Chapter 8: Simulational Selves,

Simulational Culture in

Groundhog Day

Manica Hing

CMS 298

Fall 2013

Introduction

Chapter 8 is a rhetorical analysis of the 1993 film Groundhog Day. The film centers on Phil Connors, a selfish and egotistical TV weatherman, who finds himself in a time loop in which he relives the same day, Groundhog Day, over and over again.

The chapter uses both culture-centered and feminist techniques in its examination of the film as a cinematic satire of the simulational nature of our culture.

The film critiques the simulational and its implications in regards to real life.

What Does Simulational Mean?

A simulation is “an experience that is self-contained, referring mainly to itself”(p.247). A classic example of a simulation is a video game. When we play a video game, we temporarily detach ourselves from reality and become immersed in the world of the game. The objects we find in the game world are representations of the objects found in reality. We understand that the objects are representations and serve no purpose outside of the game.

For example, you may control the movements of a sword in a way that mirrors the movements of a real sword, but you do not associate the “game” sword with any particular sword in reality.

The events that take place in a game are simulational and have no direct connection with reality.

Simulational Environments “Industrialized cultures with capitalist economies that have a heavy dependence on electronic

media for entertainment share a significant characteristic, and that is that they are increasingly

simulational” (p. 247) Such cultures include the United States, Western Europe, and Japan.

In addition to media, various leisure activities are also simulational. For example, amusement

parks, shopping malls, and spectator sports are all simulational. Each simulational environment is

its own little world. We are involved these simulational worlds as long as we are in them but

have little to no effect on us once we leave them.

Into the Simulation

The film Groundhog Day begins with shot of streaming clouds.

Clouds are one of the earliest forms of simulation (p. 248). Clouds

morph into various shapes, and some of them take on shapes that to

us resemble other things, such as an animal like a dog or an

elephant.

The film is a metaphor for a life of social disconnection and self-

absorption, some of the main characteristics of a simulational

culture.

Phil Connors the Weatherman The main character is Phil Connors, a weatherman for a television station

in Pittsburgh. The film introduces him acting in a simulation pertaining to his profession.

The film audience first sees him talking and gesturing in front of a blank blue screen but given its context we know that he is doing a weathercast. The screen then changes into the smaller screen of a television where the map is now visible to us. The map itself is another simulation. We know that the map is an illustration of the real state rather than a live image of it.

The simulational world of the weathercast ends when the cameras on set shut off and Phil heads out the door.

Punxsutawney

The day before Groundhog Day, Phil, along with his producer, Rita, and Larry the cameraman, head to Punxsutawney to cover the yearly emergence of the groundhog. In the van, Phil complains to the others about having to do this assignment year after year.

Phil’s comments are indicative of another characteristic of simulations and that is repetition. The annual emergence of the groundhog is simulational because it occurs on the same day every year (p.250).

Punxsutawney Phil

Punxsutawney Phil is the groundhog of groundhog day.

Phil the groundhog is a simulation. The residents of Punxsutawney gather every year on February 2nd to see Phil emerge from his den and prognosticate whether or not there will be six more weeks of winter. The people assume that the groundhog is the “same” groundhog from previous years, but the truth is that groundhogs do not live forever, and just like his predecessors, Phil will die in a couple of years and be replaced with another groundhog.

Despite the indubitable fact of Phil’s eventual demise, simulation tells us that it is the “same” groundhog. To them there is only one Punxsutawney Phil.

Social Disconnection Phil’s cruel, ironic, and coarse demeanor

keeps him from connecting with others and

developing sincere relationships.

On the first Groundhog Day, Phil encounters

the kind landlady, Mrs. Lancaster, who, in an

attempt to make friendly conversation, says to

him, “There’s talk of a blizzard.” Phil then

mockingly gestures at an imaginary map,

reenacting his weathercast to point out to her

that there will be no blizzard.

On his way to the Groundhog Day festivities,

he comes across Ned Ryerson, an insurance

salesman and a former classmate. Phil

assumes that Ned recognized him from

television and tries to ignore his persistent

badgering regarding their high school

connection. Phil then says, “Thanks for

watching.”

