"Little Nemo in Slumberland" dated August 22, 1909:
Transcript of Tweets by @LittleNemo1905 (DECEMBER 28, 2020):
Though I'll likely touch on a couple points beyond this, I'm going to really focus on how this strip makes me feel… I'm doing this for one reason. Prior to becoming a Teacher, I was a Certified Dog Trainer. - 1/19
Reading this strip from the perspective of someone who spent years of his life working with animals was quite interesting. I'm sure many who grew up with pets and have been around animals can also relate. - 2/19
I was interested to see the approach that this Professor Gorilla would take when working with the trio. McCay reinforces the idea that they do not understand each other in panel 2, which I found interesting. - 3/19
Now, I won't pretend that I know the history of animal training beyond my own experiences with animals have taught me that though we don't speak the same language, we can certainly communicate. - 4/19
One of the first things you learn as a trainer (and probably pick up quite well simply from having or being around animals) is the idea that gestural and audial communication is important to understanding how the animals feel. - 5/19
This is what ultimately helps us to identify how best to approach our work with them. - 6/19
The inversion here between animal and human/trained and trainer is part of what gives this strip it's allure, in my opinion. Nemo and Co. (the animals) being trained by a Gorilla (the human, in this case) is the centre of the strip's comedy. - 7/19
Beyond the humour evoked from the trio handing Prof. Gorilla a walloping, I think that there is a subtle commentary here about the hierarchal position of homo sapiens, as well. - 8/19
Watching the Gorilla-as-human fail in his attempts to tame the humans-as-animals here might suggest to the reader that, even when subjugated, the "superior" species will come out on top. - 9/19
There are certainly elements of Darwin's Theory of Evolution and the notions of "Survival of the Fittest" here… sure, it's meant to be funny, and it may have rung quite well in 1909… but it doesn't come off all that great to me in 2020. - 10/19
And this isn't an indictment of our trio's beat-down on Prof. Gorilla; he is just as much to blame here. - 11/19
The fight truly happens because of a complete and utter breakdown in communication. Had Nemo and the boys been able to understand Prof. Gorilla, they might have obliged his requests and the whole kerfuffle could've been avoided. - 12/19
Obviously, the idea of "training" is predicated on a lack of options as far as linguistic communication goes, but this is why Prof. Gorilla's approach was so frustrating. - 13/19
I won't get into a rant about the downfall of punishment-based training methods here (it's besides the point), but Prof. Gorilla enters with a whip/lash and chooses to begin their relationships confrontationally. - 14/19
How are Nemo and the boys to respond? The fear stimulus, "fight or flight", obviously kicks in and they choose to overpower the foolish trainer as opposed to be beaten by him (as it does for many animals). - 15/19
The whip/lash clearly becomes a non-verbal signal for the boys to anticipate what's coming; it's no wonder, they react how they do. Had he chosen less aggressive non-verbal communication their relationship might have been better. - 16/19
My current head canon is that maybe McCay saw how some of the animals in his beloved carnivals were being treated, and used this strip as a way to quietly call them out… or demonstrate what it would be like with the show on the other foot. - 17/19
I'm eager to hear what all of you think of this strip. - 18/19
This is my reading of "Little Nemo in Slumberland" #202. What's yours? - 19/19