WP2 Pre-writing 2

"Calvin and Hobbes" is a comic strip written by Bill Watterson. It ran from 1985 to 1995 as a newspaper comic, and now is available in several books. It is about a boy, Calvin, and his tiger, Hobbes and their adventures.

Calvin is named after John Calvin, and Hobbes is named after Thomas Hobbes. Hobbes the tiger, like Hobbes the philosopher, tends to be overly-realistic and pessimistic about human nature and is usually the mature voice of reason in the strip. Calvin is rambunctious and imaginative, and a bit philosophical and unreasonable at times.

When it is just Calvin and Hobbes shown in a panel, Hobbes is shown as an actual tiger. He can move and talk, and is Calvin's best friend. They do pretty much everything together because Calvin doesn't have a lot of human friends. When anybody else is in the panel with them, Hobbes is shown as a stuffed tiger. This makes you wonder what Hobbes really is. Is he really just part of Calvin's imagination? Often, the strip will show Hobbes attacking Calvin, and when Calvin's mom comes, she can see Calvin all beat up and wonders how Calvin could do that to himself. Another thing that makes Hobbes seem real is in one series, Hobbes sends Calvin several secret letters through the post office. Calvin's mom gives him the letters, and then later asks why he sends himself mail because she knew the letters were coming from their house.

Calvin is meant to be a six-year-old, but he also has a lot of adult tendencies, like using big words and criticizing politics, religion, society, and just about everything else. He is shown to be a typical kid when he does things like going to school, getting stuck with a babysitter, and playing with Hobbes, his tiger.

I think Calvin is a good example of people's inner child because he has both adult and kid-like characteristics, which usually is very funny. Because of this, a lot of people can relate to the strip, and it is very popular. A comic is a good medium for showing the idea of everyone's inner child because it is short, entertaining, and available to a lot of people. By making "Calvin and Hobbes" a comic strip, it also adds to the childishness of it. Kids read comics, but it is also geared towards adults. The medium makes it appeal to a broader audience and gives it a more universal appeal.