My work here is done meaning

my work here is done

(2000’s | businese? | “I’ve done what I set out to do,” “I’ve done what I can”)

Little wonder this phrase has become a popular meme in recent years; it can convey exactly the sort of self-satisfaction and superiority that express themselves so often and so malignantly on the internet. Of late it has become popular in right-wing circles as a means of bashing Obama — they never tire of it — as in this cartoon. It doesn’t have to be this way. The phrase can have a benevolent sound, the sort of thing Gandalf or Obi wan Kenobi might say, though as far as I know neither of them ever did. But juvenile irony is winning the day; now the expression goes readily with scenes of catastrophe and chaos.

Most on-line sources cite three possible sources of the catchphrase: the Lone Ranger, Mary Poppins, and Blazing Saddles. I’ve been able to verify only the last, not the other two. Some cite Errol Flynn in The Mark of Zorro (1940). “My work is done here” is a variant (used by Leonard Nimoy in the monorail episode of The Simpsons, for example); it means the same thing and has the same weight. This formulation is technically ambiguous, but the alternate meaning (I do my job in this place) does not obtrude. “My work here is done” began to appear sporadically in LexisNexis right after 1990. Then as now, it was a favorite of departing CEO’s who wish to convey the impression that they have completed their stint with honor and can safely hand responsibility to their successor, provided they get their severance package. Perhaps that’s when the phrase picked up its odor of smugness. Despite, or because of, the ironic turn, it still bears a hint of hipness and remains the property of college kids, middle-aged columnists, and corporate consultants alike.

But the question is not “When did this expression originate?,” because the phrase is not fixed, and any normally equipped English speaker could utter it in the course of conversation. It’s an ordinary English sentence, after all, and doesn’t require a mythical origin. True, it is a bit more elaborate than what you might call the ground-level expression, “My work is done,” which has an almost Biblical simplicity. The question is when did it become the sort of thing people ask about in chat rooms and forums? According to LexisNexis, it started turning up regularly in the press not long after 2000. It might be used to end an article, or, conversely, as a blogger’s headline. As early as 2004, I found an example of the now familiar meme: “Chaos, panic, disorder — my work here is done.” (Google it and despair.) The phrase has always had a bias toward the smug, but now it has a healthy dose of snark as well, as we use it to crow about the mess we (or someone else) have made rather than acknowledge an edifying experience. The expression’s grandiloquence is real but easily subverted. The trend toward using it sarcastically continues and may win entirely in another ten or twenty years.

Tags: Barack Obama, Blazing Saddles, English, executives, language, Leonard Nimoy, Lone Ranger, Mary Poppins, Mel Brooks, memes, words

What does My Job Here Is Done mean?

My job here is done is a still image of the character Tuxedo Mask from anime Sailor Moon, that is used as an exploitable meme.

It is used in reference to situations where somebody takes credit for something they didn’t actually do.

my job here is done

Origin

What's the origin of My Job Here Is Done?

Although Tuxedo Mask never says the line “My job here is done” in the anime, the origin of the meme is a comic that consists of screenshots taken from episode Nakimushi Usagi no Kareinaru Henshint.

It was created to mimic the character’s overall personality, as he tends to exaggerate his importance in situations which he has little or no impact on. Usually this happens after Sailor Moon fights one of her enemies.

Spread & Usage

How did My Job Here Is Done spread?

The comic was initially posted on Tumblr but since then it has been deleted.

However, it was a big success and hype started generating around the format. Reddit, 9gag and several other meme sharing sites featured the format.

Eventually, people started to implement My job here is done into real-life situations, utilizing the meme as an exploitable.

More interesting stuff

Published at 10/20/2021

1,119 views

Something you say when your job at a particular location is done, so you can leave now.

Plumber: Is the toilet working now?
Me: Yeah, it's fixed.
Plumber: Good. Then my work here is done.

by MalumLibrum958 July 11, 2022

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More random definitions

How do you say my work is done?

English at work: 6 different ways to say “the work is done”.
It's all done! “All done” is used for saying that you have finished doing something. ... .
It's a wrap. ... .
That's that! ... .
Mission accomplished! ... .
It's done and dusted. ... .
Finished / completed..

What is the meaning of job done?

idiom informal. something you say when someone has achieved something, especially when it seems easier or quicker than you expected: I just changed the fuse in the plug and the lamp worked, job done. Succeeding, achieving and fulfilling.

Have the work done meaning?

euphemism To undergo cosmetic surgery. You look fantastic—did you have work done? You know she had work done, right? Just a brow lift, but still—what a difference!