"Generation Z's sudden obsession with Snoopy isn't just because he's cute," said an article published in NPR Illinois last year.
The article reports that "Peanuts" has become a huge hit on TikTok and Instagram, and that the Schulz Museum, which exhibits original drawings and valuable materials, has recorded its highest number of visitors ever. The article analyzes that the generation that has been familiar with Snoopy since childhood is now realizing and empathizing with the philosophical content of the series for the first time.
Indeed, the themes "Peanuts" deals with are surprisingly universal. They include the vague anxieties and loneliness that we all share; familiar human relationships such as friendships, family, and romance; and sometimes even differences in gender, race, and class. "America: A Modern History Read Through Peanuts" (author: Blake Scott Ball, translated by: Imai Ryoichi, published in Japan last year) discusses "Peanuts'" response to American social movements such as the Cold War, the Vietnam War, the civil rights movement, and the women's movement.
The greatest appeal of this work is that it depicts all of these events as everyday occurrences within the three or four panels of a newspaper comic strip. It is a monumental work of words that captures the humor and sadness of human nature in a few short words.
In the introduction to "The Complete Peanuts Collection," a host of famous people profess their love for "Peanuts," from actor and comedian Whoopi Goldberg to "The Simpsons" creator Matt Groening to then-president Barack Obama.
Umberto Eco, the writer and philosopher who translated the Italian version, once declared that the author, Schulz, was "a poet." (*1) The monthly newsletter accompanying the Japanese edition of the complete works also includes comments from fans from various fields, including Kataoka Yoshio, Ikezawa Natsuki, Sato Yoshiaki, Yoshimoto Banana, Sakai Junko, Kitamura Sae, and Saihate Tahi.
In Japan, the fact that poet Shuntaro Tanikawa has been translating the series for many years adds to its special appeal. Tanikawa, who described Peanuts as a "great mannerism," wrote, "Watching Charlie Brown and the other characters, who never age, go through the same cycle of joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness day after day, transcends the differences of language and culture and makes me feel that this is exactly what our lives are like."(*2) The perspectives of the great poet and the world-famous cartoonist overlap in some ways.
"Happiness is a warm puppy..." This famous phrase from a comic strip in the 1960s was developed into a picture book filled with phrases and illustrations that express happiness. The book became a huge hit worldwide and continues to be reprinted today, with the phrase even being included in the American Dictionary of Quotations. The words from "Peanuts," which skillfully capture the simple joys of life, are still loved around the world today.
Photo/AP/AFLO
All of our joys, sorrows, anger, and happiness are depicted in "Peanuts."
"Peanuts" April 25, 1960
"Peanuts" September 28, 1989
The author, Schulz's father, was also a barber.
"Peanuts" September 16, 1957
An early masterpiece. Indescribable loneliness has been an important theme throughout his work.
Well, yeah
"Peanuts" March 7, 1991
Charlie Brown's love troubles and Snoopy's dismissive reaction are classics.
I remember there were two cookies...chocolate chip and peanut butter...I loved them both...
