Whatever Happened to Professor Weetos?
Sunday, 7 January 2007 - 02:13
In boredom, I gave much too serious thought to the semiotics of the front of my box of cereal and its relation to wider social trends. The clearest signal is that Professor Weetos no longer makes an appearance, despite his long association with the product, replaced by a skateboarding child and a promotion for a recent film.
Clearly, this reflects a growing acceptance of anti-intellectualism around us, a decadent laziness and unwillingness to work towards self-improvement, exemplified by Heat magazine and George Bush. Previously, the kindly professor had a crazed appearance, appealing to children, but ultimately a responsible figure and positive role model approved of by parents keen to see their children succeed in school. Now, however, the fact that the cereal is nutritious and relatively low in sugar is no longer beneficial in the marketplace, since the child is no doubt full of Ritalin, rendering his miniscule attention span perfectly acceptable. This is further reflected in the fact that the aged professor has been deemed disposable by today's youth-orientated society, despite the fact he has many skills and experiences to contribute.
Perhaps this all stems from the government's determination to send ever more people to the universities: increasing familiarity has eroded the distance between the ordinary person and the academic, undermining the traditional respect shown to the ivory towers. This seems to be unrelated to a more general decline in the deference shown to traditional British icons, since my breakfast proudly displays insignia to signify the company's contracts with the royal family. Unlike the university, this is an institution just as distant as it was decades ago, reinforcing the point that contact has rendered the crude stereotype impracticable, just as the Gollywog was removed from Robinson's marmalade after modern British society become more ethnically integrated.
You'll be glad to hear I've finished the box off, and have something much plainer to eat tomorrow.
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