One of the longest running TV series of all time is the Simpsons. The Simpsons is an animated sitcom that uses satire to depict the “average” American family. The Simpson Family consists of Homer (father), Marge (mother), Bart (son), Lisa (daughter), and Maggie (baby). In 2007 The Simpsons hit the big screen. This major motion picture about Springfield, the home of the Simpson Family, and has just about everything possibly imaginable. Springfield however has a very large problem, they pollute like no other place in the United States. It was not until Lisa Simpson proved to the town how polluted the local lake was that change was instituted. After Lisa “saves” the lake the city institutes wide spread trash and recycling procedures. However Homer doesn’t want to wait in one of the lines and instead dumps his trash in the lake. This is the straw that broke the camel’s back because after this the lake became toxic. At this point the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) steps in and with the authorization of the President. Springfield becomes encapsulated in a large dome. At this point it becomes a life or death situation. The Simpsons then manage to escape and go on a wild journey. Only to eventually get caught. Once the Simpsons are returned to the dome, a massive bomb is placed in an effort to prevent Springfield from further pollution. (The Simpsons Movie). The looming threat that in a short matter of time everyone could be dead. It is at this point that Terror Management
For this paper, I have chosen to analyze the sitcom That 70s Show. This show follows the lives of a group of teenage friends: Jackie, Donna, Hyde, Kelso, Eric, and Fez. The show addresses many social issues of the 1970s, including: Sexism, sexual attitudes, drug use, and the recession. It also highlights many of the inventions and developments of the entertainment industry, such as the remote control and Star Wars.
The Twilight Zone and Full House are both two family sitcom television series expressing one group as a family to meet or reflect society. Full House, produced by Jeff Franklin, is a family who faces many struggles and obstacles that reflect many American’s in today’s society. The Twilight Zone, produced by Rod Serling, is a five season television series taken place in the 1950’s. This shows provides multiple genres in each episode followed by an unexpected plot twist leaving audiences thinking more in depth about the present time. Both television shows demonstrates family values and social norms to meet modern societies expectations through rationality.
On one hand, Christians would see the fact that the Simpson home burned and that Homer was saved by Flanders as divine retribution and a second chance by God for Homer’s refusal to attend weekly services. On the other, atheists would say that the fact that Homer saw God in his dreams would be simply another instance of people using easily explained natural phenomena to reinforce their biases and confirmation bias when Homer reinforces his belief in God by being saved by Flanders (Confirmation Bias). Nevertheless, the show accommodates many different cultures and beliefs. Pinksy says “individually, family members represent a spectrum of belief, from Homer's fear-based neo-paganism, to Marge's true belief, to Lisa's disenchantment with mainline, socially conscious Protestantism, in favor of Buddhism” as well as the fundamentalist Flanders family. He also adds that “other, non-Protestant denominations and faiths also figure in episodes—Catholicism, Judaism, Hinduism and Buddhism (but not Islam)” (Pinsky). Regardless, the show has been criticized by Christians since its
Biting satire points out the flaw in societal issues using humor to sugarcoat to sugarcoat the truth about those issues. In “The Simpsons” movie, understatement and irony are used to create humor and draw attention to government surveillance. Throughout “The Simpsons” movie, the concept of “Big Brother” is emphasized, that phrase refers to “big brother” as the government that is watching you during your daily lives. In addition, one of these “brothers” are the government agents who dedicate their lives to dig out information about you, to ensure safety throughout the country.
