Logan Cantwell
Due: 3/10/13
Comm-1050-003
Professor Nobis
Social Penetration Theory on Bridesmaids
I have decided to analyze the film Bridesmaids. I am going to apply the Social
Penetration Theory of Irwin Altman and Dalmas Taylor on this film. The Social
Penetration Theory explains in great detail how we can understand closeness between
two people. This theory also states that as our relationships develop and grow, our
communication advances deeper and more intimate.
Irwin Altman and Dalmas Taylor brought about the social penetration theory in
1973. These two psychologists taught that you could only become close and develop a
relationship when you become vulnerable. They also explained different ways that the
word vulnerable could be expressed. You can express this by sharing a home with an
individual, having a deep talk with someone, or even just becoming close friends.
Bridesmaids is a film written by Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo, produced by
Judd Apatow and Barry Mendel, and directed by Paul Feig. Kristen Wiig stars in this film
and she goes though a rough patch in her life right before her best friend Lillian gets
married. I feel like the reason I decided to use this film in relation to the social
penetration theory is because of the relationship that was depicted between Kristen Wiig,
who plays Annie, and Maya Rudolph, who plays Lillian.
The movie starts off by showing a man treat Annie with no respect. She loves him
and wants them to be together, but you can quickly see that he wants nothing like that.
She meets up with her friend Lillian at a diner and they begin to talk. You get the feeling
that they are very close to each other. You can see how much their friendship means to
each other. They seem to be the closest that any two people can be. The film goes
through a few different scenes that show these two friends doing everything together.
Their conversations are intimate and deep with each other. Annie gets blown back when
she goes over to Lillian’s house and finds out that she is engaged. Annie has a worried
look on her face, but se doesn’t let that feeling hold her back from congratulating her
friend on the new step in her life. Lillian asks Annie to be her maid of honor showing that
they are still very close friends. Annie gets put on the back of Lillian’s mind from that
time on.
Annie’s life seemed to go downhill from there. Lillian starts to get very busy
planning the wedding and begins to drift away. Annie works at a jewelry store as a sales
clerk. She hates her job and always gets compared to another woman who does a great
job selling. She looses her job, gets kicked out of her apartment, and her love life is close
to nothing. She has nothing going in her life right now. She tries to impress her best
friend Lillian in everything she can. She comes up short every time. This is a great
example of the social penetration theory. Even though Lillian is drifting away from Annie
at this time, the impact that they have had on each other has kept feelings present. Annie
continues to have those strong feelings towards her friend Lillian and the same goes for
Lillian.
Annie snaps at Lillian’s bridal shower, which cause me to think that their
friendship was over. Before Lillian gets married she goes missing. Annie is the only one
that knows where to find her friend. This is another great example of the theory that
shows once somebody has made such an impact on your life; you seem to know more
about them than others. It seemed like Annie just knew where her friend would be. That
closeness that was developed can be explained through the social penetration theory.
The film concludes with Lillian happily at her wedding with Annie right there by
her side. The closeness and friendship that they developed early in their relationship has
helped to being them back together in the end. However, this is not always the case. This
theory does not state that two individuals will come back together after a falling away. It
just happened to be that way in this story.
As I think about this film and the theory I don’t feel like the director knew about
this theory. Or I don’t think he would recognize this part of his film as part of the social
penetration theory. There are a lot of reasons why the film and the theory go together, but
I don’t think the director planned on it relating. The message I got was that your friends
would be there for you. I had the thought that you shouldn’t abandon a good friendship
because of events in your life. You should keep that friend in your life and make it work.
I never thought about the reason we become close is because we share emotional
or vulnerable things between each other. I have never thought to look at this being a
factor. I have always just thought we become close to others for no reason, we just do.
Reading this theory was the first time that I actually thought about it in depth. I now
know how I can develop a good or close relationship with somebody. I know that I am
going to use this in my life. There are people that I know who I want to develop a better
relationship with and now I now different ways to speed that process along. This will also
help me to remain close to friends that I have right now.
Reference Page
 A First Look at Communication Theory, Em Griffin, 7th Edition
 Bridesmaides movie, Directed by Paul Feig, 2011
 Social Penetration,
http://www.uky.edu/~drlane/capstone/interpersonal/socpen.html
 Social Penetration Theory,
http://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/social_penetration.htm