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The Anti-Hero and The Indifferent Narrator

Posted by AdamT | Filed under Culture, Philosophy

My wife and I sat down with our daughter (2) to enjoy a cartoon.  Our daughter was excited by the potential of watching Caillou, which she had seen months back on PBS.
We were surprised to find that we were commenting on Caillou and his behaviour to such a point that it became a chore to watch the cartoon. The issues we found appear to be prevalent in media today: the anti-hero and the indifferent narrator.
 
The anti-hero:
Caillou, as with a lot of cartoons (which appear to made for adults), is more descriptive than prescriptive in terms of his behaviour. By this I mean the writers seem to relish their portrayal of him as a selfish and self absorbed child. While this may be the norm for kids his age, Caillou is a cartoon and not a child. It seems the irony of depicting a child with a tragic flaw and ignoring the tragic element escapes the writers.
 
The indifferent narrator:
Further reinforcing the notion that Caillou is descriptive (as opposed to prescriptive) is the narrator who interrupts only to state the fact of what has happened. My wife and I did not expect to find a good moral prescription from the narrator; but by merely stating that Caillou is “unhappy that he has to share”, without a note of reproof, the narrator avoids any semblance of a behavioural norm. It is as if the writers see Caillou’s behavior as unavoidable, or at least unaddressable.
 
Perhaps it is not PBS responsibility to provide a moral grounding for children.  Perhaps they think morality to be a cultural preference.  But the least they could do is pragmatically reinforce behaviour that will take the child farther in life than tantrums and selfishness.

Tags: anti-hero, Caillou, PBS Cartoon