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Summary
One particularly controversial installment ofThe Far Sideprovoked a intuitive reception from readers – whom a newspaper editor in chief responded to in turn , put up up a defense lawyers of the comic that is still relevant in cultural discourse to this day . It is worth examining , along with some other critical takes on artist Gary Larson ’s body of work , for the insight it provides into how controversial subjects can be addressed in entertainment .
The Far Sideoften tackled tabu ; from the starting time of the strip ’s run in publication , creator Gary Larson proved more than willing to go to drear place in society toget a reaction out of his proofreader . This was integral to the success of the comic , but it also result in a capital deal of negative feedback .
syndicate newspaper cartoons exist in a unequalled artistic spatial relation – while Word , film , and other types of media can be well avoided by masses who find them sickening , a airstrip likeThe Far Sideco - exists alongside more unobjectionable landing strip such asGarfieldandPeanuts .
Gary Larson was often as perplexed by The Far Side ’s sense of humour as his interview was ; at one point , he offer the perfect description of the laughable strip .
A Publisher’s Response To Criticism Of Gary Larson
To whatever degree readers agree or dissent with Keefe ’s reaction , this exchange is enchanting for the way it mirror modern discrepancy over the use of controversial material in art and entertainment .
As long asThe Far Sidewas being published , the newspapers across the U.S. that carried it in their funnies section received periodic charge about the striptease ’s message . Among the joyousness of readingThe Complete Far Sidecollection are the glimpse of missive objecting to various cartoons throughout the years . There is one such prominent example early inVolume Two , from 1987 . As one aghast reviewer write to their local theme :
I was so distressed after seeing the … cartoon that appeared Monday ( Feb. 2 ) in The Herald Statesman . It was the ugliest , ( most ) obnoxious and sadistic sketch I have ever seen in a family composition . The so - called artist , Gary Larson , must be sick . I desire you consort .
The offending toon in query was set in a dungeon , with one torturer remarking to another that while he is great at his job , he ’s risky at making burnt umber .
The humor of the comic comes from the abrupt contrast between the brutality of the characters ' profession , and the ordinary – bordering on unlimited timeworn – nature of their conversation . For that to make the reader laugh , however , they have to straightaway recognize that attribute to the joke . Some readers , however , had a more negative reception , rejecting the laugh at its premiss for its casual delineation of torment in a newspaper comedian . “It certainly is not set for exposure to children , " the generator of the complaint to the Statesman resolve .
In her reply , editor program Nancy Q. Keefe offered a searing counterpoint to this last idea :
I am not a good campaigner to conduct your subject matter of disenchantment . But I will say this : do n’t interest about the children . They do n’t get it . And when they do , they will not be as much affected , or infect , as they are now , day by day , by the offering of television or the hypocrisy of fundamentalist .
To whatever level readers agree or disagree with Keefe ’s reception , this exchange is engrossing for the way it mirrors New disagreements over the usage of controversial material in art and entertainment . The debate about expose younger consultation to more matured subject matter is even more potent today than it was nearly forty class ago – making it significant to search early iteration of it like this one .
Gary Larson’s Work Was A Balm For “The Outrages Of Daily Life”
Far Side And The Value Of Satire
The Far Side’shumor was often satirical , and for fans of Gary Larson ’s work , that vein of satirical , observational comedy ranks among its most cherished element .
Nancy Q. Keefe ’s response to literary criticism of Gary Larson ’s work was admirable for its detail , and eloquence , especially in how it sought to offer context forThe Far Side’sartistic precedent . Keefe championed the cartoon ’s cultural value , notice :
To many , " Satire is what close Saturday dark , " as George S. Kaufman put it . To a few of us , satire is what makes it possible to deal with the outrages of daily life .
The Far Side’shumor was often satirical , and for fans of Gary Larson ’s workplace , thatvein of satirical , observational comedyranks among its most cherished element . From recontextualizing classic bits of folklore and democratic culture , to distill profoundly human minute intocartoons featuring kine , The Far Sidewas always the merchandise of an creative person that was acutely cognisant of the worldly concern around him – and despite what many critics might have thought , acutely protective of it , even if he may have oftenpreferred animals to human being .
