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Calvin (Calvin and Hobbes)
Encyclopedia
Calvin is a fictional character
, and one of the two principal characters in the comic strip
Calvin and Hobbes
by Bill Watterson
. Calvin demonstrates a level of wisdom, vocabulary and humor unusual for a six year-old boy. However, in many ways he is typical for his age: he hates baths, fears and hates his babysitter, detests going to school, frequently disobeys his parents, and is lazy and selfish. Calvin is also creative, and frequently loses himself in various fantastical worlds of his own imagining. On the rare occasions on which he applies himself, Calvin's projects in school are very well received, to his confusion or indifference. He shows little interest or success in interacting with any "real" characters, choosing instead to spend the majority of his time with Hobbes
, with whom he frequently embarks on imaginary adventures, debates philosophical issues, plots various pranks against girls, and fights. As of July 2011, he is 11 years old.
Calvin appeared in almost every Calvin and Hobbes
strip printed and published.
John Calvin
, Calvin is impulsive, insubordinate, imaginative, intelligent, hypocritical, energetic, curious, bratty, rambunctious, obnoxious, selfish, and short-tempered.
Calvin is extremely intelligent and verbose, with an immense imagination that usually manifests itself in apparent physical existence. He despises school as an institution, directly criticizing teaching methods and enforced conformity. He often delivers sarcastic responses to dull fact-oriented questions on tests. Calvin consistently receives bad grades, simply because the subjects do not interest him enough for him to work at them. Occasionally, Calvin will receive excellent grades for a project he truly was interested in, such as dinosaurs. Calvin has a wide vocabulary
and an advanced sense of irony
. His grapples with philosophical
quandaries are explored most elaborately during hazardous sled and wagon rides, often visual metaphors for the point of discourse which are usually cut short by a crash, banal distraction, mischievous urge, or sarcastic retort from one of his parents.
Calvin's precocious vocabulary, imagination and curiosity frequently clash with his refusal to learn things he does not want to—from teachers, parents or the lessons that emerge from his follies. He does, however, enjoy learning by choice, and has a wide knowledge of dinosaurs. When his father asks why his enjoyment of learning is not reflected in his school performance, Calvin replies, "we don't read about dinosaurs". He frequently daydreams in class, imagining it variously as a prison, an alien planet, or the setting of a space battle, with the characters of Miss Wormwood or other students appearing as antagonistic aliens.
Rather than seek real help, Calvin usually defers to Hobbes, who despite his regal and wise demeanor shares Calvin's penchant for creative stupidity. They are frequently depicted as partners in mischief, and rarely take away the correct lesson when their schemes backfire; as Hobbes puts it, "Live and don't learn, that's us!" Despite their frequent fights, some less playful than others, Calvin considers Hobbes the most intelligent creature in his life and rarely perceives his 'help' as misguided or deceitful.
Calvin sometimes displays antisocial tendencies, once wishing he were dead (only to add he really wished that everyone else was dead), and showing reluctance to participate in group activities or join organizations, frequently disrupting them when forced to participate anyway. His fantasies also revolve around this and they may frequently consist of people he knows or masses of people getting killed; such as a pack of Deinonychus
attacking a school (by eating Susie Derkins first) or Calvin flying an F-15 fighter jet and launching missiles into his school, destroying it and leaving a smoking crater (only to show great disappointment when he knows its just fantasy). Although early in the strip's run Calvin was depicted as a Cub Scout
, this did not recur. He says to Susie that he did not sign up for recess baseball
because he dislikes organized sports, and later creates Calvinball as its antithesis, the only permanent rule being that it can never be played the same way twice.
Although frequently depicted as selfish, Calvin does exhibit a deeply caring side, with several strips dedicated to his attempts at caring for an injured baby raccoon
, his heavy sadness following its death, and his subsequent curiosity over life and death. He similarly mourns a bird which died after flying into a window. After catching a butterfly he lets it go after Hobbes remarks "if people could put rainbows in zoos, they would." Conversely, he decries birds' inability to write memoir
s, and often tries to belittle Hobbes for being a tiger, yet just as often remarks on the pettiness of humans and envies the quiet dignity of animal life.
In a reference to John Calvin's philosophies on predestination, many strips depict Calvin causing trouble or being disobedient as a result of imaginary events that are forcing him to act a certain way. Calvin frequently claims his disruptive behaviors are out of his control, remarking to Hobbes that "life is a lot more fun when you're not responsible for your actions."
On several occasions, Calvin has appeared as either a larger or a smaller version of himself, wreaking havoc as a T-Rex, or crawling across a book page as "Calvin, the human insect." More frequently, he imagines himself as a different creature altogether, in a scenario that parallels his present situation: one strip depicts him imagining himself as Godzilla
battling another monster (his mother) while taking a bath.