Homer Simpson is a fictional character and one of the main protagonists in the TV show The Simpsons. Dan Castellanta voices him. He lives in a fictional town called Springfield, Oregon, United States. He is married to Marge Simpson with three children named Bart, Lisa and Maggie. He has a pet dog named Santa’s Little Helper and cat called Snowball. Homer currently works in the show at a Nuclear Power Plant as a Safety inspector but has worked at previous jobs before. Homer is known to be crude, overweight, clumsy, lazy, heavy drinker and ignorant. (Simpsons Wiki, n.d)
Its faithfulness to the original story, a musical and comedic taste and friendliness towards children makes the film more interesting and approachable to watch, appealing more people than the play. Moreover, as the Simpsons’ version is more straightforward and hence easier to understand, the producers’ message can be conveyed further. Likewise, as The Simpsons’ characters are familiar, it is easier to empathize with them and for viewers to put themselves in their
The Television shows “Full House” is based on six individuals that live in one house that aren’t the typical “family”. The character Danny is a widower who is forced to raise is three daughters on his own. His best friend Joey and brother in law Jessie moved in to help Danny raise the girls. The three girls from oldest to youngest are: Donna Joe (DJ), Stephanie, and Michelle. In 1993, season seven of the television show presented episode five entitle; “Fast Friends”. This episode was based on Stephanie starting her first year in junior high school. Stephanie meets a new friend named Nicki, and realizes that Nicki and her friends are not a good crew to be associated with. Stephanie feels pressured to smoke cigarettes while in the school bathroom however, she decided against it. Stephanie really like’s her new friend Nicki but knows she could never become a follower. Meanwhile, Jesse and Joey begin to host a radio show and can’t seem to find a decent name for the show. DJ, DJ’s boyfriend, and best friend Kimie are force to pick a side. While watching this episode the cast displayed both verbal and nonverbal cues.
The Simpsons writers entertain the audience of voters and the common people by understatement. They are making light of something that is a big issue. The fact that there is so many people in power that are corrupt and who are in control of our government is something that could deeply affect how our world is.
The difference between the intended meaning of media texts and what the audience actually perceives can be shockingly different. Producers of media can do everything possible to force audiences to experience their work in the way they want them to, but in the end they still take away many different meanings even within the same audience. Stuart Hall outlines this in his encoding and decoding model. One of the most apparent examples of this is the television show South Park. The television show South Park is a media text with the producers’ preferred meaning of being decoded as joke or as being satire, but many audience members take an oppositional stance of taking it seriously. This is clear from the examples of controversy when South Park aired episodes focused on Scientology, red-headed people, and Islam. Through these examples it is demonstrated that the producers of media have less power compared to the audience in determining the meaning of media.
"The Simpsons" basis, a father, a mother, and three kids, is far from unusual. The "typical" American is a blue-collar worker not unlike the father, Homer, who works a mindless job at the local nuclear power plant in the Simpsons' hometown of Springfield which is basically Anytown, USA. Marge, the mother, is a fairly typical housewife besides her large blue beehive hairdo. Bart, is the rebellious older son; Lisa, the under-appreciated middle child; and Maggie, the adorable baby. The Simpsons don't live in luxury, but they are a generally happy family that encounters the problems of everyday, and not-so-everyday, life, something that millions can relate to. But there is something that sets "The Simpsons" apart from the
In fact, according to those behind the scenes, these forays into politics mark more than just material for the next laugh; rather, they are deliberate efforts to shape American society. "Simpsons" creator Matt Groening says that, under its facade of humor, the show is trying "to nudge people, jostle them a little, wake them up to some of the ways in which we're being manipulated and exploited." He adds, "'The Simpsons'' message over and over again is that your moral authorities don't always have your best interests in mind" (Doherty).
not be as good as we imagined. We are shown quick little images of all
The Simpsons is an animated adult series created by Matt Groening. it depicts the lifestyle of middle class America in a satirical form represented by the dysfunctional Simpson family consisting of Homer, Marge,Bart,Lisa and Maggie. it is also a parody to American culture, television,society and conditions humans find their selfs in everyday. the show first aired on December 17th, 1987 and has broadcasted 558 episodes and on September 28th, 2014 the 26th season of the show started and is the longest-running American TV sitcom.
The Simpsons first came to life on April 19th, 1987. It was aired as a
I decided to share about one of my favorite TV shows, The Office. I enjoy this show because there are so many different characters with unique personalities. Each character interacts with one another in their own personal ways. In this show, there is no character that is the same. Certain ones give a representation of how to communicate appropriately and others show an inappropriate way to communicate. The three characters that I have chosen to look closely at are, Michael, Dwight, and Jim. Michael is the boss of the paper company department, Dwight and Jim are sales representatives. Michael and Dwight are not very good at appropriately communicating with one another or with others in the office. Jim is one of the “normal” ones on the show.