Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Tim Delaney (Oswego, NY) is assistant professor of sociology at the State University of New York at Oswego and the author of Seinology: The Sociology of Seinfeld, American Street Gangs, and Contemporary Social Theory, among other works.

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Simpsonology

Prometheus Books

Contents

About the Author...................................................................................11Preface............................................................................................13Acknowledgments....................................................................................15Chapter 1 An Introduction to The Simpsons.........................................................17Chapter 2 The Culture We Live In..................................................................32Chapter 3 Friendship and Community................................................................63Chapter 4 Love and Marriage.......................................................................88Chapter 5 America's Family: The Simpsons..........................................................112Chapter 6 Gender Roles and Expectations...........................................................137Chapter 7 Springfield: A Racial Melting Pot Often Lacking in Tolerance............................164Chapter 8 Religion and Other Things We Believe In.................................................189Chapter 9 Beware the Enviromare...................................................................218Chapter 10 The Political World of Springfield......................................................245Chapter 11 The Wide Diversity of Sports in Springfield.............................................274Chapter 12 Springfield's Educational System: Where Every Child Is Left Behind!.....................306Chapter 13 Physical and Mental Health in Springfield...............................................335Chapter 14 Tricks and Treats.......................................................................362Chapter 15 The Animation Domination of The Simpsons................................................388Bibliography.......................................................................................401Index of Cited Episodes............................................................................407

Chapter One

"As far as anyone knows, we're a nice, normal family." -Homer Simpson

A brother and sister are pushing and shoving each other in the living room of a modest, working-class family home. Their father rushes in to stop the siblings from fighting. The children explain that they are merely arguing over who loves their father more. Feeling better about himself, the father allows the children to continue their disagreement. The boy shouts, "You love him more." His sister responds, "No, you do." Disappointed, but guided by a greater concern, the father instructs the two children to get their mischief out of their system before they all leave for his company's family picnic at the boss's home. Welcome to one of America's most dysfunctional families-the Simpsons.

From the beginning, Matt Groening made it clear that the Simpson family is anything but normal. The scene described above comes from the "There's No Disgrace Like Home" episode (#4), original airdate, January 28, 1990. As the Simpson family heads to stately Burns Manor, or as Homer describes it, "Heaven on Earth," Homer warns his family, "Okay now look, my boss is going to be at this picnic so I want you to show your father some love and/or respect." Homer's daughter Lisa replies, "We get a choice?" Bart, Lisa's brother, responds, "I'm picking respect." Homer, who is a working drone, needs to make a favorable impression with his boss, Mr. Burns. Homer realizes that he will be judged based on the behavior of his family. Homer is so concerned about the impression that his family might make with Burns that he gives one last bit of instruction shortly after entering the Burns estate, "Now remember, as far as anyone knows, we're a nice, normal family."

Although the company picnic is not a complete disaster, Bart and Lisa run amok throughout the grounds and Homer's wife, Marge, gets drunk. At the conclusion of the picnic, Burns announces that the party is over and that everyone has ten minutes to leave the premises before he releases the hounds. As the Simpsons and other families head back to their cars, Homer admits that he is glad to leave so that he can go home and act in his normal manner. In this regard, Homer reflects the sentiments of many employees who are uncomfortable spending time with their employers outside of work. On the other hand, the Simpson family is hardly the barometer of "normalcy"!

MMM ... A FAMILY CALLED THE SIMPSONS, YOU SAY?

The Simpsons represents one of America's most recognizable families. They are certainly themost famous animated one. The Simpson family includes Homer Simpson, 36; his wife, Marge, 34; their three children, Bart, 10; Lisa, 8; and Maggie, 1; their dog, Santa's Little Helper; and their cat, Snowball (various versions). The Simpson family resides in Springfield-the state is unknown-a fairly typical midsize American city. (Note: Springfield is most likely located in Oregon, the home state of Groening. As Groening states, "Secretly, I've always believed that the Simpsons live in Springfield, Oregon" [Turnquist 2007, E-4].) Springfield is large enough to have its own "badlands," it is home to a minor league baseball team, has its own blimp, a number of cultural museums, an unendingly burning pile of tires, an air force base, and an international airport (among other things).

