dark cave

The Big Bang Theory

March 29th, 2009 at 11:39am dark

So, tonight [note: actually, yesterday night, before the little router accident that cut the whole dormitory out of the Internet] my personal marathon about the 1st series of The Big Bang Theory is over. A pretty enjoyable show, I must admit, given the random scientific/fantasy citations thrown in, but the story itself is not that exciting. I mean, it’s a long road over chatting about nerds and their social ineptitude, but, after the good impression at the beginning, the plot remains where it’s at, with no actual improvement.
Nevertheless, as I’ve said before, a great deal with the show is made by the random scenes in which Sheldon (one of the main characters, surely my favorite one) expresses his views and knowledge about the world.

(from left to right: Sheldon, Howard and Penny)

As an example, this a brief quote from episode 16 (called The Peanut Reaction) regarding Sheldon’s views on birthday gifts and (more in general) social conventions:

Penny – Sheldon, I didn’t see your present.
Sheldon – That’s because I didn’t bring one.
P – Why not?
Howard – Don’t ask.
S – The entire institution of gift-giving makes no sense.
H – Too late.
S – Let’s say I go out and I spend $50 on you.
It’s a laborious activity because I have to imagine what you need,
whereas you know what you need.
Now, I could simplify things…
just give you the $50 directly, and then you could give me $50
on my birthday, and so on, until one of us dies,
leaving the other one old and $50 richer.
And I ask you, is it worth it?
H – Told you not to ask.
P – Sheldon, you’re his friend. Friends give each other presents.
S – I accept your premise; I reject your conclusion.
H – Try telling him it’s a non-optional social convention.
P – What?
H – Just do it.
P – It’s a non-optional… social convention.
S – Oh. Fair enough.
H – He came with a manual.

Entry Filed under: English,Free (as in freedom) thoughts