Explain SMBC — the wiki for Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal

Plural

2021-01-10 View on smbc-comics.com → 1 revision
You are viewing an older revision of this explanation (2026-03-14 18:20:47). View current version →
Plural
Votey panel for Plural
This explanation is incomplete or may contain errors. It was generated by AI and has not yet been reviewed by a human editor.

Explanation

The Joke

A man announces he has discovered a way to "instantly achieve grandness" -- simply use the word "we" instead of "I" in all situations. The examples demonstrate how this substitution transforms mundane or even negative statements into something that sounds regal and impressive: "hard work" becomes grand when attributed to "we," and "generosity" sounds noble in the plural. But the comic then reveals the absurdity by showing a man at a restaurant saying "Pardon me, madame, we are a craving -- I mean, we crave three cheeses-burger." The waiter responds, "It's time we had our check, madame" -- showing the whole thing devolving into nonsensical speech.

The setup panel also shows the discoverer saying things like "I don't say 'caterpillar,' I don't say 'cater-pillar.' I don't say 'cater-pillar.' I don't say '5 years old.'" This appears to be illustrating various words that contain hidden instances of "I" that would need to be replaced with "we," leading to increasingly ridiculous distortions of language.

The Humor

The comic satirizes the "royal we" -- the majestic plural historically used by monarchs and popes to refer to themselves. The joke starts with the plausible observation that using "we" instead of "I" can make statements sound grander, but then follows the logic to its absurd extreme. When you commit to replacing every instance of the word or even the sound "I" with "we," normal language breaks down completely. Ordering a cheeseburger becomes an exercise in linguistic contortion. The humor lies in the gap between the promised "grandness" and the reality of sounding completely ridiculous.

References

The "royal we" (pluralis majestatis) is a tradition in which a sovereign refers to themselves in the plural, as in Queen Victoria's famous (possibly apocryphal) declaration, "We are not amused." The comic takes this convention and applies it universally and literally, exposing how quickly the dignified effect collapses in everyday contexts.

View History (1) Original Comic