You identified:
- the puppy that the mayor uses to distract the media
- Krusty the Clown
- The Media Circus
- Homer's fatness
The media circus was especially interesting. You identified the purpose of the media as finding/telling the truth. But in this episode, the media [with the exception of Chloe] are easily distracted by the cuteness of a puppy.
Likewise, the traditional purpose of a clown is to entertain children. However, Krusty the Clown does no such thing. He is irritable and often inappropriate/corrupt, drinking in public and yelling at passersby. Lin Peizhi suggested that Krusty was a reflection of society that was also corrupt and inappropriate.
So we can see how The Simpsons uses Krusty the Clown and the media to mock each other. Each have their traditional purposes, but they perform the wrong roles: the media, which is supposed to inform, is focused on entertainment; meanwhile, Krusty, who is supposed to entertain, reflects society.
Traditional Roles
In the same way that The Simpsons satirizes the media and clowns, we talked about the way it makes fun of other traditional meaning. Especially traditional roles of male and female.
As we saw in early American sitcoms such as "Father Knows Best," males are the traditional figures of power and strength in a family. They provide money, are the centers of knowledge, and are also problem-solvers.
Meanwhile, traditional female roles involve domestic maintenance: women should maintain a clean and nurturing environment for their families. This involves providing spiritual guidance, nourishing food, and also maintaining their own appearances.
These sitcoms also have a traditional structure of ending with a moral [and usually sentimental] lesson that emphasizes the morals of 1950's America: Christianity, truth, and family. We watched a conclusion of "Father Knows Best" (a traditional television sitcom) in which the son Bud confessed to lying about stopping a burglary [a very male thing to do]. Rather than being rejected as a male, Bud was rewarded by his parents and clergyman for telling the truth, emphasizing the values Truth and Christianity over performing traditional male roles.
But, as Zhou Xinhe pointed out, The Simpsons challenges these traditional male roles. Homer is not the problem-solver, he is the problem-maker. Further analysis of Homer [and his fatness] revealed a man who was unintelligent, lazy, and violent: rather bad father material. But, as you pointed out, he was a loving and supporting husband to Marge (essentially playing the emotional supportive role of the traditional female).
Similarly, the episode showed us a clash between Marge [the traditional female] and Chloe [the professional female]. The figure of Chloe is public, accomplished, and widely desired. By contrast, Marge is only desired by her husband and has never left her hometown. The two women are opposite figures of femininity.
However, Marge triumphs in the end of the episode by saving Lisa [we did not talk about whether this reinforced to challenged the traditional meanings and structures, but what do you think?]
Jessica Neuhaus will interpret the way The Simpson's deals with traditional roles of femininity.
Assignment:
For your homework, I would like you to find the academic article by Jessica Neuhaus "Marge Simpson: Blue-Haired Housewife, Defining Domesticity on the Simpsons" (2010). Please use the Kean Library databases.
This is a difficult article. Don't be intimidated. Please use the 4 steps of academic writing to help you make sense of this article.
1) Identify the topic
2) Define key terms
3) Discuss (the development of the argument)
4) Examples (to illustrate/reinforce the argument)
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