The Simpson family is headed by Homer J. Simpson. Although The Simpsons was first centered primarily on the antics of Bart, it is Homer Simpson who has become the primary focus of many Simpsons storylines. Homer is overweight and bald and works as a safety inspector in Sector 7-G at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. If Homer were a safety inspector of a nuclear plant in real life, we might all be in great peril! Homer's occupational ineptness is demonstrated by the fact that he holds the plant record for most years worked at an entry-level position.

Homer is known for saying "D'oh!" when he is upset and "Mmm ..." when tempted. Homer's "D'oh!" expression has become a part of popular culture and his constant use of the word is responsible, at least in part, for its inclusion into the Oxford English Dictionary, where it is defined as "expressing frustration at the realization that things have turned out badly or not as planned, or that one has just said or done something foolish." Matt Groening, the creator of The Simpsons, explains that the "D'oh!" sound uttered by Homer was originally written in the script as "annoyed grunt." Dan Castellaneta, who does Homer's voice, created a shortened version of the sound that the character actor James Finlayson made in old Laurel and Hardy movies (Playboy 2007).

Homer Simpson loves to drink Duff beer and consume large quantities of food, especially donuts, pork rinds, Krusty Burgers, and pork chops. Homer's unhealthy eating habits have led him to endure a large number of medical procedures, including a triple bypass operation. Homer is just as lazy at home as he is at work. His favorite pastime is sitting on the couch watching television while drinking beer and eating munchies. Homer purchases a great deal of his beer and food at the local overpriced Kwik-E-Mart, owned by Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, a "semilegal" immigrant from India. (See chapter 7 for a description of Apu's residency status.) Apu and Homer have shared numerous conversations and adventures over the years. In the "Homer and Apu" episode (#94), Apu sells Homer meat that has expired for a lower cost, rather than throwing it away. Homer buys the meat, eats it, gets sick, and is rushed to the hospital. Lisa convinces her father to expose Apu and his many health violations to the media. After a successful sting, Apu is fired from Kwik-E-Mart. The only way Apu can get his job back is by going to the corporate headquarters of Kwik-E-Mart in India and meeting with the company's benevolent enlightened president and CEO. Homer joins Apu on his trip to India but manages to foul up Apu's meeting with the enlightened one. Disappointed, Apu returns to Springfield. He saves actor James Woods's life (who was working at the convenience store for an upcoming film role) during a robbery attempt and is awarded his old job back.

Marge Simpson is a homemaker; although, over the years, she has held a variety of part-time jobs. Her signature distinguishing trademark is her tall blue hair-she uses Blue #56 hair dye. Her hair is so enormous that over the years a wide variety of objects, including a large jar of money, scissors, three puppies, and even Maggie, have, on occasion, been found there. Marge has a vital role in the Simpson family. She must keep this highly dysfunctional group intact. She often grumbles disapprovingly at Homer's antics and schemes. Despite the many challenges that her husband and three children present her with, Marge almost always comes out on top. However, even Marge has had her setbacks (e.g., a gambling addiction and a conviction for misdemeanor shoplifting) and desires to "escape" it all for an adventure from time to time. For example, in the episode "Marge on the Lam" (#87), Marge befriends her divorced neighbor, Ruth Powers. Interestingly, Ruth divorced her husband because all he ever did was eat, sleep, and drink beer. Ruth and Marge, neither of whom are particularly happy with their lives at this point, decide to go out for a night on the town. Homer, who is jealous over his wife bonding with a friend, decides to go out as well. He ends up hitching a ride with Police Chief Wiggum, who later attempts to pull Ruth over for a minor motor vehicle infraction. Admitting to Marge that she has stolen the car from her former husband, Ruth speeds off. Wiggum and a slew of other police cars give chase to Ruth and Marge as they head toward a cliff. This scene and the bonding of Marge and Ruth are a parody of the film Thelma and Louise. However, whereas Thelma and Louise wind up driving off a cliff, Marge and Ruth stop just in time. Chief Wiggum and Homer, however, cannot stop on time and sail over the cliff, but land safely on a huge pile of garbage.

