"Little Nemo in Slumberland" dated November 12, 1905:
Transcript of Tweets by @LittleNemo1905 (May 31, 2020):
This strip continues the narrative approach established by Magoozla in strip #3: A magical character is charged with escorting Nemo to Slumberland, since (as strips #2 and #3 in particular demonstrate) he is seemingly unable to do so on his own. - 1/27
The most obvious difference here is that Cheecaumo is not a terrifying sea monster, but rather a blonde fairy in a tutu. Instantly, Nemo is more comfortable with her than he was with Magoozla. - 2/27
Caption #3 says, "the charming personality of Cheecaumo had won Nemo completely, he would obey her every command gladly." This seems less a commentary about personality, and more about appearance. He immediately trusts the more human-like of his guides. - 3/27
But, of course, both Magoozla and Cheecaumo want the same thing. They use the same calming tactics; the comfort they offer is nearly identical. So why is Nemo so quick to trust Cheecaumo, but equally as quick to distrust Magoozla? - 4/27
I'm convinced that these two strips, when read together, can reveal a meaningful commentary/instigate a critical conversation about trust and how quickly humankind makes judgements about others based on "sameness". - 5/27
The spatial design of tier 1 is different from the previous four strips. In this strip, it is a single panel (not a triptych), irregularly shaped so as to accommodate the strips title. - 5/27
The circular cut-outs function to create a sense of separation between the Messenger, Cheecaumo, and the slave characters, without in any way disrupting the seemingly never-ending enchanted bridge. - 7/27
The bridge, a very important setting in this strip, is immediately primed as being important. The readers eye traverses the bridge on it's way from left to right as encouraged by the brilliantly placed speech balloons. - 8/27
That the bridge is constantly in flux (both structurally and visually) throughout the strip is also intriguing and plays into the dreamworld/surreal magicscape concepts. Notice how, the design on the bridge is never the same in two panels? - 9/27
There is constant visual transformation happening on the enchanted bridge and so the reader is encouraged to recognize the ways in which that location visually encourages similar transformations in Nemo! - 10/27
His transmutation into a monkey occurs only because Nemo is on the enchanted bridge. That the slave characters are shaking it, thus causing it's instability, is also a direct result of Nemo's presence there. If Nemo wasn't on the bridge, there'd be no reason to shake it. - 11/27
Nemo's transmutation into a monkey is fascinating, not least because of the term Cheecaumo uses: chiquito. Despite my best efforts, I couldn't find any connection between "chiquito" and "monkey"… maybe someone else can fill the gaps here? - 12/27
I do like what McCay does with layout here. While it is more traditional than strips #2 and #3, it still demonstrates subtle experimentation in the regular panel/irregular grid layout rhetoric. - 13/27
Each panel is a rectangular box; equal in angles and form. The irregular grid occurs because the panels of tiers 1 and 4 are not the same height as those in tiers 2 and 3. - 14/27
This spatial design directs the readers eyes to those moments on the page; you can't help but look there at the slightly larger, central panels filled with glorious color and (interesting) a neat perspective shift in panel 9. - 15/27
There is also an interesting funnel effect created by the layout. Tier 2 is four panels, Tier 3 is three, tier 4 is two… The reader might expect the final tier to have one large panel to complete the pattern, but that is simply untenable. - 16/27
Instead, from the moment Nemo becomes the monkey, you are forced into a quicker reading pace by the smaller panels… as the slave characters shift and rock the bridge, and Nemo runs for safety, our reading pace increases to match. - 17/27
It's a brilliant (and successful) attempt to manipulate the readers' expectations in innovative ways. That we abruptly go from hanging onto the edge of the bridge, to sitting up in bed, is another excellent manipulation. - 18/27
With each passing strip, I'm feeling more and more confident that the sameness/link to DotRF in the final panel is a comforting crutch/safety net for McCay... Because he is attempting some (radical) formal innovation, he knows that he has at least one thing that works. - 19/27
A final note about political incorrectness/culturally insensitive language in this strip. For any modern-day reader, the inclusion of "slaves" and Native American pejoratives into the narrative should be viewed as problematic. - 20/27
The uniformity of the the "slave" characters' depiction insinuates that King Morpheus has enslaved an entire population/culture and forced them, like Atlas, to serve by holding up the entryway into Slumberland. Worse is that they are depicted as seemingly content with it. - 21/27
Their inclusion in the narrative might be off-putting enough, but the implication that they are also willing to work for the betterment of and curry favour with their slaver is (personally) detestable. - 22/27
It is also worth noting that this is the first time that Nemo has not been the direct cause of his failure to reach Slumberland. No, in this strip, the blame lies squarely on the "slave" characters for causing the commotion that ultimately wakes him up. - 23/27
Finally, the use of the simile to describe Nemo's scream is both a culturally inappropriate use of the Native American image and the pejorative descriptor. - 24/27
This type of cultural and racial insensitivity will, unfortunately, be a recurring theme throughout much of the strip's existence and will likely be a point of discussion for many of us moving forward. - 25/27
While I recognize the importance of recognizing the works position within the socio-political and historical moment (early 1900s), I believe that it is equally important to challenge, rather than ignore, these problematic elements when discussing them today. - 26/27
This is my reading of "Little Nemo in Slumberland #5". What's yours ? - 27/2
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