Comics: Quino’s Mafalda
Comics are considered fun, but also meaningful form of entertainment that share particular messages to people; one of the most interesting parts about Quino’s Mafalda comics were the themes that relate to interactions between family members, teacher and students, and oneself. Interestingly, I feel that comics are produced for a wide range of age groups from children to older adults. The freedom of interpretation let the people decide to find humor within the comics; one of the comics in the Quino’s Mafalda, Mafalda 9 (1973), is a silent comic that does not include any words, but a boy walking towards a girl reading a book and then walks away without a chance to say hello. From my personal interpretation of this comic expresses the anxiety and shyness of the boy, but also I can see the difference in the dynamic of ‘how’ the boy ran towards the girl when he was in an excited mood, then how he walks with his head down and regrets not even trying to have the heart to introduce himself to her. This explains not only the fact that the boy is shy and not able to express himself to a girl, but this comic proposes different emotions that a young boy can feel during the process of asking a girl or a sweetheart out; to be honest, every youngster has felt this kind of emotion at least once in his or her lifetime and the comic expresses in a less serious manner. Another comic that I was very much interested in was the comic #1596, Mafalda 8 (1972) which was about the interaction between the mother and Felipe.This comic strips show how Felipe is not enjoying his school as it was imagined to be torn down in his sleep; interestingly, the comic proposes many students’ thoughts and ideas on how school is not their most exciting parts of life. I believe that comics are restricted in how long it can be to be presented to the public; many of the short comics are concise, but contains important messages for people to both enjoy and learn from the humors; especially in the latin American cultures, I feel that themes such as common dialogue between family members influence the young generation who enjoys comics to shape their thoughts about certain matters. From my personal experience, I am not one of those individuals who enjoyed reading comics, but thinking back, one of the most witty comics that I have watched was the Simpsons; the Simpsons, when I was young, was just a fun television that I have watched to laugh for fun animations, but now, I can see different political, and social issues raised by the cartoon. It is crucial especially for producers and writers of comics to be efficient with their words and illustrations because of how superficial their work can be read by people; however, comic is an effective method to intrigue younger audience to both have fun and enjoy important messages in life.
Class Questions:
What were some of your favourite comics when you were young?
Have you learned an important life lesson through comics or cartoons? If yes, please give an example.
Nice post! I agree comics can be fun and also bring some interesting and even deep reflections.
When I was a child, I loved reading Turma da Mônica in the classes’ intervals. Precisely, I loved the cartoons from Chico Bento. He lives in the countryside and has a simple life. Still, he admires the world around him, especially nature. Chico uses no shoes and lives a happy life. Reading his stories encouraged me to be happy with what I have and appreciate the beautiful nature around me. Moreover, Chico Bento taught me that people from the countryside are also very clever. The cartoons challenged the idea that the ‘simplicity’ of people from the countryside makes them somehow stupid. For example, in some cartoons, people from the city discriminate against Chico for not wearing shoes, having simple clothes, and speaking with a “caipira” (countryside) accent. However, at the end of the story, Chico ends up in a better position and often teaches valuable things for the people from cities.
Hi Brian!
Like Clara, I grew up reading Turma da Mônica. There are two characters (maybe more, I can’t really remember) that have a disability; Luca, a boy in a wheelchair, and Dorinha, a blind girl. While looking for these comics online, I stumbled across one all about accessibility. I thought this was such a cool way to teach kids important social issues that have yet to be addressed, for example, how the world is built around able-bodied people.