Motifs in the "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy"

Blog 500 words about the use of motifs in Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Think about how the motifs are connected to the creation of humor in the radio play.

“The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” by Douglas Adams, tells the story of Arthur Dent who is saved from the earth right before its destruction. He hitchhikes through the Galaxy with his friend Ford and makes many new friends along the way. The radio play is filled with humor, which is supported by the many motifs that reoccur in the story.

One of the motifs that come up over and over again is the idea of alcoholism. In almost every situation in the radio play the characters have a drink to calm their nerves. This makes the situation that they are in more humorous, because alcoholism is not something that should be supported and promoted. This could be classified as dark comedy because it humors something that is not in fact something to be laughed about.

A further motif in the radio play that creates humor is the idea of humans. In every possible situation, humans are made fun of and looked upon as insignificant creatures. This is funny because humans see themselves as the centre of the universe and they are still unaware whether there is any other form of life besides them in the universe. The irony in that situation is what makes this motif so entertaining.

A third motif that marks the book over and over again is “time travel”. In the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, time travel seems to be a very natural and normal way of traveling, when in fact, in reality, it is impossible or at least it has not yet been discovered. This makes the whole idea of time travel seem even more unrealistic which is quite funny and humorous.

The book seems to concentrate on dark humor and it plays a lot on unrealistic scenarios that humans, people on earth, have been dreaming of for a very long time. It glorifies characteristics that are not always socially acceptable and it makes fun of human’s obsession with themselves. The ironic and different humor in this radio play is what makes it so interesting and popular.