10 Life Lessons for Little Ones: An Introduction to Polish Cartoon Characters
Welcome to Polish Cartoon Characters 101, the jolly lecture each student would have aced. These cartoon characters are devoid of superpowers but they harness the power of creativity, kindness and adventurousness. What life lessons did they teach generations of Poles?
The taller, thinner Bolek and shorter, chubby Lolek are brothers. Although Bolek wasn't always an angel towards his brother, the two are inseparable. 'Co dwie głowy, to nie jedna' Poles always say – two heads are better than one. Abroad Bolek and Lolek were known as Jym and Jam or Bennie and Lennie.
While Snoopy lies around on his rooftop, Reksio makes himself useful to others. Polite and brave, he is as good as a do-gooder can be.
To every problem there's a solution
Piotrek and his little dog don't run away from problems. The little boy owns an Enchanted Pencil which brings things to life. Having an otherworldly tool makes overcoming troubles a piece of cake, but the one being creative here is the boy not the pencil.
Knowing is half the battle
This sought-after clay man called Plastuś plays a particularly important educational role – on the off chance kids don't want to go to school, he lends the daunting task an enjoyable facet. He wakes up the entire pencil case in the morning and settles in to quietly assist with doing homework. The cartoon went by the name Plastusiowy Pamiętnik (Plastuś's Diary).
In a country under the communist regime, where kids had few, if any toys, DIY was an essential part of being a kid. In times of need, Pomysłowy Dobromir (Dobromir the Inventor) invents and implements.
Foresight and resourcefulness
Morality from the get-go. Miś Uszatek's (Teddy Floppy-Ear) adult-like behaviour almost seems like a caricature. He saves money to buy presents for his friends, and when one of his friends claims to have lost his money, he takes a piece of paper and approaches the problem with simple math. Once they conclude that the Pig didn't lose his money but spent it, Floppy-Ear concludes that 'he won't waste his money like Pig did'.
Koziołek Matołek (Goofy Billy-Goat) may not be the brightest of anthropomorphised animals but no matter how many times he trips over his own tail, he doesn't waver in pursuing his goal – to find the city of Pacanów, where he believes he can get his own goat shoes.
Maurycy and Hawranek, the Heckle and Jeckle of Polish cartoons, struggle with a dark sorcerer named Plimplan. However, unlike the talking magpies, they are well behaved and try to contribute to the well-being of all the inhabitants of the forest.
Jacek and Agatka are the oldest cartoon characters on Polish television (1962). The brother and sister discuss every detail of what goes on in their neighbourhood and tuck each other into bed. Their long dialogues and monologues wouldn't catch the attention of today's action crazed youth but at that time there wasn't much else to choose from. They caught every kids attention and perhaps influenced the way they think?
Colargol, the fuzzy furred bear is often the cause of worry because of his head-in-the-clouds attitude. He is always late for class and gets bad grades. But he has a dream - becoming a singer. Though he has an awful voice, on one of his journeys he proves that dreams can come true and starts singing beautifully.
Written by Mai Jones, 28 Jan 2014
Sources: inspired by articles by Bartosz Staszczyszyn & Mikołaj Gliński; Muzeum Dobranocek; Polish forums