Collao 1 Areli Collao Riffo ENG 101, MWF 14:45- 15:40 Argumentative Essay May 18, 2007

The Simpsons: American Society Catharsis The Simpsons: a mirror of society written by Ben Mc Corkle and published in the fifth edition of Stick and Stones and Other Students Essays evaluates the sitcom presenting it as a portrait of American society. Mc Corkle claims that The Simpsons success in crossing different demographic groups through triggering its viewers emotions. He suggests that because of its format, a cartoon, it can be seen as childish and harmless for some viewers. Finally he emphasizes that The Simpsons can be consider as a Cathartic therapy for Americans. Ben Mc Corkle argues that The Simpsons is a mirror of American society, a society which goes in decadency. He describes the sitcom as a satiric mirror, a metaphoric reflection of our dissolving social foundation (142). The Simpsons achieves its goal of being a satire by making exaggerations of common household events like Homer choking his son Bart or Marge neglecting her daughter Maggie. Mc Corkle describes an episode in which The Simpsons points out the corruption of traditional values within the family structure when Homer Simpsons decides he would rather sleep on a Sunday than attend church (141). According to Mc Corkle, The Simpsons is a sitcom that would never provoke apathy; for good or bad the achievement of The Simpsons is to catch the public attention

Collao 2 stirring different emotions. That is what has made the sitcom last through many years. Mc Corkle says: even the most conservative Republican grandmother is receptive to the comic message (141). He also adds that the target group for the cartoon is wide, not only children but also adults, the show is presented at a prime time. By extension, the audience Mc Corkle wants to reach can goes from his pairs, teachers, other adults to even teenagers. However, there is a restriction: the readers must be familiar with the sitcom otherwise the analysis and examples Mc Corkle provides would be senseless. At this point it seems that the essay is imbalanced. It is written for viewers of the show. It has some facts, analysis of some characters, but there is a lack of research from the author; he should have included counterarguments, more data and references in order to give more support to his claims. The reader of this essay can easily notice the background of the author: he must be a fan of the show. This fact creates, without a doubt, an imbalanced essay. The language and tone Mc Corkle uses is pretty clear and simple, but somehow still academic. The essay is formal and easy to read. The words he uses to describe The Simpsons are accurate and precise: truly, brutal parody (141). I strongly agree with Mc Corkle description of The Simpsons. They are a satirical parody of Middle American family. Mc Corkle describes the characters but too briefly. Perhaps this is one of the weak points in his essay. He should have point out that the characters were created in order the audience can easily identify themselves with at least one of them. In his description he suggests that female characters are the good members of the family, and maybe they reflect some feminist statement. I cannot accept his overall conclusion about female characters. In my opinion Lisa, who is supposed to be extremely

Collao 3 educated, often causes problems by means of protest, even against her parents wishes. Lisa is haughty, according to her own words: I am sick of everyone being so proud of me
("Characters

Bios). I ask to myself is haughtiness a good quality? Certainly no. Marge,

the mother, is considered to be a good model, but with an unbelievable frequency she forgets about her baby Maggie. In one episode while Marge was taking care of Flanders sons her own son, Bart, had been kidnapped by a gorilla. She is definitely not an always caring mother Mc Corkle affirms that despite of the social problems The Simpsons portrays it can remain funny. If a scene is too dramatic very often the moment is safe by an absurd act of violence or nonsense. Mc Corkle should have mention that behind the sitcom, there are sixteen writers who can take at least six months to produce an episode. This fact is what gives quality to every episode of The Simpsons. Besides that, Mc Corkle should have mention that The Simpsons have won many prizes, including 23 Emmy awards, 22 Annie awards, a Peabody; they even have a Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame. ("The Simpsons.") Another point that Mc Corkle does not present in his essay is the diversity of themes that the sitcom covers. The characters explore all themes of modern society like for example: education, politics, religion, homosexuality, Big business, Environment, and even Television. The best word to describe The Simpsons according to their actions is Nihilism. The biggest issue I disagree the most with Mc Corkle is concerning with the most charming quality of The Simpsons for me is their courage while for Mc Corkle is their ability to accept the hand dealt them without complaining (142). As a matter of fact, everybody knows that they do complain a lot. Homer would do anything to become rich

Collao 4 without making any effort. The all important point is that The Simpsons never quit, they overcome any obstacle with determination and courage. All in all, I mostly agree with Mc Corkles point of view. His essay has a clear message for the fans and that is why I agree with him; I am also a fan of the show. The Simpsons is a truly satire of American Society. This sitcom provokes reactions in its viewers either good or bad ones. My point is if the sitcom is a mirror of American society, what kind of society are Americans showing to the rest of the world? The Simpsons cannot be considered heroes or villains because of their behavior; they are more likely to be considered victims of their own acts.

Mc Corkle, Ben. ""The Simpsons: a mirror of society"." Stick and Stones and Other Student Essays. Ed. Lawrence Barkley, Rise B. Axelrod, Charles R. Cooper. Boston: Bedford St Martin, 2004. "The Simpsons." Awards. 18/May/2007. Wikipedia Foundation, Inc. 18 May 2007, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_simpsons#Awards>. "Characters Bios." Hall of Records Q-S. 18/may/2007. Fox. 18 May 2007 <http://www.thesimpsons.com/characters/home.htm>.

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