Wednesday, August 16, 2006

A Muppet by Any Other Name


I am proud to admit that I am a child who was raised on the good wholesome fun (and learning) of "Sesame Street". I loved watching it every morning and I loved the good fun of all the little songs and games. I can date myself by saying that I remember the days when no one believed Big Bird when he said that Snuffy was real. The show also holds a special place for me in that it was the show by which I learned to speak English. Although I was born here, as I grew up I first spoke Marathi, and over time (and countless episodes of "Sesame Street") my English improved. From there it has all been down hill.

Although work precludes my being able to catch the show every now and again, I didn't miss the announcement that a new muppet was being introduced after 13 years. The new character, Abby Cadabby, is a fairy who is just coming of age (as far as fairies go) and as such, her power over her magic isn't fully developed so be assured that plenty of comic hijinks will ensue. The introduction of a new character comes at a time when the show is continuing along despite having been around nearly 40 years. The show has helped so many kids that it's standing as an educational program can't be denied. The decision to introduce a fairy with hit or miss powers was meant to have a character who could then be used to talk to kids about diversity and differences and learning to accept them.

I hope the introduction of the character remains free of any controversy. It seems that these days it doesn't take long before viewers with slightly askew opinions suddenly start proclaiming the 'evil' in these shows. I mean Bert and Ernie have been roomies for years. But the protests against their alleged 'relationship' was so extreme that the network had to issue a statement to the effect that they were just 'good friends'. It's a children's show for goodness sakes! Don't you think that if they wanted to come out of the closet that they would have done so years and years ago? It's a sad day when someone (that too a muppet!) puts their arm around someone and immediately the assumption is that there is something more in that touch.

I mean had this sort of attitude been around 20 years ago, there would likely have been accusations that Big Bird is on drugs and is hallucinating a character like Snuffy; Oscar the Grouch is a negative stereotype on the homeless; the Count is a stereotype on crazy Transylvanian mathematicians; and Bert and Ernie? Well, the less said about them the better. Watch these shows for what they are, a chance for kids to learn about their world with fun characters. There is an innocence that children have that goes away as they become more and more aware of their world. Let's give them the time to enjoy their childhood. Let them be innocent. And for goodness sake, leave those darn muppets out of it too!

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2 Comments:

At 9:58 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I do agree with what you have mentioned here. I have not watched 'Sesame Street' myself but my son does. He enjoys shows like these including Dora and Blue's Clues. Shows like these are learning aids for kids, to make them aware of their surroundings and should have that and only that as the motive; leave the kid to discover the world in his/her own sweet way from these shows.

But what about 'Teletubbies'? Wasn't there a controversy or some news about what this show was imparting to the viewers? what do we have to say about this? This is a kid's show and I do think that there is no need for such information to be parted across. It seems like this generation's kids are maturing earlier than they should, which is not good.

 
At 10:01 AM, Blogger Jay said...

I agree with you anonymous. People are reading far too much into what these shows mean or may be implying and that is just ruining it for the rest of us who grew up with these shows but also kids who are just watching these shows to enjoy and to learn.

 

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