73. MARK TWAIN: An educational journey
My first Mark Twain comic is still one of my favourites and I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to do another quote from him. Similar to the first comic, this one is related to travel and I think it’s very true. Don’t you think the idea behind this comic would be a good social experiment? Or better yet, a reality TV show! Find the most ignorant, narrow-minded rascist and send him or her around the world. Make them experience every culture, meet every race of people, spend time with different families, eat, drink and dance with them – let them soak in worldwide hospitality, poverty and war. Surely by the end of the journey they would have a totally different attitude. Am I being too naive? C’mon, I’m sure Expedia, Kathmandu or Qantas would sponsor it. Can anyone help me pitch this to the Travel Network??
- There’s an Australian television series called Go Back To Where You Came From which tackles a similar issue by sending affluent and celebrity Aussies to live in refugee camps (Asylum seekers or ‘boat people’ is the most talked-about issue in Australia at the moment). Season two starts soon and you can watch season one on the website.
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Once again, you’ve done an excellent job making an inspiring quote even more inspiring through comics. Well done Gavin.
Nice one.
Over a hundred years on, and people still struggle with this one.
I very much enjoyed this. Work like this is the answer to the problems. Thank you very much sir. I wish you continued success and influence in the world.
Have you ever heard of ‘An Idiot Abroad’? Its kind of a similar idea to what your talking about, but without the racism and hatred. Its about a guy (Karl) who has no interest in seeing the world or learning of other cultures. His friend (Ricky Gervais) sends him around the world but if they send him to a tropical island it hasnt been in contact with the outside world. They send him to Mexico, on the day they shoot fireworks at each other.
I have seen a few eps of An Idiot Abroad, it’s pretty funny.
This wouldn’t happen to be Tulpetec, Mexico, would it?
http://www.mensjournal.com/magazine/mexicos-fireworks-capital-20120719
always great comics…
morgan spurlock (of super size me fame) had a TV show in the US for a few seasons called “30 days” that was somewhat similar to this notion. he would take people (a straight man, a Christian…) and stick them in the alternate situation for 30 days… of course, since this is highly edited, most of the episodes have a happy ending, but it would make interesting commentary to your point in this comic…
see if you can find a place to watch it online!
Great, thanks for the info Eddie
Eddie beat me to it. Was going to mention that. I think it is a great experiment. Then again there is also Wife Swap in the US.
I was lucky to catch ‘Go Back To Where You Came From’ while I was working in down in Adelaide last year. I Thought it was a brilliant show, seemed it have a real effect on some of the people I saw everyday. I love Australia, but was a little put off by how prevalent racism still is down there. Hopefully I was just being exposed to a few bad eggs.
Also, great strip this week
for the record, i spent my honeymoon in australia (dunk island and sydney), and i have never loved a place more!! the wife and i have been scheming ever since to figure out how to get back there (it’s a long flight for a 5 year old kid!!)
and FWIW, we never ran into any type of racism or bad eggs… maybe we were in touristy areas, but every local that we ran into seemed like the nicest most helpful stranger we met (until we met the next local!!!).
no worries!
In my experience, a lot of people who join the American military are mid to low income, predominantly from the South, and typically less educated (but not completely stupid, we weed most of them out). What I’m getting at, is there’s a fair bit of racism, sexism, and homophobia in the ranks.
But then we travel, and we build schools in Guatemala, dig up landmines in Africa, build streets and infrastructure in Iraq, ect. we find out how similar we all are.
On the issue of Mein Kampf, I suggest people read it. For one, you’ll never again call Hitler an Atheist. Also, it gives a more full understanding of the perverted thinking that leads to that kind of hatred. I read it because Winston Churchill read it, and he saw it all coming.
You do all that and alonmg the way rep the resources of the countries you occupy because you gave them “freedom”. The military works for the corporations not the people.
This is excellent and Mark Twain’s words remain as true today as when he wrote them.
There is a Japanese proverb, “i no naka no kawazu taikai wo shirazu”, which translates as ‘the frog in a well knows nothing of the outside world’ – sadly there are still too many frogs stuck in too many wells and we can but hope that they are afforded the chance to be rescued from their ignorance…
Great comic.
