THESATIRIST

Usually, it is a fairly easy job to be a satirist when you are creating funny animal comic book stories, because the whole concept relies upon talking animals' humanlike reactions to the events and actions in the plots. Although it was certainly not Carl Barks' primary intention to place specific or obvious elements of satire in his stories, he would from time to time touch the subject in more or less transparent and straightforward connections. Sometimes he commented on everyday occurrences such as the eternal pursuit for money, and sometimes he commented on quickly passing fads such as fashion. Here are a few examples of the satirical Barks.

The characters

I've always looked upon the ducks as caricature human beings, Barks once said. But he took them further on occasion to satirize the human condition. Of the main characters, Scrooge can satirize avarice, Daisy can satirize vanity and Donald can satirize anger.
In a number of stories Barks made secondary characters into caricatures of famous people from our world. In WDCS114 'Serum to Codfish Cove' he made a satirical panel of the detective Noble X. Ample, an easily identifiable portrait of J. Edgar Hoover, director of the FBI. You can see more examples HERE.
In several stories Barks used heavy satire when describing a fictional nation called Brutopia. The name alone (a combination of Brutal and Utopia) leaves us in little doubt as to what kind of country this is. The feeling is rapidly reinforced when we meet some of its inhabitants: they are all criminals and spies (left). Barks explained: Whenever I invented a villain, he was a stinking villain. He even looked it. All those pig-faced villains, and all those guys were mean all the way through.

Americanisms

In a number of stories we are given Barks' satirical views on some - at the time - typical American events:
In WDCS269 A Matter of Factory from 1963 Barks made a story built on the concepts of drive-ins and motels which were relatively new occurrences. In the story he delivered a heavy satire on people's treatment of this new development.
In WDCS099 'The Quiz Whiz' from 1948 Barks satirized the phenomenon when the networks were broadcasting all sorts of silly quiz shows.
In FC1055 The Beauty Queen from 1959 Barks took up a type of special event that originated in the USA - young women's competitions to be elected as beauty queen.
In WDCS273 A Duck's Eye View of Europe from 1963 Americans developed a new trend - a new way of taking trips abroad (left). The general idea seemed to be that groups of Americans would visit as many European countries and cities as they could in the shortest amount of time possible. Barks wrote a biting satire on this phenomenon, which has not yet ceased to exist.

Fads

In a number of stories Barks aired his opinions on apparent 'here today - gone tomorrow' events - which after all have survived to this day:
In WDCS308 The Beauty Business from 1966 Donald has started a beauty salon which enjoys enormous success. Even the ugliest and most repulsive of ladies wind up beauties.
In U$52 The Great Wig Mystery from 1964 wigs are the latest craze in Duckburg. Big wigs - the bigger the better - in all imaginable colours are just hip.
In WDCS312 The Not-So-Ancient Mariner from 1966 Barks described fashion in its most exaggerated form. He even used Gladstone and Daisy as regular clotheshorses (left).
In U$62 Queen of the Wild Dog Pack from 1966 Barks really lets his hair down when describing rock music. The story is filled with lyrics like this one: When I melt your heart - I'll find it hard - to dispose of all the lard!

Sarcasms

In a number of stories Barks made sarcastic remarks on fairly timeless events:
In WDCS069 'Donald the He-man' he lets Donald work hard and determined in order to develop an impressive muscular body. He was encouraged to do so, because Daisy's girlfriend had a fiance that would make Arnold Schwarzenegger look scrawny.
In U$64 Treasure of Marco Polo from 1966 Barks created a satirical story that has the subject of war as the main theme. It would probably not be fair to state that the story had the then current war in Vietnam as its background. However, it would be fair to be considered as part of Barks' dissociation from war as a whole.
In U$39 A Spicy Tale Barks took a gentle poke at the Peace Corps (in the story Donald and the nephews are delegates for The Tutor Corps). As Barks later stated: I'm running out of nations which aren't fighting or rioting or committing aggression.
In WDCS286 The Olympian Torch Bearer he satirized over modern art by presenting a painting by the great artist Fakasso (left). It should come as no surprise that Barks disliked modern art when one thinks of both his and his wife's enormous output of 'straightforward', realistic paintings. Neither of them ever even attempted to produce any type of modern art.

Blackstone the Great (famous magician)

Animal Quackers

In 1997 the book Animal Quackers was published. It contained photographs of the numerous paintings Barks had for a long time produced under his own grandiose titling Famous Figures of History as they might have looked if their Genes had gotten mixed with Waterfowl. The characters in the Waterfowl series were always human but they had beaks and similar features.
In a letter to his daughter Dorothy Barks explained: ...Too bad the book, with its ancient and ante bellum historical figures could not have been published sixteen years ago when the subjects and the satire in their presentation was fresher in the minds of millions of Americans. Nowadays few people under fifty know that famous people actually lived and did interesting things before Elvis Presley came along. In modern minds my Hercules, Attila, Billy the Kid, Wyatt Earp, Robin Hood are only characters out of Hollywood movies...
At least the older generation can enjoy Barks' wonderful satirical paintings...