The Psychopathology of Cartoon Characters

“Sometimes even I am afraid of the things my mind comes up with.” -Bugs Bunny

I read a lot as a kid, but I didn’t read books. While other kids were beginning to read assigned literature from English classes, I was devouring comics books like “Archie” and “Richie Rich.” I had collections of them and kept tabs on when the latest editions of “Mad Magazine” and the like would hit Mel’s penny candy store, which was two blocks from where I lived. I also religiously watched Saturday morning cartoons.

The selection of cartoons on television was limited back then, as were the number of channels to watch them on. I divided the world into two cartoon subcultures. One group were the kids that were into Hanna Barbera cartoons like, The Flintstones and the Jetsons. Both had that space and time continuum thing going for them, which I liked. The concept of 60s and 70s culture superimposed on prehistoric and futuristic times was visionary to me. However, I preferred Warner Brothers cartoons featuring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Pepe la Pew, and Wile E. Coyote. Even then, I thought their personalities were multifaceted and relatable.

They have left a lasting impression on me, so much so that as an adult and a therapist, I often find myself diagnosing Warner Brothers cartoons and comparing them to people. I think that there should be a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders that addresses cartoon characters. For example, the Tasmanian Devil, with his poor impulse control and obvious ADHD. Then, there’s Daffy Duck who presents with symptoms of Paranoid Personality Disorder because he feels that everyone’s out to get him. Yosemite Sam, who is one of my favorites, displays signs of either Anti-Social Personality Disorder or Conduct disorder. He doesn’t have regard for the law and has trouble delaying gratification. He also has a criminal record full of assaults. Although loveable, Pepe Le Pew has stalker tendencies. Since the subject, the black and white cat he pursues wants nothing to do with him, and he seems oblivious, it demonstrates that he is a narcissist with very poor boundaries. Tweedy Bird, (that annoying little yellow creature) presents with an aggressive sweetness and probably has a Passive-Aggressive Personality Disorder. His counterpart, Sylvester, is obviously co-dependent on Tweedy and his owner. No matter how much he keeps getting hurt physically and mentally by Tweedy and their owner, the old lady, he chooses to remain in the relationship. Sylvester’s role in these connections is the perfect example of the well-known Cycle of Violence wheel, where the outcomes are predictable and destructive.

I’m attracted to Bugs Bunny, probably because he is extremely charming. His fatal flaws include being cunning and self-centered. That has also been a theme in who I am attracted to in my real life and it hasn’t served me well except for projecting their pathology onto made-up characters.

During my career in the mental health field, I have had to write many psychosocial assessments on clients. When I was in school, we practiced by doing them on characters in books. When I was taking classes to get licensed as a drug and alcohol counselor, one of the assignments was to do an assessment on a television personality. The assessment was structured to include sections like, “Presenting Problem.”, “Client Strengths”, “Observations of Personality Functions”, and “Factors contributing to Current Dysfunction”.

For this assignment, I chose Wile E. Coyote and his drug of choice was crack cocaine.

Name: Wile E. Coyote

Presenting Problem: “My life is out of control. I can’t stop smoking crack.” Pt. also reports hearing command voices that order him to “go out again to get that bird.”. Pt. worries that he doesn’t have “the right moves if I’m not high”. Pt. is a 16-year-old coyote who looks older than his stated age. He states he is homeless and living in a shelter. His fur is in disarray. There are noticeable dreadlocks around his collar, which indicate poor hygiene. His pupils are dilated, and his eyes are bloodshot. He reports, “I started smoking crack when I finally realized that I would never catch up to that stupid bird.” Pt. states smoking crack initially gave him more “pep”, but when several Acme products, such as dynamite caused his crack pipes to blow up in his hands and giant anvils, “came out of nowhere” and landed on his head, he realized, “I might have a problem.”

Client Strengths: Pt. appears to have a good support system. He states he is currently living in a halfway house with several other Warner Bros. characters. Pt. reports that “I can relate to Sylvester because he’s also OCD about a bird.” He states he recently asked Sylvester to be his sponsor.

Observation of Client’s Personality Functioning: Pt. initially presented with a flat affect, incongruent to his stated mood. However, he became labile during the interview, alternately laughing and crying when describing the urge to “chase the bird”. When relating the story of his crack pipe blowing up in his face, pt. went into a Richard Pryor monologue and pretended he was “looking for rocks” in the office rug. Pt. seemed disappointed when this writer did not laugh.

Situational Factors Contributing to Current Dysfunction: As noted above, pt.’s living situation is tenuous. He also has financial issues. He claims that he cannot pay his Acme bill and bill collectors have been “haunting” him. He also questions his sexual identity, as the bird in question is not a female. “What if I actually catch him? Maybe I’m gay and I don’t know it.”

My instructor did not find my subject choice for this assignment to be as entertaining as I did. However, I believe it takes a special kind of person to intuit and diagnose cartoon characters. This may be why I’m currently out of a job. On the other hand, it makes sense that a child who loved cartoons and grew up to be a therapist would find so much pathology in this relatively unexplored population. Too bad there’s not a position out there for a Cartoon Therapist. I think my work speaks for itself.

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