Mice in fiction: Difference between revisions

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	~~{{Merge\|list~~ of fictional ~~mice and rats\|date=July 2007}}~~		#REDIRECT ]
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	] are popular in ], usually as anthropomorphic ]s.

	Although mice have been regarded by mankind as pests for ages, they are often featured sympathetically in books and cartoons.<ref>{{cite web \|title=Rat tales \|author=Joe Burris \|publisher=] \|date=June 27, 2007 \|url=http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/movies/bal-to.rats27jun27,1,6489580.story?ctrack=1&cset=true }} <!-- note, this direct link does not work without subscription, but non-subscribers can use the website's search and follow the link from the results page --></ref> Sometimes, such as in '']'', humans are the enemy and mice are the protagonists.

	] movie reviewer Troy Patterson criticized the popularity of mice characters such as Mickey Mouse, saying: "literal pest has become the cuddliest critter in the world, and that, to paraphrase Walter Matthau, exemplifies the worst aspects of marketing that make America great."<ref>, By Troy Patterson, slate.com, June 29, 2007</ref>

	===Misconceptions===
	In fiction, mice are popularly portrayed as loving ], but in reality most mice do not particularly like cheese, and prefer foods in their natural diet. Too much cheese may cause digestive problems and strong-smelling excrement. Cheese probably became linked to mice because its strong smell and sticky texture make it a good bait for mousetraps. Another common stereotype is that ]s are afraid of mice. Many believed that this was false, until proved correct on ] <ref>{{cite web \|title=Of Mice And Then… \|publisher=] \|url=http://www.snopes.com/critters/wild/elephant.htm }}</ref>

	===Mice in TV/Movies===

	] in particular is recognized throughout the whole world.

	] (of '']'') is also extremely well known also his nephew ].

	Itchy, from ] ] cartoon-in-a-cartoon, is also a mouse. The cartoon is a violent parody of the classic, 'Tom and Jerry'.

	] is a cartoon mouse from the ]. Speedy would often humiliate his adversary ].

	] are two cartoon mice who regularly attempt to take over the world

	] and ] from ].

	] is an animated adaptation of ''Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH''.

	Basil, ]

	] had his own secret agent cartoon with his sidekick Penfold.

	] from the movie and the book.

	] is the murine Superman equivalent from the animated TV series.

	The ] are from a race of humanoid Martian Cave Mice that star in the cartoon series of that name.

	Fievel Mousekewitz is a cartoon Russian-Jewish mouse who appears in productions such as ] and ]

	Yuki from Fruits Basket turns into a mouse when hugged.

	In ], if a witch hunter says "you're a witch" to an actual witch, they turn into a mouse for 100 years.

	] is a tamed mouse kept by a person on ] in ]'s ]

	===Poetry===
	]' famous poem "]", written in 1785, gave us the immortal proverb "the best-laid schemes of mice and men often go awry". Burns, who owned a farm for a time, was inspired to write the poem after he had disturbed a field mouse's nest with his plow on a cold November day. The poem could be described as his "apology" to the mouse, and it expresses his apparent longing that man could once again be part of nature's "social union".

	===Allegory===
	There is also ]'s short story, "Josephine the Singer", an allegorical story about the role of the artist in society, where society is represented by a community of mice and the artist is a mouse named Josephine, with a gift of song.

	The book ] features mice adapting to change, specifically, running out of cheese. This book is occasionally given to employees facing layoffs.

	The graphic novel ] by ] tells the story of Spiegelman's parents during the holocaust, depicting the Jews as mice.

	===Other fiction===
	In '']'', Algernon is a laboratory mouse who has had his intelligence artificially increased.

	] is one of ], with the moral "Little friends may prove great friends".

	] is a series of comics by ] wherein ] mice, living in the 12th Century, protect their territory from various predators and plots.

	] is a bold, courageous mouse from ]. He wields a rapier; his headstrong behavior lends irony to his being a mouse.

	The '']'' series by ] is a series about an abbey of anthropomorphic mice (along with other anthropomorphic creatures) confronted by various challenges to their abbey in each book.

	The ] have minor roles in the movies '']'' and '']''.

	The ] frequently morph into mice during the series' run.

	In '']'' by ], white mice are pan-dimensional beings who commissioned the construction of a giant ], the ]. ''See ]''.

	In the '']'' series of novels, a group of mice from ] (A borough of ]) and some of their relatives from the countryside, along with smaller groups of bats and squirrels, defeat the machinations of an ancient evil cat spirit named Jupiter and his army of ] allies.

	In '']'' by ], the name chosen by Paul ] is ] from which one meaning refers to the ] of ]. The ] of Arrakis have great respect this animal because of it's versatility, hardiness, and proliferation in the harsh desert environment.

	== References ==
	{{reflist}}

	]

Latest revision as of 01:40, 2 February 2012

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List of fictional rodents