Edited by: Aditi Jain
Rarely do we find a person who has not watched cartoons while growing up. All of us have watched cartoons during our childhood and some of us might still enjoy watching them. Nobody can deny that watching cartoons has got us scoldings from our parents who thought that they are nothing but a waste of time. But what if I told you that your favourite cartoons, which you meaninglessly laughed at back in those golden days, have a lot to teach you? What if I told you that the lessons you went to school to learn were something you already learned while sitting in front of the “Idiot Box”?
Teamwork is the solution —
I am sure that all of us have been told to work in a team to achieve better and faster results. Remember Scooby-Doo? Yes, the cartoon with a dog and four friends. It is more than just the friendship between the group and solving problems. If you look back at the show, you will find that whenever the group faces any existential threats, the team sticks with each other and comes out of it together. They draw their strength from each person in their team. They teach us an important lesson that there is nothing that can not be achieved through teamwork.
Size is not equal to strength —
Throughout our lives, at some point or the other, we have felt intimidated by someone, thinking that they are better than us and that we can’t match their level. But do not worry. Tom and Jerry teaches you exactly how to overcome this. Cute little Jerry teaches us a very important lesson — your size really does not matter. You can defeat the strongest opponent just by being clever.
Persistence is Key —
It’s not just Jerry who teaches us something important. There is something we can learn from his opponent, Tom, too. He is foolish enough to lose to a small mouse every time. Even though Jerry is able to outsmart Tom in every episode, he never gives up on trying to come up with different plans to catch him. Tom teaches us that we might encounter failures in our lives, but we should be persistent and keep trying to achieve our goals.
Happiness is in your hands —
Until recently, Mr. Bean was just another character who made me laugh by his actions but now I realise there is much more to him. He tells us that you do not need big things in your life to make you happy. Small things can also make your life better. All you need to do is to look for happiness and derive pleasures for yourself.
You are unique —
It is common to feel that other people are better than you but what is uncommon is to think that every person is unique in themselves. The Powerpuff Girls teach you how to think of yourself as unique. With their different specialities, the girls make you aware of the qualities that you have. They provide an important lesson in optimism and convey the message of not comparing yourself to others because you are unique in your own way and this is your superpower.
Face your fears —
Humans cannot exist without having fears. It is natural to fear something but the problem begins when the fear comes in the way of your life. Courage the Cowardly Dog had a lot of fears but he always faced them no matter what. What is to be learnt from the dog is to embrace the fears by fighting it and not letting them get the better of us.
These are some life lessons that I could think of, but the list does not stop here. Cartoons are a superb way where one can learn about colours, forms, and storybuilding. They teach us about different cultures. For example, we have cartoons from different countries — Doraemon, Johnny Bravo, Chota Bheem, Oswald, Shinchan, Dragon Ball Z, Popeye. If you notice, the houses, the attire, the settings and even the behaviour are all distinct in different cartoons, with some similarities. Shinchan and Doraemon might seem similar because both of them are based in Japan, and the way they eat, sit and live their lives will be quite similar. But, when comparing it with Johnny Bravo, a cartoon based in America, certain startling differences are bound to be observed.
There is a lot to learn from shows that might have gotten you scoldings in your childhood and which you might now consider too foolish to watch. Go back to your old days and watch a cartoon. I am sure you will see them very differently than when you used to watch them as a child.