decided to flaunt her pranking capabilities to the entire office despite the fact that she would surely be pegged as the instigator. Now, that's courage. Our Pam has come a long way. Now all Pam needs to do is translate her courage to the person who means the most to her: Jim.
Talking Head #1:
Phyllis's experience with a flasher in the parking lot brought out Pam's compassion, but it also brought out a little bit of honesty. In her talking head Pam says, "I don't often miss Roy. But I can tell you one thing. I wish someone would've flashed me when I was with Roy, because that would have been the ass-kicking of the year." Right from the start Pam is being honest about the fact that she is over Roy. The only thing she misses about her relationship with him is the fact that wasn't lonely when Roy was around.
From there, Pam finds the humor of the situation, (with much more eloquence than Michael). She's lightly smiling while she speaks and she lets out a soft laugh at the end of her statement. After witnessing Roy's temper flare in both The Negotiation and Cocktails, she can't help but imagine Roy's wrath if she were in Phyllis's position. Pam takes it a step further with, "Especially, if it had been Jim. He would not have wanted me to have seen Jim's . . . " Pam is trying to be funny here, but her honesty ended up seeping through instead.
Pam has never openly admitted she's attracted to Jim. The most she's ever indicated her attraction to him was in Basketball when she checked him out as he ran past her. This time, however, she slipped in front of the camera. This is the closest Pam has ever gotten to admitting she has feelings for Jim beyond the confines of her mind. Her babbling may not have been rooted so much in emotion as it was in raw attraction, but it's still an indication that her internal honesty is getting ready to burst. Once Pam realizes what she said, she becomes embarrassed, "whoo, I am, I am saying a lot of things." She unwittingly crossed a line that is beyond her comfort zone.
Pam knows she just revealed some very private feelings to the camera and this makes her uneasy. However, she didn't get as flustered as she would have in the past. She barely broke eye contact with the camera. In fact at the end of her talking head she maintained eye contact. Pam doesn't feel bad or ashamed about what she said, she's just a little surprised that it came flying out of her mouth. Her embarrassment stems from inadvertently exposing a small part of her feelings. She is bothered by saying too much, not by being attracted to Jim or having feelings for him. Pam is comfortable with the truth internally, but she isn't ready to fully admit it externally without further impetus. She needs Jim listening in front of her rather than the camera.
Prank on Dwight:
In response to Dwight request to make a drawing of the flasher's face, Pam decides to play a little prank on Dwight. Phyllis was unable to provide a description, so Pam improvises by drawing a modified rendition of Dwight's face knowing full well he was going to use the drawing on a flier. As she leaves for the mall with Michael, she hands Dwight her drawing. Dwight expresses concern that the man in the drawing doesn't seem like the type who would flash. Pam carries on the joke and tells Dwight that Phyllis got a pretty good look at the man's face.
The fact that Pam instigated this prank on her own speaks volumes of her confidence. She knew she would eventually be caught and it would likely elicit a confrontation from Dwight, but she still went through with it in the name of humor. Pam also knows Jim is bound to notice. Her prank is another glowing example of heightened subtlety aimed at gaining Jim's attention. Dwight is a traditional prank target and Pam needs to remind Jim she still knows her way around a Dwight prank. Rather than blatantly invite him to prank with her, as she did in A Benihana Christmas, Pam took a quieter route that speaks louder when it's all said and done. It's an open ended prank that leaves room for Jim if he wants to join her.
Mall Food Court:
Michael tries to bond with the women of the office over soft drinks at the food court of the Steamtown Mall. Eventually, the conversation drifts towards Michael voicing his concerns about his relationship with Jan. In particular, he's uncomfortable with some of Jan's requests in the bedroom. Pam takes it in stride, even finding the humor as she glances at the camera. She tells him, "You shouldn't do anything you're uncomfortable with." Michael's response to her is highly symbolic, "Jan says, anything that doesn't scare us isn't worth doing." It's almost as if Michael is speaking directly to Pam's fears.
Pam hasn't told Jim how she feels due partially to her fear of his reaction. Michael's statement is a nice bit of foreshadowing that Pam needs to speak her mind and heart if she wants anything to happen with Jim, (let's hope sooner than later!). Pam is beginning to understand that her fate rests in her own hands, but she still needs to find the courage to act.