Back when I was in college, I visited the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C. It was a very emotionally powerful – and draining – experience. I learned many things that day including that my mind couldn’t figure out how to fit that many people in one train car… because I was treating them like people and not like objects shoved in a trunk.
One thing that stuck with me was a small piece about Jehovah’s Witnesses. They were approached by Hitler and that if they kept quiet and went along with his plan, they’d be left alone. They didn’t and resisted. For that, they were persecuted alongside the Jews, Gypsy’s, etc. Now, everyone’s likely cracked a joke at the Witnesses who show up at your door, but I have some respect for their religion having learned of this. To stick with your principals even though that will likely get you killed is very difficult to do. Especially when turning a blind eye to evil would be so very easy.
Another thing I learned there is that they would regularly give tours to groups of neo-nazi/white supremacist groups. The kind of folks who claim to be pro-Hitler but don’t actually know a lick of history. By the end of the tour, most of them will have changed their tune. It is easy to claim to be pro-something when separated from all gruesome details of it. However, when confronted with the sheer inhumanity of the time face to face, they just can’t bear to support such an action.
I would hope that a Racist’s World Tour reality show would show a natural progression as Joe Racist slowly realizes that other cultures aren’t beneath him simply because they’re different. Unfortunately, what would more likely happen would be that the producers would do everything possible to keep Joe Racist as racist as possible during the journey (for better “TV drama”) and possibly edit in a hasty attitude reversal at the end (complete with swelling music and a montage of the cultures he’s seen).
I don’t have any great story to tell, no eye-opening experiences… I traveled to Turkey, and not that it wasn’t great, but I was already tolerant and aware of other cultures….
Nonetheless, lovely comic. Not exactly “gross and depraved” as you wanted, but lovely nonetheless.
P.S. Though it’s obvious what he is, in the beginning, he kinda looks like a wizard.
he is not a Wizard. I think the artist wanted to portray the character as being the member of the Ku Klux Klan
Actually, he is a wizard. That’s what the KKK calls their leaders.
you did it again gavin. another brilliant comic for a brilliant quote; mark twain himself would be proud.
Also, what culture is the panel with the drummers and dancer? Carribean, Brazilian?
I was going for Brazilian
It seems the drummer section of G.R.E.S. Império Serrano BUT Brazilians don’t have heterogeneous skin color. In fact, this is a source of pride for us (at least for Brazilians who aren’t complete racist). Xuxa, Sabrina Sato, Seu Jorge, Rodrigo Santoro, Luiz Gonzaga, Raduan Nassar, Dilma Roussef, all of them are Brazilians and none of them look alike the others.
Somehow this frame diminished the very idea of the strip, if the (supposedly) Brazilians were depicted a little more realistic the message of learnig from diversity would be strengthened.
… But wonderfull strip!
P.S. Sorry for the mangled english.
Sorry for the “supposedly”. Ididn’t know it was from “mouth of god”
I found I was replying you, the author, after the fact!
At which point does pride for one’s culture become intolerance?
…and irony?
Well, I really don’t know. As I ponted, our object of pride is exactly a relative tolerance.
Second, being proud about something positive isn’t means to dismiss positive points about others Intolerance is simply intolerance, it is very different from self-respect and pride. And what? Only ex-KKK can be happy for have experienced some diversity. This would be really ironic!
Maybe I need to clarify. That frame was somewhat reductionist (sorry), and that work against the overall ideia of the strip.
The obvious reason is that reductionism relate to stereotyping. The less obvious reason (at least for who doesn’t know brazilian history) is that a immigrant nation woul be a strong point to the strip itself.
Sorry if my words sounds offensives. I read english well, but my writing is rusted. I don’t wanna to imply that mr. Gavin was prejudiced against my people. Umberto Eco, writing about Steve Canyon, has noted that the need for conciseness, intrisic to the comics medium, brings some sterotyping. Try to give a exact portrait of India (other very diverse country) or Brasil simply wouldn’t do, and I know it would be very unfair to hold that against mr Gavin.
I keep looking forward to updates on this page. And it is always worth the wait !! Great work !
subscribe, it will send them to your email
I completely agree. Although I was never a nazi lover but I was pretty narrow minded and then during my education and carer later on, I traveled all over my country and found myself loving all mankind. So cheers to Mark Twain. . .. . . . . .. . . .. and you of course.
