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Originally Posted by jekylljuice
Exactly. Some of Wilt's behaviours (in particular, the excessive apologising) certainly ring a lot truer with my own experiences with OCD than any of Mr. H's, and it is admittedly one of the reasons why Wilt appeals to me as a character, but at the same time I do not believe that he is actually intended to be any kind of portrayal of an OCD-sufferer. These are simply character traits which have been given particular prominence in defining and developing his personality, and utilised for the sake of both comedy and pathos. The same goes for all of the characters' personality flaws.
One of the key problems with taking the exaggerated personality traits of a cartoon character and casually alligning them with a real-life disorder is that there's a strong possibility that you'll wind up offending someone who actually does have that disorder. That's what I've been trying to get at here.
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I'd categorize Wilt's "I'm sorry's" as the same as someone repeating phrases such as "like" or "you know" or, as is often the case where I live, finishing off lists with the phrase, "...and (expletive)". It's a habit, generated partially from his emotional state in the past, and partially from the culture and geographical region where he was created. You will hear "I'm sorry" a LOT down here, whether or not the speaker is really apologizing for anything, since it's also a means of drawing attention to a particular situation, as in "I'm sorry, but Zaxby's chicken kicks (expletive, again)", a phrase uttered to me last night on the phone by one of my friends when the topic of take-out food came up, or "I'm sorry, but Clemson has been to WAY more bowl games than USC"(another snippet, from my father this time, debating the merits of their respective college football teams with the preacher, of all people), which means more or less, "I respectfully disagree with you". It could be argued that Wilt has a mild form of OCD, but then, when you really get into nitpicking, MOST of us do. Mr. Herriman is more properly referred to, in terms of personality traits, as "anal retentive". Everything has to be JUST SO, no room for error. Part of THAT has to do with HIS era, too; "back in the day" people were just expected to strive for perfection and adhere strictly to rules. Any of you who have ever had close contact with a person who grew up around the turn of the 20th Century knows how these dear folks frown upon our "lazy" and "careless" society.
pitbulllady