The term has since become television jargon
for any unexplained incident that is mentioned on-screen.
, while being good will give me delayed and unassured gratification
." On Christmas morning, he usually wakes his parents up extremely early (5:00 for example) so that he can open his gifts, much to his father's disgust.
and philosopher John Calvin
. The namesake is known for his belief in predestination, which the character alludes to and even tends to believe in himself. This is opposed to the stuffed tiger's
governing philosophy of materialism and poor outlook on life and human nature. Thus, in other words, young Calvin is a, albeit elementary, Calvinist, and the tiger a Hobbesist
, similarly.
The French
philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau
was born in Geneva
(under Calvinist rule) and wrote The social contract (inspired by Thomas Hobbes
). His book Émile
is about the upbringing of a young boy and the role of freedom and imagination in his development.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
, and one of the two principal characters in the comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
Calvin and Hobbes
Calvin and Hobbes
Calvin and Hobbes is a syndicated daily comic strip that was written and illustrated by American cartoonist Bill Watterson, and syndicated from November 18, 1985, to December 31, 1995. It follows the humorous antics of Calvin, a precocious and adventurous six-year-old boy, and Hobbes, his...
by Bill Watterson
Bill Watterson
William Boyd Watterson II , known as Bill Watterson, is an American cartoonist and the author of the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes...
. Calvin demonstrates a level of wisdom, vocabulary and humor unusual for a six year-old boy. However, in many ways he is typical for his age: he hates baths, fears and hates his babysitter, detests going to school, frequently disobeys his parents, and is lazy and selfish. Calvin is also creative, and frequently loses himself in various fantastical worlds of his own imagining. On the rare occasions on which he applies himself, Calvin's projects in school are very well received, to his confusion or indifference. He shows little interest or success in interacting with any "real" characters, choosing instead to spend the majority of his time with Hobbes
Hobbes (Calvin and Hobbes)
Hobbes is a character in the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson. He is Calvin's stuffed tiger, and is depicted with two distinct identities.-Hobbes Personality:...
, with whom he frequently embarks on imaginary adventures, debates philosophical issues, plots various pranks against girls, and fights. As of July 2011, he is 11 years old.
Calvin appeared in almost every Calvin and Hobbes
Calvin and Hobbes
Calvin and Hobbes is a syndicated daily comic strip that was written and illustrated by American cartoonist Bill Watterson, and syndicated from November 18, 1985, to December 31, 1995. It follows the humorous antics of Calvin, a precocious and adventurous six-year-old boy, and Hobbes, his...
strip printed and published.
Personality
Named after 16th Century theologianTheology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
John Calvin
John Calvin
John Calvin was an influential French theologian and pastor during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism. Originally trained as a humanist lawyer, he broke from the Roman Catholic Church around 1530...
, Calvin is impulsive, insubordinate, imaginative, intelligent, hypocritical, energetic, curious, bratty, rambunctious, obnoxious, selfish, and short-tempered.
Calvin is extremely intelligent and verbose, with an immense imagination that usually manifests itself in apparent physical existence. He despises school as an institution, directly criticizing teaching methods and enforced conformity. He often delivers sarcastic responses to dull fact-oriented questions on tests. Calvin consistently receives bad grades, simply because the subjects do not interest him enough for him to work at them. Occasionally, Calvin will receive excellent grades for a project he truly was interested in, such as dinosaurs. Calvin has a wide vocabulary
Vocabulary
A person's vocabulary is the set of words within a language that are familiar to that person. A vocabulary usually develops with age, and serves as a useful and fundamental tool for communication and acquiring knowledge...
and an advanced sense of irony
Irony
Irony is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or situation in which there is a sharp incongruity or discordance that goes beyond the simple and evident intention of words or actions...
. His grapples with philosophical
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
quandaries are explored most elaborately during hazardous sled and wagon rides, often visual metaphors for the point of discourse which are usually cut short by a crash, banal distraction, mischievous urge, or sarcastic retort from one of his parents.
Calvin's precocious vocabulary, imagination and curiosity frequently clash with his refusal to learn things he does not want to—from teachers, parents or the lessons that emerge from his follies. He does, however, enjoy learning by choice, and has a wide knowledge of dinosaurs. When his father asks why his enjoyment of learning is not reflected in his school performance, Calvin replies, "we don't read about dinosaurs". He frequently daydreams in class, imagining it variously as a prison, an alien planet, or the setting of a space battle, with the characters of Miss Wormwood or other students appearing as antagonistic aliens.
