Characterizing the Spongebob Squarepants Show: Squidward Tentacles and Sandy Cheeks

Two supporting characters known for their extreme personalities are Squidward Tentacles and Sandy Cheeks. They most noticeably reflect their respective representative sin more than any other character.

Squidward Tentacles, Spongebob’s neighbor and co-worker, represents the sin of Wrath. Squidward personifies Wrath’s definition perfectly by spurning the love of his friends and opting for negativity instead. His pessimistic attitude is the drive for a countless number of plots. While Spongebob and Patrick Star attempt to include Squidward in a various array of activities, he never lets himself enjoy the fun he could be having with Spongebob and company. The shows creator, Stephen Hillenburg, lets Squidward shine through as a vindictive wit in an effort show that people can become too uptight and worried about their day to day issues. He is a passionate individual who strives for success in audible and visual art; unfortunately, his passion turns to obsession and eventually leads to his anger.

Sandy Cheeks, a squirrel from Texas, personifies the deadly sin of pride. Sandy is shown to be extremely smart and very passionate about areas ranging from robotics to biology. Hillenburg not only shows her at times as a pompous scientist but as a boastful Texan. The greatest example of her love of Texas comes in the episode “Texas”. Spongebob and Patrick are able to change Sandy’s decision to move back home by stalling her through the mockery of her Texan heritage. Sandy’s entire life is altered by her decision to beat up Spongebob and Patrick because they are mocking her home state. Even though she is extremely smart, Sandy Cheeks cannot stop herself from making rash decisions based on her pride. She shows the audience that while one can be intelligent, that does not mean one is completely immune to pride or any other sin.

Squidward and Sandy blatantly allow their emotions to control their words and sometimes their actions. In order to show the audience what can happen when someone doesn’t control emotions like anger or pride, Stephen Hillenburg created Squidward Tentacles and Sandy Cheeks.

Characterizing The Spongebob Squarepants Show: Mr. Krabs and Plankton

In addition to Patrick Star and Gary, Mr. Krabs and Plankton represent similar deadly sins, Greed and Envy. While both of these sins involve the perpetrator to desire more than what they already have, they differ in that Envy involves coveting someone else’s possessions and Greed involves wanting more while disregarding anything else.

The rivalry of Mr. Eugene Krabs and Sheldon Plankton might seem like a struggle between two different ideas; when in reality, they both desire something similar. In order to portray a literary foil, the characters of Eugene Krabs and Sheldon Plankton are portrayed as total opposites. For instance, Mr. Krabs is large while Plankton is microscopic, Mr. Krabs is red while Plankton is green,  and Mr. Krabs is a hero while Plankton is often portrayed as a villain. Looking at the sins they represent, Greed and Envy, the shows view their vices differently as well. Mr. Krabs is portrayed as a hero of Industry, a great Capitalist. His problematic desire for wealth is almost tolerated within the show. In contrast, Plankton is shown to be an envious competitor, desiring to achieve wealth by cheating the capitalist system. The show and its creator Hillenburg appear to clearly define the roles of these characters and the roles they symbolize in modern society.

A deeper analysis of these characters show a different story. The tension built up by their physical appearance and societal views serves only as misdirection from their true nature, equals. Both Eugene Krabs and Sheldon Plankton are not happy with their current financial status. This is the fundamental building block of their characters, their only difference is that Mr. Krabs achieves success through greed while Plankton attempts to achieve it through stealing other peoples success. Hillenburg attempts to show that neither the Capitalist nor the envious competitor is more guilty or more justified. They are both equally responsible for how they let their sins effect their future decisions.

This sad revelation shows that no matter how powerful a Capitalist becomes, they will never be satisfied. It shows that envy never leads to success because one can never become truly successful off of someone else’s hard work.

Characterizing The Spongebob Squarepants Show: Patrick Star & Gary

Aired on May 1st, 1999, Spongebob Squarepants became a facet of culture still producing new episodes even today.  While Americans have debated the messages of the yellow sponge for over a decade, he has come to hold a special place in the development of youth between the late 1990’s and present day America. Many people, however, do not know that the show’s creator based the seven main characters on the seven deadly sins of the Bible. A brief comparison between the show’s characters and the sins of Sloth, Gluttony, Greed, Envy, Wrath, Pride, and Lust show that Stephen Hillenburg, marine biologist turned animator, intended his show to reflect these deadly vices. More specifically, Patrick Star and Gary the Snail represent two sins often mistaken for the same vice.