Michael continues to describe his dysfunctional relationship with Jan, while Pam listens. She voices her concern that Michael needs to get out of relationship, explaining that Jan's behavior is not normal. Eventually, Michael makes a pro/con list for his relationship and Pam instructs him to read the pros first. Karen then instructs Michael to read the cons. Pam stops him when he reaches, "I'm unhappy when I'm with her," and tells him, "Michael, you shouldn't be with someone who doesn't make you happy." If anyone would know the truth of this statement, it's Pam. She learned this lesson the hard way. She smiles slightly as she says this because she's amused Michael didn't catch this on his own. She also looks at Karen as they had been in agreement up to this point in dealing with Michael. They shared a couple glances earlier in the scene and seemed to share concern for Michael.
Michael knows Pam has a point, but he tries to defend his relationship by listing the things that do make him happy. Karen interrupts with, "Look, most relationships have their rough patches, you just have to push through it sometimes." Pam immediately looks at Karen knowing all to well that Karen is talking about Jim. Pam knew in Ben Franklin that Jim and Karen were having problems. By now, Pam knows those problems originated from Karen finding out about CN. Michael responds to Karen's advice, "Yeah, that's smart."
Interestingly, Pam jumps right back into the fray and tells Michael, "Maybe. But it sounds like you're just wrong for each other." Pam may have been advising Michael, but she was focused squarely on Karen in her mind. She looks directly at Karen when she finishes her statement. This is Pam's way of telling Karen, You are wrong for Jim. Pam knows she is Jim's match and wants to make sure Karen knows it, too. However, Pam isn't catty and won't slam this in Karen's face. Instead, Pam utilizes heightened subtlety to get Karen's attention. Pam has to go this route or she will drive Jim away from her. Karen is Jim's girlfriend and Pam has to work around that.
Pam is also sending a signal to Karen that she will not be intimidated. This is the third time she's done so since Safety Training. This is the strongest signal she's sent and Karen clearly picked up on the message. It's interesting how their roles have reversed since Ben Franklin. Back then, Pam was the one who was squirming in Karen's grasp, but now Karen is feeling the squeeze.
Pam is essentially standing up for herself when she contradicts Karen. Even though Michael agreed with Karen, Pam still gave her opinion and sent strong signals to Karen. Courage is flowing through this woman's veins! Pam's disagreement signals more than just a difference of opinion. The competition is on between these two and Pam has just thrown her hat into the ring. Prior to this, Pam stood idly by as Karen dated Jim. Pam isn't willing to stand by silently any longer. Clearly, the boundaries of Pam's moral center are continuing to shift.
Victoria's Secret/Talking Head:
When Michael offers to buy each woman something from Victoria's Secret, Pam is hesitant. Kelly practically runs her over as she runs into the store. Michael's offer is nice, but its also creepy. She can't get past the idea that her boss wants to buy her underwear. To make matters worse, Pam overhears Karen ask Phyllis if a bra and panty set is "too much." Phyllis answers, "Jim's gonna love it." This is like a knife in Pam's heart. She watches Karen walk by with pain and jealousy gripping her face. The last thing Pam wants to hear about is any indication that Jim and Karen are sleeping together. It's enough to make her blood boil, but it also eats away at any hope she has of being with Jim.
Pam is clearly knocked down a few notches. She fiddles with the sleeve of a bathrobe and looks down. This is a bit of a blow to her confidence which is illustrated in her adjoining talking head. She tells the camera, "I'm kind of in between boyfriends right now. So I don't need anything sexy. But I do need some new hand towels. I figure I could cut up this robe." Pam knows she has the disadvantage when it comes to Jim. Karen is with him right now and she is not. She may have stood up to Karen in the food court, but Karen reminded her very quickly that Jim is taken.
This scene shows the fluidity Pam's moral center boundaries. At times she feels like she can take Karen on, but much of the time she feels trapped by her own sense of right and wrong. In this instance, Pam was reminded on the line in the sand that prevents her from making a move while Jim is with Karen. Luckily, Pam doesn't let this get her down for very long. Her humor about cutting up the bathrobe is an indicator that she is strong enough to weather the storm Karen just threw at her.