As stated earlier, originally the primary character of the Simpsons was Bartholomew (Bart) Simpson. The Bart character was inspired by Dennis the Menace from the TV show aptly titled Dennis the Menace. Groening recalls watching the 1959 premiere episode of Dennis the Menace and being captivated by the idea that there was a menace on TV and that this menace was a kid. Groening states, "I was so excited. It turned out to be this fairly namby-pamby pseudo-bad boy who had a slingshot but didn't ever seem to use it. Bart Simpson is basically what Dennis should have been" (Playboy 2007, 145).

Bart Simpson is the eldest child, and only son, of Homer and Marge. For many fans of The Simpsons, Bart remains their favorite character. Interestingly, when deciding what name to give their son, Homer insisted that he and Marge choose a name that didn't have any negative rhymes to it. Thus, such names as Louie, Larry, and Luke were passed over because they rhyme with "screwy," "fairy," and "puke" respectively. Apparently, Homer forgot to try rhyming words with Bart! If he had, he'd have realized that Bart could be teased by the word "fart." The name "Bart" was chosen by Groening because it's an anagram for "brat."

Nonetheless, Homer's concern that a "negative" name for his son might cause dire consequences is not without merit. In fact, a study conducted by researchers from the University of California at San Diego indicates that names really will hurt you (McConnaughey 1998). The researchers examined twenty-seven years' worth of California death certificates (over five million people) and found that people with "good" initials (the initials spell out something positive), such as ACE, GOD, HUG, JOY, LIF, WIN, and WOW, live longer (nearly 4.5 years) than people with "bad" initials (the initials spell out something negative), such as, APE, ASS, BAD, BUG, PIG, RAT, ROT, SAD, SIK, and UGH. The researchers suggest that liking your name and liking yourself may be linked to both a positive self-image and better mental and physical health. Conversely, people who are teased all their life because of their names/initials develop a negative sense of self. Death by suicide was nearly thirteen times higher for those with "bad" initials than those with "good" initials. One would imagine that the initials DOH would lead to an early death!

Bart is seldom teased because of his name, but he is certainly a very devious young boy. He regularly pulls pranks and tests the patience of his parents, his sister Lisa, school officials, and law enforcement-both domestic and international. One of Bart's most notable pranks occurred in the 1992 episode "Radio Bart" (#48). In this episode, Bart receives a "Superstar Celebrity" microphone that transmits sounds through an AM radio. Bart tosses a radio down a tight-fitting well. Using the fictitious name Timmy O'Toole, Bart screams out for help. The townspeople rally together in an attempt to save Timmy. Bart's idol, Krusty the Clown, and singer Sting perform a song, "We're Sending Our Love Down the Well" to raise money to save Timmy. Lisa, meanwhile, reminds Bart that he placed a "Property of Bart Simpson" sticker on the radio and that his prank would be revealed once the rescuers found their way to the bottom of the well. Bart attempts to retrieve the radio and ends up stuck in the well for real. He is eventually rescued. This episode was a parody of an October 15, 1987, real-life event involving eighteen-month-old toddler Jessica McClure. Jessica captured the attention of the world when she fell down into a well that was too small for adults to fit into. She was trapped for almost sixty hours. Once she was rescued, she was treated like a "hero." (Note: Scott Shaw captured the moment in a photograph, earning a Pulitzer Prize.) In "Radio Bart" Homer and Lisa discuss what it means to be a hero.

Homer: That Timmy is a real hero!

Lisa: How do you mean, Dad?

Homer: Well, he fell down a well, and (pause) he can't get out.

Lisa: How does that make him a hero?

