What Is the Break Room in Severance?

The ironically named Break Roomis the stuff of psychological nightmares.

I am thankful to have been caught, my fall cut short by those with wizened hands.

Britt Lower as Helly Riggs peering over a cubicle in Apple TV+’s Severance

Custom Image by Jefferson Chacon

All I can be is sorry, and that is all I am.

The Break Room is widely feared among Lumon employees inSeverance.

Milchick reassures an apologetic Irving B.

The Macrodata Refinement department employees take a group photo together in ‘Severance’.

Image via Apple TV+

But Helly claims instead to have heard an angry mumbly guy.

The baby that Dylan hears might be coming from one of his three children at home.

The low register mumbling that Helly hears could potentially be the voice of her father.

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This kind of practice is familiar to an equally disturbing real-world setting: cults.

Ina documented cult, deterring members from thinking and acting freely is a priority.

But to encourage sticking to membership guidelines for the sake of self-fulfillment isnt an effective enough strategy.

Mr. Milchick (Tramell Tillman) operates recording equipment in the Break Room in ‘Severance’.

Image via Apple TV+

Its the difference between Eat your vegetables because its healthy and Eat your vegetables or you will be punished.

Punishments are built on preserving peace in a social environment and preventing future harm to oneself or ones community.

Therefore,the purpose ofthe Break Room is to extinguish (or punish)any notions of independence.

A baffled Helly R. (Britt Lower) stares at her Break Room Compunction Statement in ‘Severance’.

Image via Apple TV+

Be sure to get your 101 Demon Summoning certificate.

Remember when everyone went around saying thatwe only use 10% of our brains?

Oh, illusory truth effect, you got us again.

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Mark leads a team of office workers whose memories have been surgically divided between their work and personal lives. When a mysterious colleague appears outside of work, it begins a journey to discover the truth about their jobs.

We were and still are susceptible to the illusory truth effect becauseall it takes is a bit of repetition.

At first, Helly begins her first Break Room session, scoffing at her punishment.

As she resigns from Lumon later in the series, she admits she never actually meant it.

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Severance

Ben Stiller