Jimmy's Relatable Resilience
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try
again. Who hasn’t heard this phrase at one point in their life? For Jimmy
Corrigan, from Chris Ware’s Jimmy
Corrigan: Smartest Kid on Earth, this might as well be his life motto.
Jimmy spends his entire life striving to have a successful human interaction,
yet constantly fails. Despite this failure, he picks himself up and tries
again. His relentlessness inspires me as a reader to root for him, to hope that
eventually he will succeed and find happiness. I could attribute this to my own
empathetic nature; because I truly do want the people around me to be
successful, but part of it is in Jimmy himself. There is something about Jimmy
Corrigan that instills a sense of camaraderie – that makes me want to root for
him, and in this essay I will try to find out what it is. I believe it’s
Jimmy’s refusal to give up, the cast of characters surrounding him, and his
awkwardness in social situations because of his lack of a father figure that
make him so relatable and makes me want him to succeed.
The character that Ware has created has a
touch of something that causes me, and others, to be on his side. What is it in
his nature that allows us to sympathize with him? It is something that is not
specific to just Jimmy; both Charlie Brown and Dilbert are similar characters
always striving to succeed while facing near constant failure. Could it be the
cast of characters that each character finds himself surrounded by? Dilbert and Charlie Brown both have a cast of
characters that juxtapose them, showcasing the character flaws they have.
Both Charlie Brown has characters around
them that emphasize their positive traits. In Charlie Brown, almost all the
other characters seem to put him down, making the audience even more
sympathetic towards his plight. In the first comic that Charles Schultz printed
of the Peanuts shows Charlie Brown
running by, followed by a friend saying, “Good ol’ Charlie Brown… How I hate
him!” (Schultz) even though Charlie has done nothing to this boy.[1] This creates an instant connection with this
poor boy that is constantly picked on by others, for he clearly does not
deserve this kind of animosity. It started when the comics first came out, but
can be seen throughout them. When Lucy pulls her first football gag on Charlie
Brown, we again see that there was nothing from Charlie Brown that warranted
such an action from Lucy, yet she still pull the football from under him.[2]
Lucy’s actions make us pity Charlie Brown; they serve the dual purpose of showing
us how patient and kind Charlie Brown is for not really getting made at Lucy,
and show how pitiable Charlie Brown truly is, for he does not stand up for
himself. Other kids are constantly picking on Charlie Brown.
Charlie Brown’s lack of reaction to Lucy
show just how easy going of a character he is. Dilbert is the same way,
surrounded by these negative characters that show just how patient and kind
Dilbert is. In the first Dilbert comic strip, created by Scott Adams, we see
Dogbert talking down to Dilbert, which becomes a constant for the comic strips.[3]
Dilbert is always a diligent worker who becomes relatable because of the way
the characters around him treat him. Dogbert constantly puts Dilbert down, and
yet he still continues his business and tries to work around him. This effort
to ignore the negative comments he hears makes Dilbert admirable. In another
comic strip, Dilbert makes a comment about dating himself, to which Dogbert
responds, “well, it’s not as if anyone else would date you.”[4]
By surrounding both Charlie Brown and Dilbert with these negative characters that
are always bullying them, their positive attitude becomes even more important,
as it appears in the face of adversity.
The emotional detachment that Jimmy faces is perhaps not
something that he always suffered from, but is a product of his childhood. Ware
does not give us much to go on for this idea, since the book skips over most of
Jimmy’s childhood. In her piece “A
not-so-comic comic book” CNN writer Beth Nissen states, “A careful reading
of the interconnected stories reveals a long genealogical line of abandonment
and disappointment, regret and paralyzing isolation,” (Nissen) referring to the
storylines of Jimmy’s grandfather and great-grandfather that are scattered
throughout the novel. Nissen implies that because Ware does not directly tell
us why Jimmy is so emotionally stunted, he instead uses the stories of Jimmy’s
ancestors to imply a long line of abandonment that can be related back to
Jimmy’s own problems. While I find this answer unsatisfying, some might find it
helpful when trying to understand Jimmy. Nissen goes on to note: “many of the [other]
scenes in the book are from Ware's memory as much as his imagination,” (Nissen)
which seems to me a much more satisfying answer. As Ware relates directly to
the character of Jimmy, he feels that it is merely enough for readers to
understand who he is, and not as important for us to know why he is that way.