Homer (not sure how to respond):Well, that's more than you did!

Whether or not Timmy O'Toole or Jessica McClure are heroes for falling down a well and surviving, people enjoy basking in stories that involve children surviving potential tragedy. In "Radio Bart" a street vendor provided onlookers with an opportunity to bask in the heroic saving of Timmy O'Toole by selling T-shirts that read, "I survived Timmy O'Toole's Getting Trapped in a Well."

Bart does not always get into trouble by himself. He has a trusty sidekick in fellow fourth-grader Milhouse Van Houten. Groening admits that the name "Milhouse" was chosen because of former president, Richard Milhous Nixon, whom he viewed as a "cardboard villain." Groening takes a special delight in skewering Republicans. "I have this obsession with Nixon. On The Simpsons, Milhouse is named after him. On Futurama, we made Nixon's head in the jar president of Earth. George W. Bush seems to me equally cartoony, and we've only barely begun to take him on" (Playboy 2007, 60). Of course, as any Republican viewer can attest, The Simpsons is just as willing to make fools out of Democrats as it is Republicans; and this is attributable to the fact that some of the writers are rabid Republicans themselves.

Milhouse is often teased at school for being a nerdy type of kid and for wearing glasses. But he is clever enough to have once bought Bart's soul for just five dollars! It is Bart's cleverness, and his use of catchphrases, however, that have endeared him to generations of fans. Among his most famous phrases are:

"Ay, Carumba." (The first words spoken by Bart.) "Don't have a cow, man!" "Cowabunga." "I didn't do it!" "Eat my shorts!" "Get bent!"

Lisa Simpson is perhaps the most complicated member of the family. She is highly intelligent and determined to make something of herself, and yet, at times, she is very emotionally insecure and appears to suffer from depression. For example, in the "Family Therapy" episode (#45 of "The Shorts"), the psychologist calls Lisa a "borderline psychotic." In the "Moaning Lisa" episode (#6), Lisa brushes her teeth with Glum toothpaste and refers to herself (in the lyrics to "Lisa's Blues Number") as "the saddest kid in grade number two." Her often sad outlook on life combined with her saxophone-playing ability led Lisa to choose blues artist "Bleeding Gums" Murphy as her musical idol. (It has often been said, "To truly enjoy the blues, one must experience the blues.") In the "Moaning Lisa" episode, Lisa is suffering from an extreme case of the blues. She wakes up depressed and is sad all day long while in school. Her band teacher yells at her in the morning; she does not participate in the food fight during her lunch hour; and she refuses to play dodgeball during gym class. When Lisa's gym teacher asks her why she is not participating in dodgeball, Lisa responds that she is too sad to play dodgeball. In disbelief, the gym teacher states, "Too sad to play dodgeball? That's ridiculous. Now let's see some enthusiasm. Play ball." The class resumes and Lisa gets bombarded by dodgeballs. The principal sends a note home with Lisa for her parents. The note reads: "Lisa refused to play dodgeball because she is sad." Her parents try to bring Lisa out of her funk but to no avail.

Later that night, Lisa hears music off in the distance. She sneaks out of her bedroom window to find the source of this music. She finds a man called Bleeding Gums Murphy playing beautiful, soulful music. Murphy generally plays the saxophone on the streets of Springfield and at the local Jazz Hole club. Lisa tells Murphy why she is so sad by playing a soulful sound of her own. Murphy then teaches Lisa a few notes and the two jam together. Impressed by Lisa's talented saxophone ability, Bleeding Gums tells Lisa, "You know, you play pretty well for someone with no real problems." Lisa replies, "Yeah, but I don't feel any better." Bleeding Gums informs Lisa, "The blues isn't about feeling better. It's about making other people feel worse and making a few bucks while you're at it." The episode concludes with the Simpson family attending a live performance by Bleeding Gums.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from Simpsonologyby TIM DELANEY Copyright © 2008 by Tim Delaney. Excerpted by permission.
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