Phil assumes “that people relate to him not at a

personal level but in terms of his fame within

the simulational world of television”(251). In

both situations, he denies social connection

because of his refusal to disconnect from his

professional simulational self.

Self-Absorption

Like most of us, Phil Connors lives a simulational life. In addition to the

repetitive nature of his existence, he is completely self-absorbed. All he talks

about is himself and he does not care much about others. He also insults

people on a regular basis and is consistently rude to everyone.

Self-Absorption When the blizzard that was not suppose to happen according to his forecast hits the

town, Phil and the crew, while on their way back to Pittsburg , discovers that the roads are closed due to the increment weather, and that the only thing they could do is go back to Punxsutawney. Phil gets out of the van and confronts the officer on the road. The officer asks him, “Haven’t you listened to the weather?” To which Phil replies, “I make the weather!” He is disconnected from the actual situation as a result of his continual engrossment in a simulation associated with his professional role as a weatherman (p. 251). He places himself above others and refuses to accept the fact that he had made an error despite all the tangible snow surrounding him.

After the road incident, Phil attempts to make a long-distance phone call but finds out that the lines are down because of the blizzard. He tells the telephone company that surely they must keep some lines open for celebrities and emergencies, and then goes on to say, “I’m a celebrity in an emergency” (p. 252). Phil is an egocentric individual and his self-centeredness will contribute to the endless cycle he will soon find himself in.

Groundhog Day...Again

“The experiences of Phil Connors that are about to unfold

become a commentary on all our everyday experiences,

and a warning to be alert for their simulational dangers”

(p. 252).

On Groundhog Day, Phil becomes trapped in a

simulational loop as he literally finds himself repeating

the same day again and again.

“What if there were tomorrow?”

“No tomorrow...that would mean there would be

no consequences, there would be no hangovers,

we could do whatever we wanted...”

The Value of Simulation

After having experienced the shock and confusion regarding his situation, Phil comes to terms with the fact that he will be waking up to same day everyday. He soon realizes that since there is no tomorrow, he could do whatever he wanted without any consequences.

In real life, one of the major reasons people find simulations to be “fun” is because simulations do not have consequences. As the famous saying goes, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” and similarly what happens in the simulational world stays in that world. This is perhaps what makes simulations, like video games, so appealing.

For example, you can play a game and commit certain acts via a simulated character that in reality could have severe consequences. In the game world, you can slice an enemy with a sword but if you did that in real life, you would probably be charged with assault or attempted murder.

You could also leave the game world anytime you wanted. You can leave the sword, the enemy, and everything else inimitable to that world behind and continue on to another dimension.

The Value of Simulation Upon his realization that his actions would have no

consequences because there is no tomorrow, Phil immediately leads the local police on a wild car chase. He does end up getting arrested and put behind bars but on the “next” day, he wakes up and finds himself back at the inn as though nothing had happened. He had experienced a “game over” moment with the police but then the “game” had reset itself and Phil is able to start over.

The resetting of each day is signified by the clicking of the bedside clock from 5:59 to 6:00 am and then playing “I’ve Got You Babe.”

Phil continues his reckless behavior by sucker punching Ned and indulging in an array of unhealthy foods. Phil also uses his newfound “freedom” to study the security surrounding the loading of an armored car in order to find the best moment to rob it, which he does. He uses the stolen money to satisfy his selfish desires, such as buying a Rolls Royce.

Another attractive feature of video games, and of simulations in general, is the ability to repeat the experience. For example, you can reenter the game world simply by pushing the power button on the gaming system. You can also start over, and use past experiences to improve your gaming strategies that could help you go on to the next level.

Phil and the Groundhog Eventually, Phil reaches a point in which he no longer sees the lack of

consequences as a sign of freedom but as a sign that his life has no meaning

because ultimately everything he does do not matter because the day will reset

itself so that there is no tomorrow, and since there is no tomorrow, there is no

future to consider.

Phil desperation and anger begin to take over. He smashes the bedside clock

to no avail and gives a bitter on-camera monologue, and he says, reflecting on

his own situation, “There’s no way that this winter is going to end. As

Long as this groundhog keeps seeing its shadow, I don’t see any other way

out” (p. 256).

