Slap Stick Comedy and American Novelists - Essay Example

Comparison Essay Though finding themselves in two completely different settings and situations, there are startling similarities between Flannery O’Connor’s Grandmother and South Park’s Eric Cartman. The most remarkable similarity is how stubborn the two are. Grandmother fights against going to Florida just as Cartman argues not only to get the sports watch, but to also have custody of the Ethiopian boy, Marvin. Another similarity is how their stubbornness backfires on them. Despite Grandmother’s objections, the family still goes on their trip and takes a detour against their own wishes, just to have them get on the wrong side of a fugitive and end up dead.

Cartman, mocking the hungry by showing his desire only for the sports watch and not for helping a hungry nation, finds himself lost in a third world country. Another similarity between Grandmother and Cartman is that neither of them are more concerned about others or their surroundings than they are with themselves. Grandmother has her own reasons for not wanting to go to Florida. She uses her family’s safety as an excuse not to go, claiming that there was the chance that the Misfit might catch up with them.

However, the safety of her family is the least of her worries. Furthermore, when the Misfit is having his men carry off her family into the woods to meet their end, the Grandmother can do nothing but plead for her own life. She only displays the slightest bit of concern that her son, daughter-in-law, and grandchildren are not being returned to her. Cartman could not care less about the conditions of starving people in third world countries, even one of their occupants is delivered to his doorstep.

He is more concerned with getting his watch. Then, when he is starving along with the other Ethiopians, he is still more concerned with his own welfare than of those around him. Grandmother and Cartman both rely on the help of God when all else has failed. In an attempt to get the Misfit to not shoot her, Grandmother pleads with the Misfit to pray for God’s help. This, she feels, will also benefit her and that God will intervene with the situation so that her life may be spared. When Cartman is wandering through Ethiopia, lost and hungry, he prays to God, asking for forgiveness for mocking the poor and hungry.

He hopes that this will be enough to get him out of his predicament, just like Grandmother. It is questionable for both of the characters of whether or not they actual believe in the saving power of God, or if they simply ran out of options. Irony plays a role for both of the characters. Grandmother originally uses the Misfit as an excuse not to travel to Florida. She assumed that his presence in the world would be enough for her son to change his mind. Ironically, she meets her end at the hands of the Misfit and his partners.

Cartman ceaselessly teases both his poor friend Kenny and the Ethiopians for their current state of health, only to find himself amongst other Ethiopians, being deprived of food and proper care. Neither Grandmother or Cartman expected to find themselves in these situations, using them as accuses for their behaviors and actions, yet it can be said that they both had it coming. Despite their similarities, there is one vast difference between Grandmother and Cartman. Grandmother died before she was able to understand all that had happened, and what her stubbornness and selfishness had caused to her family.

Cartman, on the other hand, was given the opportunity to fully understand the reality of the situation. This is shown when he informs the starving Ethiopians that there is food being kept from them and shows them where to obtain it, not thinking of himself for once. Cartman was given a chance to redeem himself. Works Cited Booth, Alison, and Kelly Mays. The Norton Introduction to Literature. 10th ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2010. 496-504. Print. South Park: Starvin' Marvin. Dir.

Trey Parker. Perf. Trey Parker & Matt Stone. Comedy Partners, 1997.