"Little Nemo in Slumberland" dated August 26, 1906:
Transcript of Tweets by @LittleNemo1905 (JULY 12, 2020):
This strip is the second of the three Rose Water Ocean strips. There are some really cool things to discuss here! - 1/31
I think we should start by discussing the mermaids themselves, who, I think, act as the centrepiece of the entire strip, leading to some really fascinating conversation… - 2/31
Folklore surrounding the myth of the mermaid, an aquatic being with the tail of a fish and the head and upper body of a woman, has been of popular interest to the arts for many years. - 3/31
One of the most popular mermaid stories, Hans Christen Anderson's fairy tale, Den Lille Havfrue ("The Little Mermaid"), has survived in common consciousness primarily through the many fairy-tale adaptations that it has spawned (most notably, Disney's 1989#TheLittleMermaid). - 4/31 [INSERT IMAGES]
Today, mermaids have evolved far beyond the confines of fairy tale folklore, entering into the the realm of popular culture and mainstream consciousness. In 1906, there was certainly *less* mermaid saturation, but they were still recognizable mythical creatures. - 5/31
One of the more common characteristics of the mermaid is the hyper-feminine qualities that are often attributed to them. This hyper-sexualization has often led the mermaid to have associations with male desire. - 6/31
According to Aquasphere blog #ThroughTheAquariumGlass: "The mermaid is both feminized and bestial; she is both a sexual symbol for male sailors and a princess character for young girls, and also a vision of the evil and bestial nature of women." - 7/31
Interestingly, McCay's mermaids do not share the sexualized qualities that other popular depictions of mermaids present. Far from it, these mermaids are actively desexualized through an asexual representation. - 8/31
Obviously, this was a Sunday newspaper strip directed at children readers so there was no way that this strip was ever going to veer into the territory of being lewd, but the choices made here in their depiction is particularly interesting to me… - 9/31
…because it demonstrates thoughtful design. Throughout most of the strip, McCay simply avoids depicting the mermaids frontally and uses well placed arms to avoid presentation of the mermaids chests. - 10/31
However, this isn't always possible (panels 1, 2, 4, and 5 all either partially or fully depict the mermaids chests). In these instances, we see that they do not present overly sexualized bodies, but instead avoid any upper body gender differentiation at all. - 11/ 31
This choice is fascinating and worth discussing. McCay could have used a plethora of techniques to maintain the visual depictions of the hyper-sexualized beautiful mermaid, like the one chosen by Walt Disney: - 12/31 [INSERT IMAGE]
To say that Ariel's depiction hasn't aged well would be an understatement. The following @TheAtlantic article discusses this well, but it's this no-holds-barred quote that draws my attention: - 13/31
“…Ariel, isn't much like Andersen's sad, noble sea-maid. She's a sexy little honey-bunch with a double-scallop-shell bra and a mane of red hair tossed in tumble-out-of-bed Southern California salon style. She has no gills, but, when she smiles, she shows an acre of Farrah Fawcett teeth." - 14/31
Criticism surrounding the hypersexualization of a children's film character has been one heaped on the otherwise well-loved Disney film for years and seems a blight on an otherwise excellent story. - 15/31
Obviously, Disney took the easy way out and chose to grasp tightly to the sexualized natural of the folklore staples rather than thoughtfully reconsider their audience. McCay does not fall into that trap. - 16/31
Instead, McCay's deicision to "go against the flow" in this moment represents a conscious decision to avoid bombarding young readers with hypersexualized content, while ensuring the whimsy of the mermaid myth be included. - 17/31
Though not an expert on folklore, I found little precedent for this in my research; most depictions of mermaids at this time had plenty of sexualization (see image)… For this reason, I think McCay's bold choice deserves some recognition. - 18/31 [INSERT IMAGE}
Ok. Now the strip itself 😅 - 19/31
The dichotomy that we discussed yesterday between Flip and Nemo really comes out strongly here. It's as though they are doing everything to ditch Flip and leave him one step behind (which, I guess, they are…). - 20/31
This reads like bullies trying to get away from the unpopular kid who wants to play with them (which, again, I guess it is), but it is certainly an unflattering look for the Princess. - 21/31
That Nemo is granted the extension of the Princess' privilege through his position of importance and allowed to become a merboy (while Flip is not) just continues to emphasize this trend that I mentioned yesterday. - 22/31
In fact, the mermaids make Flip the butt of a joke; tugging him down into the water and trying to scare him away by threatening him with a giant lobster… Again, this doesn't read like playful so much as it reads like monstrous in my opinion. - 23/31
The only real saving grace here is that Nemo is such a wonderfully empathetic and caring young man; he does not want to see Flip hurt even though he is his "worst enemy". - 24/31
Again, this really reinforces Nemo's character and proves why he is so likable! In this moment, Flip is in danger from drowning or being eaten and Nemo is able to throw away his fear to stand up to the magical creatures before him. - 25/31
I must also mention here that I ADORE McCay's underwater work. This moment recalls Nov. 5, 1905 (MAGOOZLA <3) and the brilliant way that McCay handles underwater representation; it is just as wonderful here! - 26/31
Finally, I'll end by commenting on the lackadaisical balloon placement. I recognize that this part of McCay's formal technique was of little importance to him, but it's particularly bothersome here… - 27/31
In both panel 2 and 3 there is weird placement… First, Nemo is visually represented as a mermaid BEFORE the transformation words are spoken and then the response about his feet comes before he asks… - 28/31
Both of these could be explained away; I get it. But I still think that even with the explanations it remains awkward… - 29/31
Regardless, I find this one of the more fascinating strips… As an artifact of McCay's creative process, there is so much here on the page for us to reflect on. I'm really excited to hear other participants' readings! - 30/31
This is my reading of "Little Nemo in Slumberland" #46. What's yours? - 31/31