WealthBob MoneyPants: The weird class structure of Bikini Bottom
On a November night in 2008, a Farawayville teen, Girly Teengirl, was hate crimed by a group of teens in the town over. This town was of course Bikini Bottom. As the details of that case unfold, we as people are beginning to become more critical of how we view Bikini Bottom and its residence.
This makes sense as people tend to look for solace when approached with tragedy, but this question goes deeper than expected. In truth, Bikini Bottom has a very rigid class system that its residents must adhere to. One that is divided clearly from wealth, social structure and performance.
WealthBob MoneyPants
Starting with wealth, what capital can one own in the Bikini Bottom? Well similarly to our world, the traditional options of land, business and buildings apply. Or do they? Structures, both residential and commercial, tend to be objects that are made or found. An example of the former would be the home of Sandy Cheeks or Squidward Tentacles. Both of which were built in their locations. And an example of the latter would be Spongebob’s home, which we know grew from a seed.
We can say similar things about the Bikini Bottom Hospital which is made up of wood and random pipes, the post office which is a cardboard box, and the chum bucket… which is a bucket. That, with the number of times the Krusty Krab has been torn down and rebuilt without Mr. Krabs losing a single dime, it’s safe to assume that in Bikini Bottom, the residents are building everything themselves.
This reliance on the people can also be seen in the land and business side. The actual location of Bikini Bottom is clearly conditional due to events like “Sandy, SpongeBob, and the Worm” where the town is pushed elsewhere. This makes it more difficult to reliably foster a strong business when it’s all subject to disappear at any moment. We’ve seen this before with the disappearance of the Wenny Hut enterprise.
ClassBob SocialPants
This leads to a discussion about how the lack of tangible wealth affects the social structure. Seemingly no one is going without in the Bikini Bottom. Residence regularly can obtain groceries at the Barg’N-Mart or see a flick at The Reef. Which sounds crazy when you consider that Bikini Bottom is clearly lower middle class. We know this because it’s regularly shown and said to be lesser than its neighboring areas. Places like Tentacle Acres, Bass Vegas, Dullsville, Atlantis, Bubbletown, and especially Shell City. The only places that seem to be worse than the Bikini Bottom is Rock Bottom, which is directly under it, and New Kelp City, which is not that far from it.
The class divide is further solidified by the fact that on average, we know Spongebob makes at most a dollar a hour, and when he was first hired he had to pay Mr. Krabs 100 dollars to work at the Krusty Krab. Not to mention we only know of six named characters who have a consistent job. This may explain the violence toward Farawayville, an area known for its lucrative business ventures.
PerformBob ArtPants
All of these factors can only lead to one conclusion — Bikini Bottom, and the ocean at large, is a place where class exists without wealth. Where the citizens must perform a role to earn their status and positions. This is most exemplified through the relationship between Spongebob SquarePants and Squidward Tentacles. Tentacles is a very miserable person, but why is it? Well, he is incapable to perform the class that he wants to be apart of. In a way similar to Greco-Roman ideals, Mr. Tentacles dreams of being well versed in sculpting, painting, music, athletics, and the liberal arts.
Which makes sense as these are the skills needed to be apart of the higher ranks of Tentacle Acres and Atlantis. Especially Shell City, which is where the richest man, King Poseidon, lives. However, Squidward is not great at these things. He is in fact a terrible artist. The one time he did stay in Tentacle Acres he could not keep up with the other squid residence. And as such he is forced to suffer at the Krusty Krab. This contrasts with his coworker, who not only is amazing at the role he has been given, but also at what Squidward wants to be. We see this in the episode “Artist Unknown” where Spongebob is revealed to be a fantastic artist but chooses not to because he doesn’t want to be anything more than a fry cook in the Bikini Bottom, which will forever anger Mr. Tentacles.
The performance theory also explains some of the Bikini Bottom’s weirder features and strengthens the zaniness of some characters. Like how snails are meant to be cats and worms are meant to be dogs. Or the fact that Plankton gets zero customers but can still support a thriving engineering hobby. Speaking of which, Mr. Krab’s money obsession seems to be even more out there. We do know that he comes from a time of economic distress in the ocean. At this point money is purely aesthetic, yet the man is obsessed with it, which must be wildly bizarre for the other residents.
It’s up to the individual if the economic system of Bikini Bottom is idyllic or dystopic. I’m sure the answer would change from resident to resident. However, one thing is still true — the attackers of Girly Teengirl need to be found and sent to the Weeny Hut Precinct.
