Video narration
Why is a door easier to open when you push far from its hinges? The hinges are its pivot: the point it turns around. Try the same push in the same direction, first near the hinges, then farther out. Near the hinges, the door turns less easily; farther away, that same push has more turning effect. That turning effect is torque. The key is not just how hard you push. It also depends on the perpendicular distance from the pivot to the line along which your force acts. Perpendicular distance means the shortest distance from the pivot to that line. A stronger push also increases the turning effect. For a push perpendicular to the door, that distance is simply how far along the door you push from the hinges. So torque equals force multiplied by perpendicular distance: increase either one, and the turning effect increases. That's why the handle is far from the hinges: your push gets a greater perpendicular distance, so it turns the door more easily.