Rather than seek real help, Calvin usually defers to Hobbes, who despite his regal and wise demeanor shares Calvin's penchant for creative stupidity. They are frequently depicted as partners in mischief, and rarely take away the correct lesson when their schemes backfire; as Hobbes puts it, "Live and don't learn, that's us!" Despite their frequent fights, some less playful than others, Calvin considers Hobbes the most intelligent creature in his life and rarely perceives his 'help' as misguided or deceitful.
Calvin sometimes displays antisocial tendencies, once wishing he were dead (only to add he really wished that everyone else was dead), and showing reluctance to participate in group activities or join organizations, frequently disrupting them when forced to participate anyway. His fantasies also revolve around this and they may frequently consist of people he knows or masses of people getting killed; such as a pack of Deinonychus
Deinonychus
Deinonychus was a genus of carnivorous dromaeosaurid dinosaur. There is one described species, Deinonychus antirrhopus. This 3.4 meter long dinosaur lived during the early Cretaceous Period, about 115–108 million years ago . Fossils have been recovered from the U.S...
attacking a school (by eating Susie Derkins first) or Calvin flying an F-15 fighter jet and launching missiles into his school, destroying it and leaving a smoking crater (only to show great disappointment when he knows its just fantasy). Although early in the strip's run Calvin was depicted as a Cub Scout
Cub Scout
A Cub Scout is a member of the section of the worldwide Scouting movement for young persons, mainly boys normally aged about 7 to 11. In some countries they are known by their original name of Wolf Cubs and are often referred to simply as Cubs. The movement is often referred to simply as Cubbing...
, this did not recur. He says to Susie that he did not sign up for recess baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
because he dislikes organized sports, and later creates Calvinball as its antithesis, the only permanent rule being that it can never be played the same way twice.
Although frequently depicted as selfish, Calvin does exhibit a deeply caring side, with several strips dedicated to his attempts at caring for an injured baby raccoon
Raccoon
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
, his heavy sadness following its death, and his subsequent curiosity over life and death. He similarly mourns a bird which died after flying into a window. After catching a butterfly he lets it go after Hobbes remarks "if people could put rainbows in zoos, they would." Conversely, he decries birds' inability to write memoir
Memoir
A memoir , is a literary genre, forming a subclass of autobiography – although the terms 'memoir' and 'autobiography' are almost interchangeable. Memoir is autobiographical writing, but not all autobiographical writing follows the criteria for memoir set out below...
s, and often tries to belittle Hobbes for being a tiger, yet just as often remarks on the pettiness of humans and envies the quiet dignity of animal life.
In a reference to John Calvin's philosophies on predestination, many strips depict Calvin causing trouble or being disobedient as a result of imaginary events that are forcing him to act a certain way. Calvin frequently claims his disruptive behaviors are out of his control, remarking to Hobbes that "life is a lot more fun when you're not responsible for your actions."
Calvin's alter-egos
Calvin frequently imagines himself as other human characters with super powers, usually to avoid difficult situations (like school tests). His alter egos are: Stupendous Man, Tracer Bullet, and Spaceman Spiff. Stupendous Man is when Calvin puts on a mask and cape and pretends to have super powers. Tracer Bullet is when Calvin is a private eye and takes "cases," usually from his Mom or teacher. As Spaceman Spiff, Calvin frequently crashes his spacecraft and is left on alien planets.On several occasions, Calvin has appeared as either a larger or a smaller version of himself, wreaking havoc as a T-Rex, or crawling across a book page as "Calvin, the human insect." More frequently, he imagines himself as a different creature altogether, in a scenario that parallels his present situation: one strip depicts him imagining himself as Godzilla
Godzilla
is a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
battling another monster (his mother) while taking a bath.
Inventions
During his imaginative flights of fancy Calvin occasionally creates machines from a cardboard box to facilitate his plans, the use of which almost always backfires. Their reality is similar to Hobbes, as in, it is never fully confirmed if they somehow actually work, or if it's simply Calvin's imagination. These are:- Transmogrifier: An upturned cardboard box with a dial on one side, which morphs the occupant into whatever the dial is set to, usually some sort of animal. On one occasion, Calvin morphs into an elephant in order to memorize his homework.
- Transmogrifier Gun: a toy gun that transforms the target into whatever the shooter is thinking of, usually an animal of some sort, although the effects are only temporary. Calvin once zapped himself and Hobbes with this invention multiple times, causing them to transform into many different things. This resulted in Calvin turning into an owl, and he couldn't turn back because after that the transmogrifier gun ran out of ammo. It wore off the next day, much to his disappointment, because he then had to go to school. It also saved him from an early death by falling from the clouds (due to clinging to a helium balloon). Calvin transformed himself into a light particle, then "zipped back here to his house instantaneously" for dinner, then remarks "If I knew we were having this for dinner, I wouldn't have hurried."
