Everything I Know About Being a Man I Learned From Cartoons

Animated characters taught me to listen, indulge, adventure, laugh, and stand up for what’s right.

A great article in Feministing this week by Jess Victoria Carillo—“2-D Feminism or How Almost Everything I Knew About Being a Feminist I Learned From Cartoons”—takes a look at important girls and ’90s cartoons that blazed a trail for women in the 2-D world. The list, which includes characters from As Told by Ginger, Daria, Josie and the Pussycats, and The Simpsons, inspired me to reflect on male cartoon characters that set positive examples for male viewers like me. I grew up in the Nickelodeon generation, so some of the Nicktoons jumped right out at me, but a few other cartoon characters definitely were instrumental in shaping my value set. Check it out, and tell us who inspired you, too.

Tommy Pickles was the courageous leader of the Rugrats crew, unwilling to accept a life confined to the playpen, daring enough to whip out his plastic screwdriver, break open the lock, and go where no 1-year-old had gone before. He was the Alpha Baby, prone to boldly announcing “A baby’s gotta do what a baby’s gotta do.” And his bravery was infectious—despite being surrounded by more fearful friends, like Phil, Lil, and the biggest scaredy-cat, Chuckie, Tommy was able to inspire almost anyone to overcome their own fears and insecurities. He helped Chuckie conquer the “potty,” he dared his sociopath cousin Angelica to do the right thing by admitting that she broke his beloved clown lamp in “The Trial,” and he encouraged everyone to go after their dreams of meeting Reptar the dinosaur. What’s more, he was damn near incorruptible; when Angelica tried to coax him into “going bad” after his mother threw out his favorite teddy bear, Tommy found that he just didn’t have it in him. Being bad was just too hard.

Lesson: Don’t be afraid to venture into unexplored territory—do it with an open mind and a positive spirit.

(Photo mpattersonx5)

Arnold from Hey Arnold! was always one of my favorite cartoon characters, an intuitive and calm fourth grader who seemed to have all of the answers inside that football-shaped head of his. Even as the world around him spun more and more out of control, Arnold, who lived in the fictional metropolis of Hillwood, was a grounded presence. He was the go-to therapist of his friends, family and tenants of his grandparents’ apartment building. He listened to Gerald’s little sister when she lost all of the Chocolate Turtles she was supposed to sell. He listened to Harold, a bully who acted out when he was teased by other kids for his weight. He listened to Stoop Kid when he was afraid to leave his stoop. He even listened to Helga, the girl who incessantly bullied him despite her secret crush on the guy. Arnold was also an important social activist in his city, rallying other community members to end a teacher’s strike and support the preservation of an historic theater scheduled for demolition. Hey Arnold! wasn’t messing around about teaching kids societal values, and Arnold himself was a huge part of that.

Lesson: Have a strong sense of compassion and good listening skills.

(Photo zalbhe27)

Winnie the Pooh was the perpetually good friend, especially in The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. His life should have been so simple, yet he always found a way to ensure that it would be full of mishaps, whether he was getting nervous about the Heffalumps (oh, bother) or finding himself with his ass stuck in the window of a rabbit hole. Despite these misadventures, Pooh was always chill, ready to take it easy and not get himself too worked up. His aloofness served as a foil to his friends, like the sad sack of donkey that was Eeyore, the cracked-out Tigger, or the worrisome Piglet. He balanced out the other characters’ craziness and went out of his way to be a good friend, like in an early episode called “Friend, in Deed,” when Pooh had eaten too much of Rabbit’s honey. When Rabbit called Pooh out for it (as Rabbit always seemed to do), Pooh went on a beehive hunt to pay Rabbit back for his generosity.

Lesson: Relax! Appreciate your free time, and take a few minutes (or hours) every day to indulge in what you love—whether that’s honey or bee chasing or something else entirely.

(Photo ortiz09)

You may hate Spongebob from Spongebob Squarepants for his obnoxious laugh or idiotic naïveté. But you can’t argue with the fact that, as one of the longest running kids’ cartoons on the air (he premiered way back in 1999), he’s made quite a splash. His life in Bikini Bottom is pretty simple, and that’s the way he likes it. Why get caught up in typical human messes or dramas when you can let people’s hatred, like that of Squidward or Plankton, roll off your back? This optimism shines through Spongebob’s porous body, demonstrated in his years-long commitment to earning his boating license or the squeaky-clean fun he gets out of jellyfishing. Spongebob’s also one of the most loyal employees there is. As a fry cook for the Krusty Krab, he shows up each day ecstatic to do his job, and he wouldn’t even think about sacrificing the top-secret formula for the ever-popular Krabby Patty, despite a corrupt and money-hungry boss. He’s not perfect, and his stupidity is mind-numbing at times, but overall, Spongebob’s got a good heart and that’s what counts.

Lesson: Optimism is key, and carefree is the way to be.

(Photo DoubleA2000)

T.J. Detweiler was the coolest kid on the playground in Recess. The ringleader of the elementary-school-aged brat pack—which included Vince, Spinelli, Gretchen, Gus, and Mikey—T.J. showed natural leadership skills. When he wasn’t coordinating the crew (or, at other times, the entire school) in his newest conceived prank against the teachers of the villainish Ms. Finster, he was rallying the crew to stand up for their rights as students and kids. In episodes like “The Box,” he acted as a martyr for his fellow students, enduring unfair playground punishments so that other kids didn’t have to. And in other episodes, like “Principal for a Day,” we got to see that getting revenge doesn’t always equate to achieving justice. As a result of his prime leadership skills, T.J. was one of the most popular kids in school, but in one episode, we saw that at least one kid didn’t like him—and when T.J. found out, he worked day and night to convince the kid to change his mind. Being well-liked caused a problem for T.J. more than once—most memorably when the other five members of the gang all wrote about T.J. when they had to write a report on their best friend—but in the end, he was able to reconcile it all. There’s no harm, he realized, in having in more than one best friend, as long as you could balance them and make sure they knew how much you reciprocated their loyalty.

Lesson: Speak up for what’s right—even if it gets you hurt. And striving to be well-liked isn’t wrong as long as you don’t compromise your own personal values set in the process.

(Photo fanpop.com)

So, who did I miss? Or which characters were fundamental to your childhood formulation of morals and values?

(Main photo soyunárbol)