Not Every Criticism Of The Far Side Was Entirely Off Base
The Other Side Of The Argument
While it was never [ Gary Larson ’s ] intent to " educate , " with any of his strip , it is deserving thinking about in the context of the social critiqueThe Far Sidedid convey .
It is understandable forreaders who " get " Gary Larson ’s humorto leap to his defense mechanism , but it is also deserving consider the merit some objections to his body of work might have had . While the reader that Nancy Q. Keefe respond to attacked Larson directly , calling him " sick , " another reader subsequently offered a more well - argue reply to the use of torture as a punchline . This criticism was instigate by a secondFar Sidetorture cartoon , which descend almost a year after the first .
In the 2d cartoon , two men hang from the wall of a keep underneath a sign that reads : " Congratulations Bob , Torturer of the Month . " The temper in this illustration operates from the same premise as the previous comic – but in the context of the reply print inThe Complete Far Side book Two , most lector will at least question the overall effectiveness of the joke . As one soul wrote :
Using torture as the subject of humour is , to say the least , offensive to me . Perhaps the author of the cartoon believes that torture is something so far hit from today ’s humanity that we can afford to laugh at it . If the author or the editor program trust that , you are poorly - inform .
Even decades later , this is a resounding literary argument ; at the very least , itdemonstrates how someone can effectively raise a business concern about a opus of artwork or entertainment that they find inappropriate .
As reader wrote further , in his letter of the alphabet to the Des Moines Register :
Torture is not a laughing matter . It is a blot on the conscience of world that must be eradicated , not express mirth at . The cartoon has done nothing to educate people about this evil , or to arouse people to work to break off torture and other violations of human rights .
Gary Larson was open about the want of open significance of his body of work , beyond draw out a reaction from audiences . So , while it was never his spirit to " train , " with any of his comic strip , it is worth thinking about in the context of the social critiqueThe Far Sidedid convey . With its frequent implicit criticisms of humanity ’s mistreatment of nature , Larson did at time use his toon as a place to express something he considered important .
( In)famously , this was not the only electronegative response toThe Far Side’s"Torturer of the Month " comic . Amnesty International was heavy critical of Larsonfor his habit of torture in the slip .
Fans of the far side can’t pass up this master collection of Gary Larson’s finest work. Originally published in hardcover in 2003, this paperback set comes complete with a newly designed slipcase that will look great on any shelf. The Complete Far Side contains every Far Side cartoon ever published, which amounts to over 4,000, plus more than 1,100 that have never before appeared in a book and even some made after Larson retired.
Recognizing The Limits Of Gary Larson’s Satire
Appreciating The Far Side For What It Was
As Nancy Q. Keefe identified , satire is an fantastically valuable mode of artistic expression . That said , sarcasm is at its sharpest when it is being used as a means toward a greater end . Gary Larson ’s use of agony for the rice beer of humor succeeded in the mother wit that it got a reaction out of reader , positive or negative . However , it can be indicate that these cartoons fail as satire , for precisely the reason that there is no purpose to them beyond achieving that reaction .
This is another sense in which Keefe ’s defense team of Larson , andLarson ’s use of controversial materialin his body of work throughout the story ofThe Far Side , are worth exploring further , even forty yr later . The Far Sideoffers a potent study of what constitutes satire , and how the proficiency can be used in unlike way , especially when allot with unmanageable subject . More than just a doubt of whether a comic artist " should " or " should n’t " make jokes about issues of gravity , such as torture , the question concerns " how " and " why " they do so .
Fans of the far side ca n’t return up this master collection of Gary Larson ’s finest work . in the first place publish in hardback in 2003 , this paperback exercise set comes complete with a newly designed slipcase that will look great on any ledge . The Complete Far Side stop every Far Side cartoon ever published , which amount to over 4,000 , plus more than 1,100 that have never before appear in a book and even some made after Larson retreat .
