Anthropomorphic Stuffed Tigers, Bratty Kids and Western Philosophers

This is such an obvious topic, I'm surprised I didn't think to write about it sooner.  I'm talking about one of the best comic strips of all time, and its subtle symbolic representation of two prominent Western philosophers.

This is going to be a short entry, because there isn't a lot to say, honestly.  The gist is that Bill Watterson, Calvin & Hobbes' creator, partially based both of them on the philosophers John Calvin and Thomas Hobbes.  He used the philosophers as a basis for the characters' names, and incorporated bits & pieces of the philosophers' teachings into the characters' personalities and beliefs. Here's one example:

It's a brilliant allegory that I went years without noticing.  Calvin (the theologian) believed in predestination, while Hobbes (the theorist) did not - although Hobbes (if I'm reading this right) also rejected the concept of free will.

There are many other examples of the philosophers' teaching popping up throughout the comics.  I may have to revisit my Calvin & Hobbes collection soon, to see how many I can spot.