How The 7 Deadly Sins and Mental Disorders go along with SpongeBob SquarePants
Cartoons have been one of the main forms of entertainment for the younger population for ages. They come off innocent and kid friendly right? Well, that does not always tend to be the case. We all grew up watching them, but the older we get the more we realize just how not-so-innocent some of our beloved shows were. From the perverted behavior to the sick jokes, what on earth were we watching? If you take a deeper look into SpongeBob SquarePants, you will know exactly where I am coming from. When you take a closer look, the characters in the television show seem to be based off the Seven Deadly Sins: Greed, Lust, Sloth, Gluttony, Pride, Envy, and Wrath. Could the drastic characteristics of the sins that each character retains reveal some sort of mental disorder? There are so many unanswered questions that we have somehow overlooked throughout the years.
Eugene Krabs (Greed) has a strong, passionate love for money. He has never been generous a day in his life, except for once, in which he believed he was dreaming. Mr. Krabs is what most people would consider a “Jew”. Everything in which he is associated with must have some sort of benefit to him. Nothing he has ever done has been for the benefit of others, just him solely. A penny-pincher would be an excellent word to describe him. He has literally gotten into altercations with other civilians over a single penny. Mr. Krabs is over-obsessive when it comes to certain things, like money for example. He has no control over his impulses and this causes his relationships with others to suffer. The Krusty Krab is his way of coping. He jacks up his prices and as long as he is making a significant profit, he is content with his life. When revenue is not coming in how he approves, it destroys him. Devastation floods his mind and he stops at nothing until he gets what he set out for.
Sheldon Plankton (Envy) is Mr. Krabs’ arch nemesis; he envies him. Every single day Plankton watches the success the Krusty Krab brings in from across the street at the Chum Bucket, which is a complete and total failure. His constant attempts to try to steal the secret Krabby Patty Formula so he can reach high levels of success with his business are always a failure as well. Plankton wants everything Mr. Krabs has, he is completely envious of him. Plankton must have some sort of personal issue among himself, something he is battling internally. I would associate Plankton with depression. The self-sorrow he engulfs himself in is drastic. Nothing in his life has gone his way. He faces extreme struggles on a daily basis. Instead of seeking help, he battles with himself internally and tries to convince himself that everyone else is the problem. Could him trying to drag others down be his own form of self-medication? Maybe this is his way of trying to lighten his spirits. The life he has lived has been depressing, so he really knows no other way. I do not believe Plankton sees fault in his actions, therefore not seeing that he has a problem.
SpongeBob SquarePants (Lust) is the happiest, most joyful character in the show, and also the most hyper and talkative. SpongeBob is always on the go; he never takes a break. He is the hardest worker in all of Bikini Bottom. He loves everyone and everything unconditionally; he may even love too much. SpongeBob would give the shirt off his back for anyone. He is there during any time of need, no matter what it may be. He even tries to help Plankton out and he despises Mr. SquarePants. Plankton has used SpongeBob on numerous occasions, yet SpongeBob is always there for him. His love for Patrick is indescribable, they do everything together, almost as if they were joined at the hip. Squidward Tentacles, SpongeBob’s neighbor, expresses his hatred for SpongeBob like no other, but he is constantly trying to win him over. He considers him to be one of his best friends, although that is obviously not the case. But why does SpongeBob love so deeply? He feels as if he must have the approval of others, while constantly seeking assurance from everyone around him. Along with suffering from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, anxiety disorder is also present.
Sandy Cheeks (Pride) is a “land critter”, or in other words, a squirrel. Texas is where she is from and she is extremely proud of that. Overly confident would be a perfect word to describe Sandy. She believes herself to be the best at everything, no matter whom she may be competing against. Constant boasting about her accomplishments is by far her favorite past time. Everything is a contest to Ms. Cheeks. She takes pride in herself, far more than the average land or sea critter. Her narcissistic personality disorder tends to make her very unapproachable in some ways. The constant need for admiration and sense of entitlement grows tiresome after some time. Sandy comes off rather polite and harmless, until she feels threatened. The lengths she will go to prove a point is quite shocking.
Squidward Tentacles (Wrath) is SpongeBob and Patrick’s neighbor; he considers them to be the “worst neighbors ever”. Squidward also works at the Krusty Krab with SpongeBob, where he annoys him there also. Every morning when he wakes for work, his day is immediately ruined. Squidward’s life away from home is quite miserable and depressing, so much that he is constantly infuriated. Hate fills his heart. The constant negativity is no good for him or those around him. He tries to stay to himself, but with SpongeBob and Patrick always barging in and insisting their friendship, it is quite hard. This only makes his anger towards everything/one worse. He sleeps all day, trying to avoid others and his responsibilities. Not a day goes by that Squidward is not miserable. The only time he is happy is when he is home alone playing his clarinet. Mr. Tentacles believes himself to be the best clarinet player in all of Bikini Bottom, although that is not true in the slightest, he is quite proud of his skill in fact. He shows very little interest in anything other than clarinet for that matter. Along with suffering from severe depression, signs of hypersomnia are present.
Patrick Star (Sloth) once won an award for doing nothing longer than anyone else in all of Bikini Bottom. He lives under a rock and his furniture consists of sand only. Most consider him to be quite the slob. There is no such thing as a clean, sophisticated area anywhere Patrick may be present. Along with being a lazy mess, Mr. Star (despite the name) is not too bright either. Signs of Down’s Syndrome are very relevant in Patrick’s daily life. Short stature/limbs, developmental deficiencies, obesity, and difficulty understanding, or learning would be among the few.
Garold “Gary” Wilson Snail Jr. (Gluttony) is the beloved pet snail which belongs to SpongeBob SquarePants. He does not speak much, nor does he do much in general. He is most known for his eating habits. SpongeBob mentions several times in each episode that he must go feed Gary. Overeating is his favorite hobby, really it is his only. The one time he was not fed, he ran away from home and SpongeBob had to go through hell in order to get him back. Gary the Snail seems to suffer from binge-eating disorder. He overeats in very short amounts of time.
Although some of these claims may appear obvious in some episodes, the deeper you get into it the more it all makes sense. There are several other deeper meanings to the all-time favorite kids show “SpongeBob SquarePants” that I have picked up on over the course of the years. The more you listen, the more it all falls together. All of the jokes and the dominant personality traits have a much deeper meaning that what we understood as kids. The older we get, the more our brains can comprehend. From the deadly sins to the mental disorders, these traits are commonly overlooked. These may have been thrown into the show to bring awareness to these certain disabilities.