The legend holds that if a groundhog sees its shadow, winter will continue for

six more weeks, and if the groundhog does not see its shadow, is not given a

token of itself, and can thus look to matters in the world around it, will there

be an early spring (p. 256).

The groundhog seeing its shadow represents the simulational self as a product

of narcissism. In the context of the film, Phil Connors continually “sees his

shadow” by thinking only about himself and it is not until he turns away from

his “shadow” and thinks about the lives of those around him that he begins to

break out of his temporal prison.

In continuation of his frustration, Phil kidnaps Phil the groundhog, steals a

pick up truck, and drives the both of them off a cliff. The truck plunges into

the bottom of the cliff and erupts into flames. Phil then finds himself alive the

next morning at 6:00 am, as though back from the dead. Phil then makes

several attempts to commit suicide. He tries electrocuting himself, stepping in

front of a truck, and jumping off a building, but even death could not release

Phil from the simulational world. The film is emphasizing to the audience the

pointlessness of simulations.

A Feminist Perspective

In the simulational loop, Phil

exploits women by employing a

strategy similar to the one he used

to rob the armored car. He extracts

information from the women about

themselves, and then uses the

information the “next” day to make

it seem as though they have some

connection in order to seduce them.

For example, he asks a woman

named Nancy for information

regarding her high school and then

the next day says to her that he went

to the same high school and uses the

details he had given her the

previous day to establish the

connection.

A Feminist Perspective Phil also tries this strategy to seduce Rita,

his real desire. At one point he takes her to a bar to find out what her favorite drink is. He then surprises her the “next” day by ordering it. The scene repeats several times, and each time is slightly different from the last from the changes Phil makes to the scene in an attempt to improve the situation.

Nonetheless, his strategy to seduce Rita fails as highlighted by a brief episodic sequence of Rita slapping Phil from each day.

Towards the end of the film, Phil begins to feel some genuine closeness to Rita as he tries to explain to her his predicament. They spend the day together and as she is sleeping next to him, he leans over and tells her that she is the “kindest, sweetest” person he knows. This is “an important first step in his recovery” (p. 257).

The film positions authentic relationships with women as and antidote to a simulational obsession (p. 254).

“Maybe it’s not a curse, just depends on

how you look at it.”

Out of the Simulation Phil turns his life around near the end of the film. He begins thinking less

about himself and more about others. He starts to use his “find the right

moment” strategies to help people rather than manipulate them as he did

before. He studies the patterns of the town so he could be on the spot when

those in trouble need help. He arrives on time to help a group of elderly

women by changing the tires of their car. He also saves a kid falling from a

tree and gives the Heimlich maneuver to a man choking in a restaurant.

He also gives money to a homeless man he had passed by numerous times,

but it is when he discovers that the man dies that day that the harsh reality

of the world sets in. Phil tries to save the homeless man by buying him food

and giving him CPR when he finds him dead in an alleyway, but despite his

efforts, Phil could not save him from his inevitable fate.

Phil also tries to better himself. He takes piano lessons, reads literature,

learns languages, and make ice sculptures.

As Phil dances with Rita on the evening of the final day of the time loop, he

is warmly praised by the people he had helped that day. They then meet

Ned Ryerson as they leave the hall. Ned is happy because Phil had bought

insurance from him.

The next morning, as usual, Phil wakes up at 6:00 am and hears “I’ve Got

You Babe” playing on the radio but this time, he discovers that Rita is still

next to him. Her being there meant that he has finally established a true

human connection with her, and this connection has pulled him out of the

simulational loop and onto the day after Groundhog Day, February 3rd.

Conclusion

The film is a rhetoric of simulation. Phil’s life reflects the simulational culture a lot of us live in. “People today are preoccupied with self and selfish interests, obsessed with entertainment and its technological underpinnings, unable to make real human connection” (p. 258). Therefore, the film focuses on the negative side of simulations. It shows us that a simulation is an illusion of freedom and that it is actually a detachment from reality. The film advises us that it is important that we deviate from our simulational selves and form human connections with others to find real meaning in life.

References

Brummet, Barry. Rhetoric in Popular Culture. Third ed.

Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications, 2011. Print.

Groundhog Day. Dir. Harold Ramis. Perf. Bill Murray,

Andie MacDowell. Columbia Pictures, 1993. DVD.

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