Die Sheldon die: The Big Bang Theory, everyday neoliberalism and Sheldon as neoliberal man

Abstract

This article is about the very popular American sitcom The Big Bang Theory. It is focused on the ways that the economic assumptions of neoliberalism are made clear in the programme and how much of this process is linked to the character of Sheldon. I argue that Sheldon is a version of the literary trope of the fool. In this case, a person who is lacking in social skills and who therefore speaks the “truth” of his understanding of social situations. It is this understanding which, I argue is neoliberal. I am not arguing that The Big Bang Theory promotes neoliberalism. Rather, I am suggesting that, most probably unintentionally, the show lays out many of the key premises of neoliberalism, such as the importance of contracts, and enables audiences to consider these while laughing at the show.

Keywords:

• The Big Bang Theory
• Sheldon
• Penny
• neoliberalism
• the fool
• ideology

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. All quotes from The Big Bang Theory episodes come from the big bang theory transcripts site at: https://bigbangtrans.wordpress.com/. I am indebted to the unnamed owner of this site.

2. As it happens, the life of the actor who plays Raj is itself an example of globalisation and shows how the patterns of globalisation are impacted by colonial histories. Kunal Nayyar was born in London to Indian parents who moved back to India when Kunal was five. He went to school in New Delhi. He then left for the United States to take a degree in Business at the University of Portland. His subsequent acting career has been mostly in the United States but he also had a part in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of Love’s Labour’s Lost in Stratford upon Avon in 2006, before gaining the part of Rajesh Koothrappali in The Big Bang Theory.