Eric Cartman is known to many as an evil, manipulating, and selfish character, so why do so many fans love him? For what he's done throughout South Park's 26-season long run he should be hated, but the bottom line is he is hilarious.
For a character who hates Jewish people, has committed murder and regularly does horrible things for his own gain, Cartman has had some questionable quotes. But, there are rare occasions where Eric offers some insight and actually makes sense it what he says...
8 On Inspiration
Way back in the first season of South Park, in the third episode 'Weight Gain 4000,’ Cartman eats a ton of Beefcake, a product that is meant to gain muscle but instead turns Cartman insanely overweight, more so than he already was.
But upon gaining this weight Cartman says: "follow your dreams, you can reach your goals, I'm living proof. Beefcake!" A touching sentiment on inspiration. Anyone can do anything that they set their mind to even if that is to become a giant ball of flesh. Cartman regularly defies these odds and goes on to do remarkable things in South Park in the long run, proving that anything is achievable, even if it is for his benefit most of the time. Thanks, Cartman!
7 On Integrity
There is quite nothing worse than Cartman with 'authoritah', and in Season 10, Episode 10 'Miss Teacher Bangs A Boy' he gets exactly that when he gains the role of a hall monitor. Cartman puts his spin on this, as always, and turns the job into a parody of Dog The Bounty Hunter.
Cartman helps undercover a teacher having a relationship with her student, but not the reason that it is just simply wrong but the simple fact that it happened in the hallway without a hall pass. Eric says in the episode: "Jesus is Lord. You can go one direction in life, or you just walk around the hallways without a hall pass. Or you can see the light, brah." When Eric gets a job he makes sure it is done right and people respect the rules, something that a lot of people can respect.
6 On Love
Cartman has found love more recently with Heidi, but in episode 7 of the 16th season, 'Cartman Finds Love', which was before that he becomes cupid. Once again there is a darker meaning behind this as he makes Tolkien (or Token), fall in love with the new girl Nichole for one reason only: they are both black and they should be together.
Despite the apparent racism, Cartman has some beautiful and poetic quotes about love: "Love is like taking a dump, Butters; sometimes it works itself out, but sometimes you got to give it a nice hard slimy push." Sometimes love needs to be worked on, it just isn't simple and Eric Cartman will do anything to make sure that true love is found. With a little help from his Cupid self, tee hee.
5 On Fun
If there is something to know about Eric Cartman it is that he just wants to have fun, he even went to the lengths of freezing himself for over 500 years in order to play the Nintendo Wii. He will do anything to just have a good time, another example being the time he manipulated Butters into thinking the world was ending, so he could go to Casa Bonita.
But in Season 9, Episode 12 'Trapped in the Closet', Cartman says to Stan: "Stan, don't you know the first law of physics? Anything that's fun costs at least eight dollars". This is just true, as although some good things in life are free, video games, movies, and amusement parks all cost more than eight dollars. Cartman is bang on the money with this one and he appreciates that sometimes the cost for fun is spending at least $8.01.
4 On Gender
South Park's video game South Park: The Stick of Truth offers a lot of gems when it comes to Cartman quotes, one of those being: "Don't ask why Kenny wanted to be a chick, it's just how he seems to be rolling right now." Cartman is accepting of his friend Kenny and his desire to dress up as a princess.
Cartman and Kenny seem to have a special relationship throughout the series and Cartman always seems to have Kenny's back despite all the jokes about him being poor. The Stick of Truth is a brilliant game for South Park fans, it really does just feel like gamers are playing an episode of the show. Cartman acts as a Grand Wizard in the game and is a helpful mentor for the player.
3 On Never Giving Up
Season 10's 'Make Love, Not Warcraft' is one of the best South Park episodes to date, and it is certainly one of the most recognizable. When Cartman and the rest of the boys are sick of being killed on World of Warcraft by one high-leveled player they band together to work as a team in an attempt to take out their online nemesis.
But when Clyde has his doubts Cartman issues a rallying cry: "If you had the chance to go back right now and stop Hitler, wouldn't you do it?" What he says after this is better left unsaid, but the whole speech is inspirational, and it goes to show that Cartman goes through exactly what it takes to achieve his goal. Eric Cartman never backs down, even when it comes to World of Warcraft.
2 On Religion
When Cartman starts a Christian rock band in Season 7, Episode 9 there are several insightful quotes on Christianity and through his band Faith+1 he is spreading a good Christian message and a love for Jesus."You died for my sins, and you know that I would die for you, right?"
The question again is raised of why Cartman is saying these quotes, this time it is for the wrong reason, and he is simply saying these things for monetary gain. The meaning still stands, religion is very important in some people's lives and the message of Jesus can teach many people to be kind and love one another. Cartman may not be the right messenger, but the message should still be followed, even without religion.
1 On Climate Change
"All I think about is the problems our generation is inheriting. Climate change, overfishing, Kyle...I mean, how are we supposed to get happy about anything?" from Season 23's opener is an insightful one; Cartman touches on environmental issues. As everyone is aware, now more than ever, the Earth should be looked after.
But, nothing with Cartman is quite simple, it appears Cartman wasn't actually concerned about the environment but more concerned about Kyle. He phones the ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and gets Kyle sent to a detention center. Cartman's message is still correct but maybe not towards Kyle.