Jimmy’s character is someone we are meant to root for, someone who we want to succeed,
even if we know that he won’t. This emotional attachment to Jimmy allows us to
feel his failure, and that is something we can relate to; it is something that
Ware does not need to explain. His understanding of Jimmy’s situation allows
him to create “yearning and wistfulness and heartache, all in one square inch”
(Nissen).
Perhaps that is the key to making these characters so
relatable. In his article, “Charlie Brown,” Brian Maye writes about what makes
Charlie Brown such a likable character. Maye says about Charlie Brown:
A thoughtful, polite boy, we loved him because we knew he
would never fulfil his aspirations, never win the baseball game or the heart of
the little red-haired girl; we also knew he would never manage to kick the
football the malicious Lucy was holding or fly a kite successfully. But he
never gave up and we admired his determination to triumph over adversity.
Here Maye
notices that it is Charlie Brown’s nature that is part of what makes him so
likable, and so timeless. Though he always fails, his resilience and the way he
never gives up allow readers to cheer for him, and countless people to relate
to him. It is because others constantly try to bring him down, and fail, that
we root for him to succeed. He refuses to let other get him down, and that
makes him inspirational.
Jimmy Corrigan represents the same concept in Ware’s novel.
He constantly tries to achieve that which he fails at: successful social
interaction. Jimmy’s interactions with others involve him stuttering and
silent, usually allowing the other person to fill the silence he creates.
However, this does not mean that he wants to be left alone; he just does not
know how to talk to people. After meeting his father for the first time, the
two of them stop to grab a bite to eat on the way home from the airport.[5]
The woman working behind the counter messes up Jimmy’s father’s order and he
offers to go get the right thing for his father (panel 3). When he goes up to
the counter, however, Jimmy is awkward and lets the woman do most of the
talking (panels 7-14). When she double charges him, he does not even speak up
more than a slight disagreement, which he even gives in to after a quiet “No…
Uh...” (panel 15) on his part to indicate that she was wrong. We see hearts
around Jimmy’s head at one point as he looks at the cashier, indicating
interest, followed by a panel showing the woman bent over to get a burger patty
out of the fridge to defrost (panels 8-9). The image of the woman bent over is
meant to represent what Jimmy sees, and shows us that he is checking her out,
and yet he does not make any attempt to actually talk to her beyond responding
to her. In the whole interaction with the cashier, Jimmy is seen saying only
saying about five words, not actually talking to the woman so much as reacting
and responding to her. This is a clear demonstration that though he is
interested in this woman he is unable to communicate with her; he is not even
able to tell her that she is charging him for the same burger twice.
Jimmy’s inability to connect with others extends over to his
interactions with his father as well. Though Jimmy has just recently met his
father for the first time, he is unable to communicate with him, and most of
the scenes involving the two of them are uncomfortable and one-sided. In one
particular scene back at Jimmy’s fathers house, Jimmy’s father invites Jimmy to
sit next to him[6].
Jimmy is reluctant to sit down next to his father, and though he longs for a
father figure and he wanted to meet his father, he still holds back from
joining his father on the couch. His reluctance becomes apparent when Jimmy
bites his nails and looks uncertainly at his father; it takes a goading from
his father, “C’mon… I won’t bite!” (panels 5-7) to make Jimmy
finally join his father on the couch. Jimmy clearly wants to meet his father,
as is evident in his flying out to see him, and yet he is still reluctant to
join him on the couch. Here Jimmy is held back by himself, he does not know how
to be connected and close to people because he is so emotionally stunted. When
Jimmy finally does join his father on the couch, his father puts his arm around
Jimmy in a scene that is extremely awkward (panel 9). Jimmy is clearly
uncomfortable with this physical contact, unable to not only connect with his father
emotionally, but physically as well.