Sloth can be defined as the sin of inaction or laziness. Patrick Star, perhaps the most recognizable starfish on the planet, personifies laziness so much as to earn an award for his laziness as seen in the episode, “Big Pink Loser”. He can be best described as a helpful playmate for Spongebob who never really achieves anything without his friends compulsion. Patrick Star provides comic relief, arguably the most humorous character, but at a terrible cost. His inactivity leads to dis-involvement  from education to purpose of life. Even though his character is humorous, the show displays that without drive or action, ones life can reach a dreary stalemate. Thus, Hillenburg challenges his audience to reflect back on themselves, and re-access their own life desires and what one must do to achieve their goals.

The easiest way to personify the overindulgence involved with the sin of Gluttony is in regard to food. Gary, Spongebob’s pet snail, is a simple, yet effective projection of the evil involved with overindulgence. In the episode “Have You Seen This Snail?”, Gary runs away from Spongebob because he forgets to feed him. On his own, Gary finds a new owner he thinks will provide the best home he has ever had. In reality, she is feeding Gary so much food causing him to overlook the signs that she eats snails. He eventually escapes and finds his way back to Spongebob. Gary shows the audience that tunnel vision, whether one is focusing on food or other aspects of life, can cause oneself to overlook important details.

Both Patrick Star and Gary are powerful symbols that remind the cartoon’s audience, whether a child or a parent, to remain vigilant. It reminds them to neither become heavily involved in something to the point where that prevents good judgment, nor to become so detached as to lose a purpose in the world.

Kantianism , Utilitarianism, and Patriotism

While the Patriots may have won the forty-ninth Super Bowl, a question about their integrity still remains.  If the NFL investigation comes back conclusive that the Patriots willfully attempted to deflate the balls in the AFC Conference Championship game against the Colts, ethics offers America two ways to view the crisis. In Kantian ethics, the Patriots are guilty even if they won by thirty-eight points; however, a different result occurs if they are to be judged with Utilitarianism.

The fundamental rules of Kantian ethics are based in the conscious choice before the action, no matter what the outcome of a person’s choices yield. Even if a man loses his leg from frost bite because he jumped in a freezing lake to save a drowning child, and that child dies, the man is still considered heroic. If these ethics are applied to a guilty Patriot franchise, then they should be viewed as cheaters because they desired to cheat. Kantian ethics describes the desire/purpose behind an action as the ethical weight of the action. All that means is even though the Patriots blew out the Colts, they still cheated. In addition to their guilt, they should be punished by the NFL. Following Kantian thought, the Patriots are morally wrong (because cheating is morally wrong). They should be disqualified for cheating if they willfully deflated the footballs.

A different school of thought, Utilitarianism, offers a different view of moral justice. Utilitarianism is best described as the greatest amount of pleasure for the greatest number of people. So in this case, morality is determined by how the action affects the happiness of the world. So if deflating the footballs and winning the game brings about more happiness than not, then deflating the footballs was the right choice by the Patriots. Unfortunately, the number of Patriot fans does not equal the number of Colt fans and other fans that take offense to their alleged actions. So, the actions of the Patriots, if they are found guilty, are morally wrong in this scenario as well.

Ambiguity prevents this debate from being solved. Until the NFL returns with their verdict, a cloud of doubt and ethical ignorance surrounds the American cultural event known as Super Bowl XLIX.

The Super Bowl: America in an Afternoon

While not many aspects of the spectacle known as the Super Bowl can be looked at through objective eyes, one aspect of the event can be. The Super Bowl is one American event that can allow anyone ignorant of American culture to learn everything they need to know about the USA in a few short hours. From the half-time show, to the commercial breaks, and even to the game itself, the Super Bowl captures America in a way little else can.

First, the half-time show showcases the average musical taste of the country, which is fast-paced, mass-produced pop. While these songs are artwork in their own aspect, they are a far cry from the music humanity has listened to over the past centuries. The pop-flashiness of the half-time show and even the songs themselves demonstrate that most Americans lack an appreciation for classical music and a patience to listen to longer songs. The modern teen and even the modern adult does not have the patience to listen to classical music that takes over five minutes to build chords and interest. Even though this is just an aspect of preference, it is important to protect classic works as America evolves and explores new forms of audible art.

In addition to the musical showcase during the half-time show, many Americans claim to love the commercial breaks the best. These commercials showcase the comedic and sometimes empathetic side of culture. The use of both comedy and empathy establishes the modern Super Bowl commercial as a snapshot of varying aspects of American culture; furthermore, they can showcase anything from a parent-child relationship to a celebrity showing themselves in a new light.

The final aspect of the Super Bowl is the game itself. Arguably, the second most celebrated American holiday (Christmas being the first), the Super Bowl has evolved from merely a football championship to a battle of metropolitan cultures; a battle of athletic talent; a battle of melodic, comedic, and empathetic relevance. The game itself adds only to the legacy of the franchises and to the NFL brand. The team that wins showcases their journey to the top and what they have to do to survive sixteen games and a post season.