When Harry Met Sally Essay

Hannah Witty

Dr. Hayes

Film Comedy

1 May 2023

When Harry Met Sally: The Power of Friendship & The Subconscious

Thought of as a cult classic, Rob Reiner’s film When Harry Met Sally redefined the romantic comedy genre. The 1989 film follows several notable romantic tropes through the lens of Freudian humor, wherein the characters often represent different iterations of the Id, Superego, and Ego. In a general sense, When Harry Met Sally represents a subgenre of romantic comedy that requires “the intervention of larger... forces that impede the progress” of romance (Dowd 552). Since its release, Reiner has been praised for his reinvention of the genre and its “Woody Allen-style comedy,” that is still “rendered safe for mainstream audiences,”

As a comedic duo, “the comic effect depends thus on the perceived difference between [one character’s] expenditure” and another’s (Rottenberg 40). For example, at the start of the film, Harry insists that “men and women can’t be friends,” because “the sex part always gets in the way,” but Sally insists that this is not true, building to something of a bluster as she does so (Ephron 15; Reiner, When Harry Met Sally, 00:00:00). In this scenario, the Id will always want to pursue a relationship, sexual or otherwise. Meanwhile, the Superego knows that this is irrational, fighting against our baser urgers to conform to societal norms. The two different viewpoints offer a juxtaposition of our rational beliefs, the Superego, and our subconscious beliefs, the Id. The audience, as the Ego, can find humor in this since, as Feud stated, humor can be found in the contrast between one another’s

She does so on several occasions, such as properly grieving her ex because of his engagement or, most notably, accepting Harry’s confession despite her rational reasoning as to not. Even though his confession results in a reality that “doesn’t work this way,” she finds herself giving in anyway, knowing that it is “impossible to for [her] to hate [him],” (Ephron 135-136; Reiner, When Harry Met Sally, 00:00:00). Just as this illustrated a marker in Harry’s development, so too does it in Sally’s. For once she is listening to rationality (Superego) and taking the risk of her desires (Id)