1073: Weekend
| Weekend |
 Title text: Of the two Garfields, you wouldn't think the cat would turn out to be the more compelling presidential speechwriter, but there you go. |
Explanation[edit]
This comic was posted on a Monday, immediately following the weekend, aligning with the commonly expressed sentiment of disliking Mondays. In the first panel, there is a reference to the Loverboy song "Working for the Weekend"; both the song and the panel highlight how many working- and middle-class individuals often focus on enduring the workweek in anticipation of the weekend, when they can finally relax.
Cueball then presents a philosophical observation: that the calendar is a human-made construct and that days of the week hold no meaning in nature. He suggests that, by collective agreement, one could simply declare Monday to be Saturday—and, taking this logic further, he proposes renaming all days to "Saturday," effectively creating an eternal weekend.
Upon closer scrutiny, however, the logic of this argument falls apart. Simply renaming the days of the Gregorian calendar would not change their social or economic function. The concept of "the first Saturday of the week" would quickly inherit the same negative connotations as "Monday". Moreover, if the suggestion implies the complete abolition of the traditional workweek, such a disruption would have dire consequences for the global economy—potentially triggering a collapse within days, hours, or even minutes, depending on the spread of the idea and resulting market reactions. This sense of impending doom is visually reinforced in the final panel, which is drawn in negative, with a black background, lending an ominous tone to Cueball’s concluding remarks.
There is no confirmed reference in the comic to either former U.S. President James A. Garfield or the comic strip character Garfield, although both are mentioned in the title text as the "speechwriters" behind the monologue. While James Garfield is not known for any notable speeches on time or calendars, the character Garfield frequently expresses disdain for Mondays — ironically, as a cat, he is not subject to a typical human work schedule.[citation needed] The title text humorously suggests that the speech might have been penned by Garfield the cat, and proposes that it is superior to any speech ever written by President Garfield.
Transcript[edit]
- [Cueball stands behind a lectern on a podium before a very large crowd.]
- Cueball: We all hate Mondays. We're all working for the weekend.
- Cueball: But our chains exist only in our minds.
- [Zoom in on Cueball from the lectern upwards, seen from an angle. He raises one hand in explanation. His text goes above the frame and is written in the top part of this panel which is frame-less.]
- Cueball: Calendars are just social consensus.
- Cueball: Nature doesn't know the day of the week.
- [Closer zoom on Cueball who looks straight out of the panel, the top of the lectern is just visible.]
- Cueball: My friends—
- Cueball: We can make today Saturday.
- [Extreme close-up, the lectern now below the panel, and negative colors with Cueball and the text in white on a black background.]
- Cueball: We can make it Saturday forever.
Add comment 
Create topic (use sparingly) 
Refresh Discussion
I usually start spewing this kind of nonsense when I lose track of what I'm saying in a speech. Who needs scripts? Davidy22[talk] 13:35, 8 January 2013 (UTC)
Since I am not well read regarding James Garfield's speeches perhaps this is an effort to point out that James Garfield's speeches were less compelling than the desire to avoid Monday's and how lasagna makes everything better.?66.88.136.254 20:10, 12 March 2013 (UTC)
How can you make the statement "abolish the work week entirely, the economy would collapse within twenty four hours." This is unsupported by any kind of evidence. Many countries don't have a 40 hour work week, and it is becoming rarer in the US as well. Even if everyone stopped working tomorrow, it wouldn't collapse the system because it would be like a holiday. Are you assuming the abolition of the work week would mean no one works, or that it would be replaced by an inferior system that collapses the economy? Neither seems rather realistic. 63.149.29.1 21:15, 11 October 2013 (UTC) Robert
- Missed Source
Hi There, I just went random on xkcd and noted that one first time... But I know the concept from a book: Sam Small flies again by https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Knight ... One of the stories is about Sam Small deciding that it is now Saturday... on and on and on... Funny story, should not miss here...141.101.93.49 14:19, 18 April 2016 (UTC)
I don't think it's a reference. The joke is that Garfield (the character) hates Mondays. 108.162.237.89 02:09, 2 December 2016 (UTC)
I have watched the Garfield Movie, and this speech seems very similar to one made in the movie. I recommend that someone looks into that. 162.158.79.23 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)
Looks as if Garfield the president was shot on a Saturday (July 2, 1881) and died on a Monday (September 19, 1881). In between he probably wasn't a big fan of Saturdays, hard to say what his final take on Mondays was. Assuming that after being shot the president indeed disliked Saturdays and assuming that being dead is worse than being shot, the cat was right then; Mondays are worse. MK Add comment
