2011-11-05
Explanation
This single-panel comic offers a darkly realistic twist on the classic motivational speech a parent gives to a child. A father tells his child: "Sweetie, if you work reaaaaly hard, and focus reaaaaly well, and there aren'''t that many people who are still better at what you do than you are despite your best efforts, you can be whatever you want." This is a subversion of the typical parental encouragement of "you can be anything you want to be if you work hard enough."
The humor comes from the father'''s uncomfortable honesty. Instead of the simple, uplifting version of this speech, he adds the crucial caveat that hard work alone is not sufficient -- you also need to not be outcompeted by people with more natural talent. This reflects the often unspoken reality that effort, while necessary, does not guarantee success in any given field, since talent, circumstance, and competition all play major roles.
The votey panel adds an even darker qualifier, with the father adding "If you don'''t die." This final caveat strips away the last bit of inspirational comfort, reducing the motivational speech to its most brutally honest form: success requires hard work, talent, lack of competition, AND not dying -- making the whole enterprise of life feel precarious and uncertain.