Whilst some may look down on cartoons as being “for
children”, they’re values and ideals cannot be ignored and can often have a
significant impact on a developing child. They are made very deliberately to
instil ideas and thoughts in young people. In this short essay, we will look at
a few examples from 1960s America and what values they chose to represent. We
will be looking at The Flinstones (1960
- 1966), The Jetsons (1962 – 1963) and Scooby
Doo (1969 – 1970).
Firstly,
we will look at how each of these represents family life. Both The Flinstones and The Jetsons represent what is known as a nuclear family. They both
have a mother and a father, and both have children, with the Jetsons having a
boy and a girl and the Flinstones only having a young girl. Both families even
have a pet, another feature of a typical ‘American’ household. They promote the
importance of family and togetherness, contrasting the era of ‘free love’ that
they come from with a message of a more ‘settled down’ approach. Both wives are
homemakers whilst both husbands are the breadwinners, another typical feature
of nuclear households. The difference in these examples lies in Scooby Doo.
Scooby Doo takes a very different approach than these two, with the ‘family’
being a group of young adults instead, who work together as essentially private
detectives. Where the two former cartoons promoted traditional family values,
the other promotes a working youth and cooperation outside of family, although
they too do have a pet.
Secondly,
we will look at how Scooby Doo represents hippie culture. There are many
typical hippie trends viewable in Scooby Doo, such as their psychedelically painted
surfer van or Fred and Daphne’s typically hippie outfits. Some would argue that
it is implied that Shaggy is a typical ‘stoner’, owing to his constant case of ‘the
munchies’. Most importantly however is that the show represents a kind of
counter culture to everyday American life. These youths are self-employed and
travel all over the country looking for work as private detectives. Whilst this
may not seem like a realistic representation of counter-culture of the time, it’s
actually not far from what hippies often did. They would often travel the
country, especially to anti-war protests, and often in vans such as the one
depicted in Scooby Doo.
Lastly,
we will look at how The Jetsons represents the future and how that links to the
space race that was ongoing in the United States. The Jetsons was set in 2062
and had high hopes for the future. The family was assisted by a robotic maid,
for instance, and their house was located far above the ground. George Jetson
drives a flying car to work, where he only must work for two hours day, two
days a week. The future was envisioned as luxurious and carefree for all. This is
indicative of this era, with many forms of media depicting a similar future for
Earth. Its hopeful and positive message is received throughout, displaying its
values in the setting as well as the content.
To
conclude, it is obvious that cartoons hold more than just their humour, but the
message can be somewhat confused in such a tumultuous era such as the 1960s.
Some wish to keep things as they once were, such as The Flinstones with its
nuclear family and traditional roles. Some seek to represent the once
disenfranchised youth with their new personal power like in Scooby Doo. Others
just want to dream and glimpse at the future and what wonders it will hold,
just like in The Jetsons. But all of them make us smile despite any ulterior
meaning.
Jack Monk
Bibliography:
TV Shows:
- · The Flinstones (1960 – 1966, Hanna-Barbera Productions)
- · Scooby Doo (1969 – 1970, Hanna-Barbera Productions)
- · The Jetsons (1962 – 1963, Hanna-Barbera Productions)
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