Always a Mark Twain fan. was pleased by this brilliant cartoon.
The idea of making racists travel across the world and mix with different cultures is good.
The idea of international travel is very useful in bringing down barriers but the expense involved in it is not affordable except by the affluent few. Some inexpensive ways of making this must be thought of.
I read a few comments here and was inspired to add this one – my 2 cents!
In the 1960s, Manian, a writer from Ananda Vikatan, a Tamil (South Indian Language) weekly magazine travelled to US, Canada USSR, Europe, Africa, SE Asia, Australia etc and wrote a series narrating his travel experiences. These serials were titled ‘Idhayam Pesugiradhu’ (meaning The Heart Speaks) What was unique (at that time at least) was that while he visited and described the famous ‘must see’ kind of things – Eiffel Tower, Sydney Opera House, Statue of Liberty etc – he stayed with the native citizens rather than in hotels and picked up conversations with cab drivers and reported these experiences. It was my first insight, as a sub teen, to the world outside my home town of Hyderabad, India and must have shaped my approach to variety in people and cultures.
Great comic! And great truth.
It reminds me to a quote of a spanish writer, Pío Baroja: “Carlism is cured by reading, and nationalism by travelling”
(The Carlism was a movement seeking to change the king of Spain in the 19th century)
Incredible, completely incredible. Not just for considering people with fascist, discriminative ideas, but for all showing how to change one’s mind, abilities, etc. Gavin, man, what you are doing is construction of “the hope” for all.
Best wishes…
years ago in college a professor showed me this video and it resonated with me ever since. I would love to be able to have the same opportunity to see so many different places. I also like how at the most basic levels we are all the same terrible dancers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlfKdbWwruY&feature=fvwrel
Brilliant video! I hadn’t seen that before – everyone should watch it who enjoyed this comic – thanks GT
Epic dance. Awesome message.
Thanks for all the comments and stories everyone – I love reading em.
Thanks to you for sharing and illustrating amazing quotes!
Greetings from Paris!
I am reminded of another Zen proverb:
Do not try to discover the truth, for that is impossible. Instead cease to cherish opinions, and the truth reveal itself in time.
I think one application of this relates directly to prejudice and bigotry. Bigots believe they have a great truth about other people, and believe it’s so true they can use it to judge others without knowing anything about them.
But disregard the biased opinions that people have about one another, and accept people as they truly are. Then the truth of others will become clear in its own time.
As a travel addict, I completely endorse your latest piece! Great work.
I love this comic, Gav! I really agree with the sentiment, too. I think that if more people had a chance to travel, to meet and get to know other cultures, they would find that racism is silly and people are really not so different.
Also, Matt did a new video for 2012 that came out just a few weeks ago. It’s lovely, and I am sure you would like it:
http://youtu.be/Pwe-pA6TaZk
Thank you for sharing Monica, I had not seen that video before.
It was nice to see Kabul included. I’m about half-way through my 3rd deployment to Afghanistan and the majority of American media outlets only discuss the corruption, violence and instability of the region. Sadly, it makes it difficult for most people to separate the violent acts of the minority from the majority of innocent civilians caught in the grips of poverty, famine, violence, extortion and abuse.
Thanks Monica, another great vid! And thanks for contributing while you’re on tour GT – totally agree with you. All I’ve seen of Kabul is from the media and it’s always war and death.
Thank you Gav for providing a little reprieve from the day to day grind. I’m certainly not at the Hilton but the fact I have access to the internet is leaps and bounds above what some of the other service members are dealing with on a daily basis. I also work in forensics so every case has a story and it’s usually a sad one.
Your updates give me one more small thing to look forward to while counting down the days. Keep up the good work!
The swords are upside down in the final panel.
The blade edge ALWAYS faces heaven.
holy shit,
I really cried because of this.
What a wonderful thought! I wish every closed minded person could be educated to see: we are all human beings, and we all deserved to be treated with respect and kindness (thank you, Dalai Lama!)