In the Van:
On the trip back to the office, Michael's cell phone rings with Jan on the other end of the line. Michael starts to panic and can't decide if he should answer his phone. Karen is the first to offer advice and tells him to answer it. Pam immediately contradicts her and tells him not to answer his phone. Despite the blow dealt to her in Victoria's Secret, Pam is determined not to be intimidated. She is reasserting herself in front of Karen, even if in very small terms. To Pam's credit, Michael followed her advice and didn't answer his phone. Pam won this round, which undoubtedly rebuilt some of her confidence.
Tire Talking Head:
Pam gets another shot of confidence when she successfully changes a flat tire on Meredith's van. She took charge of the situation when it was apparent she was the only one with tire installation know how. Pam beamed with confidence in her talking head. She happily proclaimed, "You know, I changed a tire today. All by myself. This bathrobe's already coming in handy." Pam was sure to mention that she did it all by herself. It's important for Pam to feel self sufficient at this point in her life as this brings an immense amount of self confidence.
Pam's humor continues to carry her through the day as she continues her bathrobe joke. Apparently, she's decided to use it as a hand towel before cutting it up! She wipes the hair from her face and leaves an adorable grease streak across her forehead as she is called back to the van. She bounces back to the van with her body language continuing to illustrate her internal pride.
The Elevator:
During Michael's talking head he says he wishes for Pam to gain courage. This statement is already poignant as viewers have been waiting for Pam to build courage all season. What makes it all the more powerful is how it overlaps Pam making her way to the elevator. The doors are closing as she runs up and pushes the button to force the door back open. Jim and Karen are standing inside the elevator as Pam waits for the doors to open. It so symbolic in that just as Michael wishes for her courage, Pam is faced with her largest obstacles. Everything she wants is standing right in front of her as is the impediment(s) that stands in her way.
The symbolism lies in Pam running for that elevator button. Pam is rapidly approaching her moment of courage. The button reopened the elevator door, the same way honesty has the possibility of opening Jim's heart. It's also highly symbolic that Pam catches the doors just before they close. It's been said that Pam is running out of time. If she doesn't tell Jim how she feels soon, she is going to loose him completely. Hence, the doors to his heart will be closed forever. Karen's presence in the elevator helps to again show that Pam is not intimidated. Pam is eventually going to get on the "elevator" with Jim regardless of Karen's status with him. It's just a question of when and courage.
The Bottom Line:
Pam is gaining more and more confidence which leads to more personal strength. With confidence and strength comes courage.
- - -
JAM Optimist:
1) Pam is continuing heightened subtlety and was successful in getting Jim's attention.
2) Pam is filled to brim with confidence and strength
3) Pam is not intimidated by Karen
4) Moral center boundaries are continuing to shift
JAM Pessimist:
1) Pam still needs to find her courage
2) Karen is still an impediment
3) Pam's confidence is not infallible
JAM Song of the Week:
This is one of my favorite songs and it happens to fit JAM perfectly, too!
Far Away
Artist: Nickelback
Album: All the Right Reasons
Questions to Ponder:
1) How aware is Pam of the distance that exists between Jim and Karen?
2) Is Pam aware of her own strength?
3) Why didn't Pam talk to Jim about her prank on Dwight?
4) At this point, how would Pam handle a confrontation from Karen?
5) Can Pam find her courage on her own or does she need a little help?
Chapter End Notes:
Commonly Used Acronyms:
PD = Pam Dichotomy,
JP = Jim Paradox,
CN = Casino Night,
FNB = Fancy New Beesly,
QTP = Questions to Ponder
This post was written nine years ago so go easy on me in terms of writing style! I’ve decided not to revise the original posts beyond filling in missing words or fixing wayward punctuation. Call it nostalgia if you will, but there’s something to be said for preserving this little snapshot of fandom.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
PD = Pam Dichotomy,
JP = Jim Paradox,
CN = Casino Night,
FNB = Fancy New Beesly,
QTP = Questions to Ponder
This post was written nine years ago so go easy on me in terms of writing style! I’ve decided not to revise the original posts beyond filling in missing words or fixing wayward punctuation. Call it nostalgia if you will, but there’s something to be said for preserving this little snapshot of fandom.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