- Duplicator: A cardboard box, laid sideways, which clones the occupant. The sole use of this machine resulted in multiple cloneHuman cloningHuman cloning is the creation of a genetically identical copy of a human. It does not usually refer to monozygotic multiple births nor the reproduction of human cells or tissue. The ethics of cloning is an extremely controversial issue...
s of Calvin, all of whom caused additional trouble and left him to take the blame.
- Ethicator: This is the original duplicator, but with an "ethicator" added (an arrow that points to either "Good" or "Evil") that creates a "good" or "evil" duplicate of the occupant.
- Time Machine: An open-topped cardboard box, which Calvin uses to travel forwards or backwards in time. Calvin's first attempt to travel to the future is foiled when he points the box the wrong way, resulting in a journey into the past.
- Cerebral Enhance-o-Tron: A colanderColanderA colander is a bowl-shaped kitchen utensil with holes in it used for draining food such as pasta or rice.The perforated nature of the colander allows liquid to drain through while retaining the solids inside...
, worn on one's head, attached by three strings (input, output, and ground) to a cardboard box. It makes the wearer temporarily super-intelligent, but also makes their head larger.
The Noodle Incident
The Noodle Incident is a running gag about an event at school in which Calvin was involved in the past. Whenever a character mentions it to Calvin, he immediately gets very defensive about it. The June 10, 1989 strip hinted that worms were involved. The incident itself is never shown or explained, although various allusions appear throughout the strip.The term has since become television jargon
Jargon
Jargon is terminology which is especially defined in relationship to a specific activity, profession, group, or event. The philosophe Condillac observed in 1782 that "Every science requires a special language because every science has its own ideas." As a rationalist member of the Enlightenment he...
for any unexplained incident that is mentioned on-screen.
Christmas
Calvin always experiences internal struggles during the Christmas season, trying to decide whether he should try to be well-behaved to get more "loot", whether his bad behavior during the year will negate any efforts he makes, or whether the presents are even worth being good; he remarks in one strip that "throwing these snowballs will give me instant and assured gratificationImpulsivity
Impulsivity is a personality trait characterized by the inclination of an individual to initiate behavior without adequate forethought as to the consequences of their actions, acting on the spur of the moment. Eysenck and Eysenck related impulsivity to risk-taking, lack of planning, and making up...
, while being good will give me delayed and unassured gratification
Deferred gratification
Deferred gratification and delayed gratification denote a person’s ability to wait in order to obtain something that he or she wants. This intellectual attribute is also called impulse control, will power, self control, and “low” time preference, in economics...
." On Christmas morning, he usually wakes his parents up extremely early (5:00 for example) so that he can open his gifts, much to his father's disgust.
Philosophical reference
Calvin is named after 16th Century theologianCalvinism
Calvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
and philosopher John Calvin
John Calvin
John Calvin was an influential French theologian and pastor during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism. Originally trained as a humanist lawyer, he broke from the Roman Catholic Church around 1530...
. The namesake is known for his belief in predestination, which the character alludes to and even tends to believe in himself. This is opposed to the stuffed tiger's
Hobbes (Calvin and Hobbes)
Hobbes is a character in the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson. He is Calvin's stuffed tiger, and is depicted with two distinct identities.-Hobbes Personality:...
governing philosophy of materialism and poor outlook on life and human nature. Thus, in other words, young Calvin is a, albeit elementary, Calvinist, and the tiger a Hobbesist
Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury , in some older texts Thomas Hobbs of Malmsbury, was an English philosopher, best known today for his work on political philosophy...
, similarly.
The French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of 18th-century Romanticism. His political philosophy influenced the French Revolution as well as the overall development of modern political, sociological and educational thought.His novel Émile: or, On Education is a treatise...
was born in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
(under Calvinist rule) and wrote The social contract (inspired by Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury , in some older texts Thomas Hobbs of Malmsbury, was an English philosopher, best known today for his work on political philosophy...
). His book Émile
Emile: Or, On Education
Émile, or On Education is a treatise on the nature of education and on the nature of man written by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who considered it to be the “best and most important of all my writings”. Due to a section of the book entitled “Profession of Faith of the Savoyard Vicar,” Émile was be...
is about the upbringing of a young boy and the role of freedom and imagination in his development.
External links
- Official Calvin and Hobbes Publicity site at Andrews McMeel PublishingAndrews McMeel PublishingAndrews McMeel Publishing, LLC is a company which publishes books, calendars, and related toys...