Key Insights
- Both Severance and The Stanley Parable delve into themes of control and absurdity within corporate environments.
- Characters in both narratives navigate strange office settings, often with little to no freedom.
- Severance incorporates artistic inspiration from various works, including Being John Malkovich and Cat’s Cradle, to convey its darkly satirical tone.
The world of Severance is strikingly unnerving, as showcased in the Apple TV+ series crafted by Dan Erickson. This dystopian narrative presents a chilling corporate landscape where employees undergo a surgical procedure designed to segregate their work and personal memories, resulting in a psychological exploration of free will, autonomy, and the mechanized drudgery of office existence. While the show stands as an original concept, its themes resonate closely with those in a distinct video game—The Stanley Parable.
The Stanley Parable, a highly praised indie game developed by Galactic Cafe, offers a surreal critique of office culture and challenges the perception of choice. Players follow the journey of Stanley, an office worker who finds himself inexplicably alone in his workplace, accompanied solely by the voice of a seemingly omniscient narrator. This interaction between the narrator and Stanley establishes the core element of the game, allowing players the option to either heed or defy the narrator’s commands, resulting in various absurd and philosophical outcomes. Examining the interplay of themes in both Severance and The Stanley Parable reveals a profound alignment between the two.
Understanding The Stanley Parable
Originally released as a mod for Half-Life 2 in 2011, The Stanley Parable transitioned to a standalone game in 2013. The narrative centers around Stanley, who is identified as Employee #427, leading a monotonous existence pressing buttons on a screen until one day the commands suddenly cease, and he finds himself utterly alone in the workplace.
As the story unfolds, players are led by a British narrator (voiced by Kevan Brighting) through the desolate office space. The game’s hallmark is the exploration of choice, or the façade of it, as players can either adhere to the narrator’s directives or venture off the beaten path, leading to a multitude of endings that may range from darkly humorous to existentially alarming.
Should Stanley choose to comply with the narrator, he ultimately discovers the predetermined nature of his life, resulting in a game reset. Conversely, rebellion against the narrator leads him to bizarre scenarios, such as uncovering a mind-control facility or playing within the confines of nonsensical game mechanics. Each decision made by the player elicits distinct responses from the narrator, effectively merging the concepts of free will and scripted experience.
At its essence, The Stanley Parable serves as a meta-commentary on interactive storytelling, the bureaucratic nature of corporations, and humanity’s yearning for independence. The game continuously disrupts players’ expectations, provoking them to contemplate the extent of their control within the game world.
Connections Between Severance and The Stanley Parable
Upon initial observation, both Severance and The Stanley Parable share a disconcerting aesthetic characterized by bland, uniform office spaces, where employees execute orders without inquiry. Each narrative encapsulates the existential malaise associated with corporate monotony, painting a picture of workers ensnared by their roles. In Severance, the Lumon office epitomizes a sterile, hyper-structured environment in which all actions are dictated by obscure authorities. Similarly, in The Stanley Parable, Stanley traverses a vacant office under the influence of a narrator who shapes his experience.
A palpable sense of isolation also unites the narratives. Mark Scout, the protagonist of Severance, exists in two disjointed realities—one within the confines of his job and another in his personal life, blissfully unaware of the other’s existence. This parallel mirrors Stanley’s plight, where his only interaction occurs with the disembodied narrator in a deserted office. Both individuals find themselves ensnared in repetitive cycles and unseen manipulation, which underscores the dehumanizing implications of corporate settings.
Additional Influences on Severance
In a discussion with the New York Times, Dan Erickson revealed the multifaceted inspirations behind Severance. His creative influences include the film Being John Malkovich, particularly its warped depiction of familiar spaces that informed the show’s unsettling work environment. Additionally, the Black Mirror episode “White Christmas”played a pivotal role, specifically in its portrayal of characters trapped within a perpetual cycle of nightmarish experiences, a theme resonant in Severance‘s employee dynamics.
Moreover, the thematic elements of Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle, which scrutinize bureaucratic absurdity and the rampant commercialization of modern life, also contributed to shaping the cult-like atmosphere within the corporate structure of Severance. Notably, Erickson cited an old training video from the Sizzler restaurant chain as another unique inspiration. The ridiculousness of that video, which aggressively promoted corporate doctrine, has lingered in his mind, ultimately influencing the distinctive ambiance present in Severance.
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