Cereal Repression

“Disease is never the legitimate result of the normal operations of any of our organs.” Sylvester Graham wrote this about societies lack of sexual self-control. He was an adamant believer that masturbation and lust were the causes of our diseases and physical ailments. This spurred him to create a sanitarium for people trying to fight these urges. It’s no secret that sex and sexual expression were often seen as mental problems that needed to be suppressed. By 1840, Graham’s ideas had inspired a man named James Caleb Jackson. He invented a tasteless graham flour wafer that he called “Granula”. This was a precursor to what we call Granola. By 1866, Graham’s philosophy had spread to a Seventh-Day Adventist, Ellen White. She decided to open her own sanitarium in Battle Creek, Michigan. When the facility was opened, she hired John Harvey Kellogg, a physician for the institute. John then hired his brother, William Kellogg for a clerical position. In 1902, the brothers were working on a grain based food product for the masses and stumbled upon cornflakes. After a heated legal battle, the brothers split and William kept the franchise running as the first cereal company.

Now, with sex at the forefront of most of America’s cultural pallette, breakfast cereal still remains a big (if not subtle) influence. Advertising in the early 50's showed Superman eating his cornflakes with Jimmy Olsen. It was feared that if they were to show him with Lois Lane, the American public would assume they had spent the night together. But let’s take a look at some other children’s cereal mascots. The easiest iconic figure to look at in this light is the Trix Rabbit. Since his induction, he has wanted nothing more than a simple bowl of Trix. Yet he is denied every time, almost cruelly. He has tried everything to obtain the object of his desire including disguises and manipulation. This character is never depicted as particularly shady or conniving. He always seems to be sad and depressed about the denial of his passion. On an interesting note; in 1976 a poll was taken to see what the public thought of his tribulation. It was almost unanimously voted that he receive his Trix. To this day, he still hears the inevitable rebuttal to his attempts, “Silly rabbit, Trix are for kids.”.

Let’s take a look at the other breakfast characters that have been denied their desire. The Lucky Charms spokesman is a leprechaun aptly named, Lucky. He has a deep need to keep his cereal secret, but the children depicted in this commercial world always manage to steal the cereal. It is as if the poor man, Lucky, has an innate desire to keep himself isolated and private. The children seem to have a more open idea for his cereal and constantly put it on display. The old leprechaun wants things private, while the children choose to be open and free with things. Make no mistake, as well, that the cereal is always shown being stolen form Lucky. The youth taking sexual freedom from the older, more reserved generation. We need to look at the other characters, or should I say, caricatures of denied desire. The Cookie Crisp mascot, Crook, is always seen trying to obtain his desire in a criminal way. Always unwilling to share, he is always seen stealing Cookie Crisp and inevitably getting caught. There’s Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble representing Fruity Pebbles. Fred, who was created as an animated Ralph from The Honeymooners is the typical “Average Joe” type. He has never let Barney, who is supposed to be his best friend, have any fruity pebbles. It’s as if these two , seemingly best friends, share all but the sugar-coated cereal. The only time these to have ever gotten past the cereal obstacle is for Christmas when Fred finally shared with Barney, with a little coaxing from Santa Clause. All of these characters have either had their cereal stolen or stolen the cereal themselves. As if they are engaging in something they know to be wrong and yet, continue along their self-destructive paths.

With all the denial running rampant in cereal icons, what about excess? Well, we have Sonny the Cuckoo Bird, the representative of Cocoa Puffs. This bird is driven to the point of insanity when confronted with a bowl of Puffs. The mere sight of them makes him imagine them everywhere and as everything. He literally goes “coo coo” for them. In earlier commercials, Sonny is actually involuntary of the desire. He tries to escape the Puffs as much as possible, including a rocket to the moon. He knows his obsession is wrong and yet, he can’t control it at all. Then there is the Honeycomb Monster. This little devil represents the children’s desire for Honeycomb. In fact, the children actually turn into the animal when confronted with a bowl of cereal. As if the creature lay inside us all. This uncontrollable, animalistic desire