Popeye is an unusual character. To call him unique would be a profound understatement. Popeye is physically misshapen. He’s craggy, and his face is a broad exaggeration of the classic gnarled “old salt”. He only has one eye. His personality is abrasive and quirky, and he has an entirely unique outlook on life. He is a thoroughly odd person.
Popeye finds himself in the middle of trying circumstances, and odd situations. He’s regularly confronted with the fact of his uniqueness. There is really no one else who is remotely like him, and to the common eye, he would not fit in anywhere in “normal” life and society. In the face of this, Popeye turns to the camera, addresses the audience and anyone else who might be listening, and says:
“I yam what I yam!”
It’s very possible that Popeye has discovered the key to real happiness. He squarely faces the many things which make him unique, and which many people would see as defects, misfortunes, oddities and rough edges to be “worked on”, and he embraces them.
Popeye finds himself in the middle of trying circumstances, and odd situations. He’s regularly confronted with the fact of his uniqueness. There is really no one else who is remotely like him, and to the common eye, he would not fit in anywhere in “normal” life and society. In the face of this, Popeye turns to the camera, addresses the audience and anyone else who might be listening, and says:
“I yam what I yam!”
It’s very possible that Popeye has discovered the key to real happiness. He squarely faces the many things which make him unique, and which many people would see as defects, misfortunes, oddities and rough edges to be “worked on”, and he embraces them.
