Needs Help: Self Made Man

Two things: One, it's just a quote that happens to be a comic. There's no addition context or anything from it being an image.

Secondly... I have trouble even seeing how it relates to the trope. It seems to be more about making money the right way (through honesty and hard work, presumably) rather than the wrong way.

So yeah, it's a lousy image and it's actively confusing. I don't have a replacement, but I think it's worth a pull.

Opening.

I'm ambivalent on this; I can live with the current, but I'm open to suggestion.

Maybe two of the framed pictures in the article for The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck side-by-side, like 1880◊ and 1902.◊

Geez, he really let himself go in 22 years.

Looks alright.

Considering a duck's lifespan is usually 10 years or so, I'd say he looks damn good for his age.

But yeah, those images work well.

Images work, though.

I kinda figured based off the name you were like a phoenix... every time you die, you are reborn as Another Duck. Only instead of rising from the ashes, you rise from a pile of feathers and stale bread.

Well, I'll throw in my two cents and say that the proposed duo is better than the current. However, I don't quite see how the duo does demonstrate this trope over Rags to Riches. There's no indication that Mr. McDuck got as far as he did without any outside assistance, which is what this trope is about.

Regardless of how much the proposed duo demonstrates the trope, the current is terrible. 'It doesn't matter how much money you make unless you make it square', what the hell does that even mean? Whatever we do, we should at least pull that one off.

edited 16th May '15 3:12:47 PM by KathiraNarae

I've always found the "there's nothing that indicates stuff didn't happen that isn't depicted anyway" argument kind of weak, as it relies on assuming something that isn't in the actual image.

Maybe that would hold true for some images, but this invites confusion with Rags to Riches. This is Self-Made Man, the difference is that there was no outside assistance, the example did the work him/herself. That being the difference, that is what should be represented.

Kathira - First, "make it square" is a shortened form of "make it fair and square", which means "you didn't cheat in some way".

Second, what would you feel would make an image demonstrate that there was no outside help?

Firstly, thanks for the definition! I have honestly never heard that shortening of the phrase before, and if one person didn't get it, how many more are there?

Secondly, that's exactly the problem with trying to demonstrate this trope through an image. The easiest—and probably best, annoyingly—is through the connection with Rags to Riches. Except, well, the core of this is that there wasn't any outside help, which is very hard to convey in an image. I honestly can't think of a way off the top of my head except through dialogue.

I think, on reflection, I've arrived at a personal conclusion. The current isn't good; how many people are like me and don't actually get what 'make it square' means? Not to mention the original reasons for pulling it, those still hold true. The suggested doesn't work because of possible confusion with Rags to Riches (confusion that could result in another of these threads, I'm simply trying to head that off). And, because of the difficulties in getting a REALLY good image for this, do we even need one? It's not a visual trope.

edited 23rd May '15 5:37:06 PM by KathiraNarae

Clock is set. I'm not keen on the current, but it's not bad enough for an outright pull.

Clock's up; locking for lack of consensus.