Today, I met a 24 year old male customer in our store. His mother informed me when he was out of earshot that he thinks Hitler was a great guy(!!) and he’s a bigot and white supremist as well. He wasn’t raised that way. Yet he would go out of his way to help an animal in trouble, according to Mom. I don’t know if he was also an antisemite: I would have had to excuse myself from helping him. How does someone get so screwed up and is it possible to ever open his mind? Wish I had the answer.
I really liked this one.
I’ve seen a few of your comics on 9gag and never realized the site was listed at the bottom of the strips until this one was posted. I’m not one to usually read inspiring quotes, but you breath life into them! Thank you for this website, and you can expect me to check on it every week now!
I just spent a good two hours today reading and soaking in all your works. the quotes by themselves are inspirational but your works give them life in whole new ways. You’ve just gained one new fan. On a side note there a video called the greatest speech ever made and it’s charlie Chaplin giving a speech on humanity that I feel you would enjoy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WibmcsEGLKo that’s the link there if you feel inclined to check it out. Would be interesting if you could do something with it. Either way keep up the good work
Thanks Daniel, great video
Overe here in Perth the assumption seems to be that a trip to Bali is a cultural experience par excellence. While that COULD be true if people bothered to engage with the local culture, for most it is just a chance for cheap booze and tatoos.
The quote you have used is one of my very favourite quotes ever and I recalled it only recently when I saw that Peter Reith was taking part in the SBS Series “Go Back to Where you Came From”. a series that in my view should be widely watched for the opening of previously closed minds.
Love that cartoon.
This one made me cry. Beautiful work. Thank you for sharing.
Excellent!!!!!
Wow, what a good cartoon. Before condemning the world, you have to see it. So true.
Wow… so many racial stereotypes in one page… amazing.
This was the comic — posted on Tumblr — that made me come to this website.
Thanks for feed back to return a good favor I just want to share this web site on Las Vegas Travel Deals
http://travel.ian.com/hotels/index.jsp?cid=408442 for Vegas Deals
Brilliant!!
Awesome! If you come to China (in summer) you can stay and eat for free at my hostel as long as you want in exchange for a print of this one. (you can bring it with you)
Or, since the hostel is on the central daoist mountain maybe you could do a nice ???? (The way follows what is natural) print?
Nice Hostel
maybe I can visit one day
Like what Harleigh Quinn, the swords are upside down. Useless information, but interesting to know: When you have katana in your house, there are two ways of placing them, both have the blade facing up. The first way is to have the handle to the right, the second to the left. While this may seem minor, it signifies very different intent. When the handle is on the right, it signifies aggression and in-hospitality on the part of the host. That’s because if the handle is on the right, it’s easier to draw the blade because most people are right-handed. If the handle is on the left, it signifies openness and welcoming because it makes the blade harder to draw out of the scabbard.
Hehe, but listen to me going on and on about useless information that’s completely irrelevant to appreciating the comic
Ignore me, I’m just rambling, hehe.
Great comic as always, and most inspirational indeed. I’ll definitely be following your work, cheers!
Please be aware that not all Christians are bigots. This one truly made me sad, as I saw the bigotry that all can suffer, but I want you to know that Christianity teaches peace and love and tolerance just like those other faiths, along with a relationship with its deity, Jesus Christ! Blessings, and what wonderful art you make!
Cheryl, it’s very true that not all Christians are bigots, and I highly doubt that it was his intent. However, given the other KKK memorabilia in the character’s room, it is safe to say that the old man is supposed to be a Klansman, who are very militantly and aggressively Christian.
They hang Christian flags (you can buy them at many Christian book stores) with equal prominence to the American flag. Most of the severely nationalistic also have strong religious delusions (because they can claim they are god’s “true” people). So it’s true not all Christians are bigots, but most American bigots are Christians.
And because I’ve heard it argued before, you can’t say they’re not Christians just because they don’t interpret the Bible as you interpret it. Sometimes you just have to admit that every culture and movement has some bad eggs.
And here’s *another* echo of my former life.
Crazy.
Love! travel is always better than staying at home and dream about it
Too bad the other way around doesn’t work. Too bad those african kids or that muslim guy will never have the means to travel. Too bad those south american people will be repelled by a wall. And if they ever overcome those issues, too bad they will be shot at or probed at the border…
I think you’ve got a fantastic idea and a fantastic comic!