This closeness that Jimmy’s father tries to offer up
showcases a difference between Dilbert and Charlie Brown. The most important
people in Jimmy’s life do not want to put him down; they simply want him to
succeed. After Jimmy’s father gets into a car accident, he goes to stay with
his sister, Amy. Jimmy has a mental breakdown where he admits what he yearns
for most: people to like him.[7]
Jimmy reveals here how desperately he craves human interaction; he just wants
people to like him. This basic desire is something that everyone can relate to,
and Ware knows this. He deliberately makes Jimmy’s quest something most people
share, so that we can root for him to have someone who likes him, we want Jimmy
to make a friend. His ability to break down and open up to Amy like this shows
an extreme break through. Jimmy is finally able to communicate with someone
plainly, and by crying he creates an emotional connection with Amy, something
he desperately desires and she responds to. Though he is still shy and awkward,
Amy tells him that his grandfather and her like him, and so he has not
completely failed.
This support that Jimmy finds separates him Charlie Brown
and Dilbert. Amy sees Jimmy crying and moves in to comfort him.[8]
She responds to Jimmy by saying, “we
like you,” (panel 9), referring to their grandfather and herself. This
represents the first time we see one of Jimmy’s attempts to emotionally connect
to someone succeed, and seems like a breakthrough. After an emotionally wrought
scene the reward is great, for both Jimmy and the reader. I felt like this was
the first step on the road to Jimmy’s final success in his own interactions
with people around him. Unlike in the Charlie Brown or Dilbert comics, Amy
supports Jimmy and tries to make him feel better, not worse. Whereas the
characters in both Charlie Brown and Dilbert serve as contrasts to show the
main characters strengths through their own flaws, Jimmy is the one with flaws,
while Amy knows how to respond accordingly. Jimmy becomes the one we connect
with because he needs to be comforted by someone else, which is a feeling we
can recognize and understand.
This leads to perhaps the most heart-wrenching scene in the
novel. The morning after Jimmy spends the night at Amy’s place with their
grandfather, Amy and Jimmy head to the hospital to check on their father. It is
there that they discover their father has died in the night, and though they
tried contacting Amy, the doctors were unable to reach her to give them the news.
Upon hearing this, Amy starts to shake violently and Jimmy, in an attempt to
offer up some comfort for her, reaches out to take his hand. [9]
Amy physically recoils from Jimmy, and lashes out, shoving him away from her.
Jimmy is hustled from the room and the hospital when a misunderstanding causes
him to end up in a taxi leaving the hospital, and Amy, behind. Thus, the failed
interaction with Amy is the final contact Jimmy has with her. As heartbreaking
as it is, Jimmy’s situation is still relatable. The feeling of estrangement and
loss that Jimmy feels after he has a successful interaction followed by such a
negative one shows just how up and down life really is. Though the novel ends
on a hopeful note, Ware makes a pointed statement when he includes Amy’s
rejection of Jimmy: not every attempt is successful.
Jimmy Corrigan’s life demonstrates how disconnected one’s
desires can be from reality. Though Jimmy constantly longs to connect with
those around him, he is held back by his shyness. Ware creates this emotionally
stunted character in such a way that he touches on our own sense of pity. I
found Jimmy becoming someone I was rooting for unconsciously to succeed in his
quest for a successful relationship. At first it appears that Jimmy is unable
to interact with women because he is sexually repressed, however by looking at
his relationship with his father, a relationship lacking the sexual aspect, we
see that Jimmy lacks the ability to connect with people on a basic level.
Ware’s shy, sensitive, and awkward Jimmy is a character easily connected with
as he continues to seek out interactions even though he does not know what he
is doing. Jimmy’s relentless attempts to successfully interact with others
through near-constant rejection make him a character pitiable and yet at the
same time very relatable: something for which Ware hoped. Even though Jimmy
lacks the characters that put him down constantly, such as can be seen in
Dilbert and Charlie Brown, it is life itself that constantly puts him down.
Jimmy’s resilience and desire to get up and keep trying to have a successful social
interaction make him a character that is easy to root for; someone I genuinely
want to see succeed.
Works Cited
Maye, Brian. "Charlie Brown." Irish
Times 27 April 2002, City Edition 51. Web. 12 Dec. 2013.
Nissen, Beth. "'Jimmy Corrigan: The
Smartest Kid on Earth' A Not-so-comic Comic Book." CNN. Cable News
Network, 3 Oct. 2000. Web. 08 Nov. 2013.
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