# Is childhood in the Peanuts universe miserable? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 27, 2012, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246 "2012-11-27T06:06:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2012, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/21 "2012-11-27T18:30:38Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > Yeah, Peanuts childhood isn’t great, but that moment when late teen, early-20s Chuck is having a few beers with Patty & Marcie, and they finally get him in that three-way they’ve been planning for years, Chuck will realize that after all, it is a wonderful life. Or his future may turn out to be considerably [darker](http://www.oesquema.com.br/trabalhosujo/2009/03/12/charlie-brown-por-frank-miller.htm). ---
**Author:** ![amaguri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/49beb7/32.png) [@amaguri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amaguri)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2012, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/22 "2012-11-27T19:02:04Z")
With the exception of Charlie Brown and possibly Linus (who isn’t really unhappy, but spends a lot of time contemplating larger issues of faith and the human condition…) I think most of the kids are perfectly happy. They may have some specific recurring challenges (Lucy doesn’t own enough real estate, Sally’s unrequited love for Linus, etc) but they seem generally ok. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2012, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/23 "2012-11-27T19:15:46Z")
> [@Hermione](#): > > There were also the “happiness is” strips. Some of them had the “happiness is” saying in the final panel, while some of them had them as a “stamp” in a larger panel. I do not recall that, with the exception of the one strip “Happiness is a Warm Puppy” (said by Lucy after she hugs Snoopy). There was a “Happiness is a Warm Puppy” book, which made millions for Schulz, but I don’t recall those “Happiness Is…” bits of treacle in strips. [This is much more typical.](http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=KG7&sa=X&tbo=d&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&biw=1013&bih=614&tbm=isch&tbnid=8v6mgLF22Cw8JM:&imgrefurl=http://www.scrubbles.net/2008/05/&docid=sFL3FCpoPZlRtM&imgurl=http://www.scrubbles.net/wp/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/peanuts19591960.jpg&w=400&h=348&ei=BxG1UOGOF-qQ2AWSpICoCw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=121&vpy=133&dur=3615&hovh=209&hovw=241&tx=158&ty=102&sig=106314390303735993340&page=4&tbnh=136&tbnw=157&start=65&ndsp=25&ved=1t:429,r:73,s:0,i:312) ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2012, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/24 "2012-11-27T20:26:01Z")
> [@bup](#): > > [This is much more typical.](http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=KG7&sa=X&tbo=d&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&biw=1013&bih=614&tbm=isch&tbnid=8v6mgLF22Cw8JM:&imgrefurl=http://www.scrubbles.net/2008/05/&docid=sFL3FCpoPZlRtM&imgurl=http://www.scrubbles.net/wp/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/peanuts19591960.jpg&w=400&h=348&ei=BxG1UOGOF-qQ2AWSpICoCw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=121&vpy=133&dur=3615&hovh=209&hovw=241&tx=158&ty=102&sig=106314390303735993340&page=4&tbnh=136&tbnw=157&start=65&ndsp=25&ved=1t:429,r:73,s:0,i:312) When I was much younger, I wrote to Mr. Schultz and scolded him for that one. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2012, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/25 "2012-11-28T01:23:06Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > When I was much younger, I wrote to Mr. Schultz and scolded him for that one. Well there ya go. I find that funny now and would have as a kid too (can’t remember reading that one specifically). It treats a kid’s world as somewhat real, instead of coddling & totally safe. We could use more of this these days, people think kid’s self esteem is so fragile that any & everything is constantly a threat to it! ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2012, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/26 "2012-11-28T01:25:29Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Schulz was an unhappy guy, and it’s reflected in his work. > > There are some warmer moments in the strip. Look how Charlie Brown brightens when he visits his dad’s barber shop, for instance. C.B. lives in an uncertain world that’s out to get him, but one thing he knows he can rely on is that his dad loves him. Or as “Chuck” put it: “I’m going to drown my sorrows in a haircut.” ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2012, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/27 "2012-11-28T03:39:22Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > When I was much younger, I wrote to Mr. Schultz and scolded him for that one. And since you spelled his name wrong, your letter made him more insecure in two different ways. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2012, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/28 "2012-11-28T05:08:26Z")
Childhood is pretty stressful for kids. Mine certainly was. Trying to fit in, making friends, doing well on schoolwork and sports isn’t easy when you’re eight or nine. Peanuts did a good job portraying these kids in a somewhat realistic way. The most up lifting Peanuts special is the Christmas special and it airs tomorrow night. 😃 I look forward to it every year and it always puts a smile on my face. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2012, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/29 "2012-11-28T13:29:53Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Or his future may turn out to be considerably [darker](http://www.oesquema.com.br/trabalhosujo/2009/03/12/charlie-brown-por-frank-miller.htm). Good grief is Sally both stacked AND pert! ---
**Author:** ![JoseB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joseb/32/1530_2.png) [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/30 "2012-12-01T10:24:39Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Or his future may turn out to be considerably [darker](http://www.oesquema.com.br/trabalhosujo/2009/03/12/charlie-brown-por-frank-miller.htm). Or even **DARKER** than that. Behold: [Introduction.](http://www.whatisdeepfried.com/weaponbrown/weaponbrown.html) [Link to the first strip.](http://www.whatisdeepfried.com/2008/04/07/weapon-brown-1/) – There are more than 300 by now. Caveat: until strip 14 or so of this comic, the archive system inserts other, non-related strips by the same author. Once you hit strip 15, though, the “next” button keeps you on this comic 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/31 "2012-12-01T11:37:07Z")
Childhood in THIS universe is miserable, as near as I can tell. Art reflects reality. Really though, I think Peanuts was more about adult anxiety than a child’s. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/32 "2012-12-01T14:01:31Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > Good grief is Sally both stacked AND pert! For Peppermint Patty, you’d need a wheelbarrow! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/33 "2012-12-02T00:21:24Z")
