"Little Nemo in Slumberland" dated January 06, 1907:
Transcript of Tweets by @LittleNemo1905 (JULY 31, 2020):
There is a lot jammed into this pretty formally simplistic strip! Some of it is a repetition of techniques that we saw before the Christmas strip, but there are some new things worth noting too. - 1/30
First, I'll point out that, again, the Taschen edition has word balloons without text in them (Nemo's balloons in panel 5 and 7: - 2/30 [INSERT IMAGE]
CSL has "Gee Whiz" (panel 5) and "Moses" (panel 7) inserted into the balloons… I think I've decided that I will reach out to Alexander Braun about this… it would be fascinating to see what he has to say about these decisions… - 3/30
In the very first panel, we get a big "oops!" that somehow wasn't caught before publication; Flip asks about "little 1906" when he should have asked about "little 1907". - 4/30
As you may recall, we read yesterday about old 1906 who walked himself into lonely exile when the new year (1907) was brought to the Princess and Nemo at the end of the world. - 5/30
It's a simple little guffaw, but one I was really baffled by momentarily… I wondered if maybe there was more to it, but alas, I think I'll simply chalk it up to Flip misspeaking. - 6/30
Now, his intention to bring a nice baby lamb to the new year is a really generous one. To me, this demonstrates Flip trying to turn over a new leaf. - 7/30
After being chastised for the speed at which he approached the new year in the previous strip, he is taking a different approach here, bringing it a gift instead! - 8/30
What's also interesting is that we finally have a definitive name for Granny Hag's young disguise; Mary! A bit on the nose with her bringing a lamb and all, but I've been calling her Rose onacounta she brought a rose to Flip earlier which is no less obvious so… - 9/30
Either way, the gift here not only makes for nice continuity from the #HolidayStrip that we read last week, but it also sets up (another) transformation trick. - 10/30
By panel 2, the meek little lamb has begun the transformation into a mighty roaring lion! As Flip asks the Princess and Nemo why they aren't more talkative with young Mary, we (and presumably the Princess and Nemo) see the lion appear! - 11/30
When Flip finally does realize the lion is there he is only momentarily flustered… his almost immediate response of "Oh! You cannot scare me! Let me study this a minute" is one that actually elicited an audible chuckle out of me. - 12/30
Flip's courageous attitude doesn't leave him for the entirety of the strip. He goes from trying to wake the "guard" (we'll get to him in a minute) to pulling his gun and aiming for the lion himself! - 13/30
Unsurprisingly, Flip ends up on the butt end of the joke when he pulls the trigger and the gun backfires a stream of ink into his face. At this point, Nemo comments that an ink gun is a "funny gun for a guard to carry", which caused me to think more deeply about it... - 14/30
One reading of this moment (some would say the more innocent/naïve reading) might suggest that Granny Hag has transformed the gun prior to Flip pulling the trigger (unbeknownst to us; no visual evidence supports this reading), hence the ink backfire! - 15/30
And though the Hag's intervention would certainly answer Nemo's puzzlement about the gun, there is another far less-innocuous reading; the guard is a zip coon caricature. - 16/30
At the height of it's use pre-emancipation, the zip coon caricature mocked the notion of racial equality with his buffoonish attempts to integrate into white culture. The caricature served as "proof of blacks ludicrous failure to adapt to freedom" (Ethnic Notions, 1987). - 17/30 [INSERT IMAGE]
Now, let us consider the guard of this strip. - 18/30
He is the first black Slumberlandian that we have seen NOT involved directly in animal care of some sort; so far we've seen them as mahouts (elephant riders) or tamers (tigers). - 19/30
This person though would seem to be the guard left on duty to protect the sleeping new year (or at least that is the insinuation provided in panel 1). This should be considered a great honour and an important task… yet the guard is sleeping for the majority of the strip. - 20/30
Furthermore, while his clothing is somewhat representative of the Slumberlandian fashion that we've seen others in, there is something ridiculous to it, as well… like the guard is trying to harm to imitate it. In fact, it reminds me of the April Fool's attire. - 21/30 [INSERT IMAGE]
Taken together, we have a physically stereotypical black character, filling a traditionally white role, trying to fit in, but failing to not only dress as the culture expects but also perform the job adequately… - 22/30
Couple this with the cherry on top, his carrying a gag weapon instead of a real one, and you have a zip coon in Slumberland… - 23/30
While we've seen many overt stereotypes in the #LittleNemo series so far, I feel as though this caricature is so much more hurtful and distasteful… the racism that is espouses was something that may have, even unconsciously, fueled prejudice in the hearts of children. - 24/30
This strip is difficult to read today. The zip coon guard character indirectly suggests to young readers that black folks don't belong in Slumberland and, by extension, in white society… a notion that should be found to be personally detestable by all who read it today. - 25/30
Though my reading of the zip coon caricature in the guard is only one reading of this strip, the fact that it can be read this way means that it was likely being recognized (even if only indirectly) by at least a few children reading in 1907. - 26/30
Certainly, we can recognize that this type of racism was not uncommon in early 20th century America, and I know these issues will come up again and again and again with #LittleNemo, but I find this one particularly egregious. - 27/30
As we strive to be allies in the fight against racism of all kinds, recognizing these sorts of hidden biases and challenging them becomes ever more important. As I've said before, I will continue to do this throughout my reading of #LittleNemo. - 28/30
Ultimately, this strip is one that I think should be more frequently brought up when discussing #LittleNemo, not as an example of McCay's brilliance, but as a way to challenge early 20th century racism and discuss how hurtful those caricatures could/can be. - 29/30
This is my reading of "Little Nemo in Slumberland" #65. What's yours? - 30/30