TGG, Children’s TV, & The Fun of Analysis

So, while writing paper 1, I’ve realized there’s a sub-topic I am interested in going more into depth with that doesn’t quite fit in the paper itself: Media analysis as a hobby! I spend a frankly absurd amount of my time analyzing children’s television shows and I have an absolute blast doing it. I actually often get too absorbed and end up ignoring the analyses I need to do for class in favor of messaging my friends about the latest narrative parallels I’ve spotted.

This topic came up because my argument for TGG’s relevance in the 21st century has to do with all the ways it can be interpreted and reinterpreted. Which is to say, what makes TGG interesting to people is that they can come up with a meaning for it and back that meaning up, even if it’s not what Fitzgerald intended for the reading to be. Which got me thinking about how fun it is to do this for the things I love, which got me thinking about encouraging other people to pursue analysis outside of an academic setting. TLDR: I think everyone should take silly things too seriously just to exercise their brains, and TGG is a potential gateway for this. (And- to be completely real with you- I just love talking about my shows.)

Which brings me to this: The similarity between The Great Gatsby and Children’s TV (Particularly Disney JR). Which sounds like an insane comparison to make, I know, but stick with me here. One of the points in my paper is that TGG is really obvious with what its characters represent (Myrtle being the cross-section of being working class and a woman, Gatsby being new-money wealthy, Tom being old-money wealthy, etc.) They’re pretty much entirely centered around their social status in a way that almost makes them caricatures. Fitzgerald does this carefully and intentionally, but that doesn’t stop it from hearkening back to the clear-set roles characters take on in Disney Jr. shows. You have your heroes, the supporting cast, your villains…*

(*To be clear, here, I am NOT saying Gatsby is clear in a heroes/villains dynamic. It’s not, and it shouldn’t be! I am comparing the purpose of the social classes in Gatsby to the purpose of morality in Disney.)

They are not often expected to break out of these roles- which often makes them fall flat as characters that do not develop. Which then makes me think of Nick’s perception of his fellow cast- He judges first, and then sticks by those judgements until the end.

“It was one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it,” – Nick’s first impression of Gatsby (after finding out that it IS Gatsby) / “and then his face broke into that radiant and understanding smile, as if we’d been in ecstatic cahoots on that fact all the time.” – Just a bit before Gatsby dies. This is just one of the clearer examples I could find- in general Nick sticks with what he decides on a first impression. (Very Scorpio of him, haha!)

What I’m trying to get at here, though, is that TGG is easy to play with in this way- because the characters are simple (in terms of their Purpose) it is easy to imagine what makes them this way- almost anything goes! This is a huge part of what makes analysis of children’s shows so fun. It’s modular, somehow? Like, easy to come up with more in your mind. If you’re familiar with the term- I’m saying TGG is like headcanon heaven. I think that’s why it’s fun! There’s so much we don’t see. Instead of taking it and leaving it at face value, you are encouraged as a reader to wonder about what goes on with these characters while they aren’t being shown to us. You are encouraged to think about the story beyond its beginning or end. TGG wants you to play around with it.

I think applying this sort of curiosity to things that interest you outside of class is really good for you. It’s fantastic to think. My thing happens to be shows for babies. I just adore peeling back that clearly defined surface and seeing the lines blur. Taking these roles of villain and hero and ignoring them for a moment- looking at the characters intentions with the context the writers intentions. They have to work within stricter guidelines because networks are so nervous about “confusing” kids with complex stories, but artists find a way to sneak their messages through the cracks. I like to try to find those messages. (Which- I’ve already gone on too long- but the idea that complex stories don’t appeal to children is total BS. Talking down to your audience is the worst thing you could do. FSF seems to actually want to engage with his audience using TGG- and I find that admirable.)