> [@JoseB](#): > > Or even **DARKER** than that. Behold: > > [Introduction.](http://www.whatisdeepfried.com/weaponbrown/weaponbrown.html) > > [Link to the first strip.](http://www.whatisdeepfried.com/2008/04/07/weapon-brown-1/) – There are more than 300 by now. Caveat: until strip 14 or so of this comic, the archive system inserts other, non-related strips by the same author. Once you hit strip 15, though, the “next” button keeps you on this comic 🙂 Man, I am having a HELL of a time navigating that site. The random stuff I’m finding looks pretty good, and I liked the writing a bit, but I can’t find my way to the part where it’s all Weapon Brown. I clicked way more than 15 times, and fiddling with the URL by incrementing the number didn’t work out. When you have a comic you obviously put a great deal of effort into, you shouldn’t make it so difficult for people who want to see it. That website is ass. ---
**Author:** ![Suil\_Dubh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85f322/32.png) [@Suil\_Dubh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suil_Dubh)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/34 "2012-12-02T00:51:33Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > Yeah, Peanuts childhood isn’t great, but that moment when late teen, early-20s Chuck is having a few beers with Patty & Marcie, and they finally get him in that three-way they’ve been planning for years, Chuck will realize that after all, it is a wonderful life. Ha ha, not so far from the truth. > [@](#): > > Pretty soon Patty was drunk, and she was letting Charlie know she wanted it. > > “Look here, Chuck, I know you want to give me that thing.” > > “Listen, Patty. It’s getting pretty late. I’ve got too much work to do.” > > “Work! Work! You’re real dull, Chuck! Let’s screw!” > > “Sorry, babe, but tonight’s not the best. Listen, I’m sick. I think you’d better go.” > > Charlie stood up and went to the door and opened it. > > “You’re an asshole, Chuck,” she said. “You’re too wishy-washy. Maybe I’ll go get a drink with that funny-looking kid with the big nose. That would make you jealous, wouldn’t it?” > > She grabbed her purse and stormed out. > > Charlie closed the door and went back to cutting up newspapers. Jesus, he thought. If it’s not one thing, it’s another. From [“Peanuts” by Charles Bukowski](http://archives.progressiveboink.com/archive/peanuts-by-charles-bukowski/). ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/35 "2012-12-02T01:43:12Z")
Woah. I was just going to make a little post about how I never “got” Peanuts, and then I clicked the link in **Thudlow Boink** ’s post, and realized that OP was _me_, saying the same thing 5 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![JoseB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joseb/32/1530_2.png) [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/36 "2012-12-02T01:50:59Z")
> [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](#): > > Man, I am having a HELL of a time navigating that site. The random stuff I’m finding looks pretty good, and I liked the writing a bit, but I can’t find my way to the part where it’s all Weapon Brown. I clicked way more than 15 times, and fiddling with the URL by incrementing the number didn’t work out. When you have a comic you obviously put a great deal of effort into, you shouldn’t make it so difficult for people who want to see it. That website is ass. Click on “Comic Archive” in the main page and you should have a list of comics clearly labelled, from which you can make sure to find the ones you want. The problem is that the author made something like 3 different comics at the same time (before concentrating on the one we are talking about) and didn’t separate them at all. ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/37 "2012-12-02T04:55:17Z")
> [@JoseB](#): > > Click on “Comic Archive” in the main page and you should have a list of comics clearly labelled, from which you can make sure to find the ones you want. > > The problem is that the author made something like 3 different comics at the same time (before concentrating on the one we are talking about) and didn’t separate them at all. Thanks, that works much better. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/38 "2012-12-02T05:36:38Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > I think they were as happy as any other kids growing up in another era. Life was often mundane, school was a drag, some kids are bullies. Are kids today happy? or happier? I love Peanuts FOR the darkish side of life. Same here, although I don’t think of it so much as dark as brooding. The characters are children but have adult thoughts. It’s not blatantly funny but there’s usually humor in the situations that develop. As for bullies, I assume you are referring to Lucy, who is often intimidating. Although this is true I don’t see her as a true bully because she remains central character within the group. A real bully would be a (usually) much bigger kid who appears as an occasional, menacing force, like Moe in _Calvin And Hobbes._ **Sitnam** : A marathon? I didn’t think there were enough animated Peanuts cartoons to make up a marathon. Was there a regular TV series I never knew about? ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/39 "2012-12-02T07:42:00Z")
I never really cared for the TV specials. I did used to buy the CB comic strip books. (Loved them) I remember in one of them Sally Brown found council in talking to the school building. I vaguely remember the building being quite fond of Sally, as the building would drop bricks on people’s head who were not in Sally’s good graces. (I think that’s how it went.) ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246/40 "2012-12-02T07:55:20Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > **Sitnam** : A marathon? I didn’t think there were enough animated Peanuts cartoons to make up a marathon. Was there a regular TV series I never knew about? [Yes.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Charlie_Brown_and_Snoopy_Show) But there were only 18 episodes. On the other hand, there have been [a HELL of a lot of specials](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Peanuts_media#Television). [And 4 features.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Peanuts_media#Feature_films) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-childhood-in-the-peanuts-universe-miserable/642246.md?page=3)