Calvin vs. the World


Well, well, well. Another scene in Calvin's bedroom with just Calvin, Hobbes, and Dad. One thing that I immediately noticed about this strip is that the pattern of Hobbes only appearing as a stuffed animal when he's out of Calvin's eye-line is broken. In both the first and third panels we see that while Calvin may not be looking directly at Hobbes, he is at least in his field of view. In addition, in the third panel, we see Calvin is looking directly away from Hobbes, yet Hobbes still appears as a real tiger. It addition, we see Hobbes interacting with someone other than Calvin for the first time, as he calls to Dad after he says goodnight. The line between the two worlds of Calvin's Hobbes and Dad's Hobbes seems to be blurring more. That being said, Dad obviously remains unconvinced, as his facial expression in panel three suggests his tone is probably sarcastic.

We also see here the first glimpse of Hobbes becoming a more developed character, apart from just an extension of the personality of Calvin. Previously, we've seen examples of Hobbes exhibiting many of the same characteristics that Calvin does, but here we see Hobbes' softer side coming through. If we adopt the premise that Hobbes is a construct of Calvin's imagination, we could think of Hobbes as simply another side of Calvin; here shown as the side that desires affection and attention from his father, who always seems too busy to give it. In that way, Hobbes is a sort of defence mechanism for Calvin, who already understands that vulnerability can lead to pain upon rejection, but by compartmentalizing that vulnerability into another entity he protects himself via distance. Calvin can then tell this entity to "go to sleep, sissy", probably something that he's heard said to him before, and feel that he is the tough, brave one who doesn't need comfort. To me, this reeks of the toxic masculinity reinforced by American culture of which rugged individuality is a core tenet. Perhaps Calvin has fallen victim to this even as a young boy, but still has not let go of his kindler, gentler side, expressed in Hobbes. The world around Calvin sees this softer side (embodied by Hobbes) as something Calvin will eventually grow out of, but Calvin obviously hangs on much tighter to this part of himself than others feel he should. Society expects Calvin to conform to their idea of how a young boy should behave, and how he should mature quickly into a man, but Calvin resists, and for that, he is seen as delusional.

I think it's important to remember that as we go through this examination, we can temporarily take a side on the argument of the realness of Hobbes without dismissing the other perspective. This skill is extremely valuable in daily life and conversation, and through this exercise I hope to strengthen my own grasp on it. I think that this is what Bill Watterson intended, and why he provided the constant ambiguity, especially in the first 5 panels of the strip.




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