Media Studies 20: Television



Media Studies 20: Viewing The Simpsons

Activity:

You will be viewing an episode of the popular cartoon The Simpsons. You will be viewing for a purpose (other than entertainment); meaning that you will be watching for certain things in the show. As you watch the show, answer the following questions:

1. How are the following groups of people portrayed? If there are many characters for each, choose one specific character to discuss.

a) Men – Homer, he is portrayed as an idiot just like the rest of the guys in this show.

b) Women – Marge, she is shown as a smart lady just like most of the other girls in the show.

c) Children – Bart, he is a very brave young boy and dumb. The boy kids tend to be dumb, and the girl kids tend to be smart.

d) Single People – All single people in this show seem to be lonely and have no life.

e) Elderly People – They seem to be very laid back and taking it easy but still being active.

f) Minorities – They are given off as normal people. Just another person.

g) Traditional Families – Look like normal families, I couldn’t see any difference in them than a normal family.

h) Others – Others are just the normal people who are like normal people in real life.

2. Is there any violence in the show? Explain.

There is little bit of violence in this show like when Bart was bossing the boys around digging the pool. He was acting like a bully.

3. What is the basic plot of the episode?

The basic plot was the parents finally getting into a show they have tried to get onto many times before and then blowing it right off the start.

4. In what ways is the episode appealing for adults?

It isn’t a childish show and has some mature scenes.

5. In what ways in the episode appealing to children?

It had challenges in it that needed to be solved and as a kid I thought solving challenges was fun.

Media Log Entry:

Answer ONE of the following questions in one or two fully developed paragraphs:

If you were a parent, would you allow your child (approximate ages 6-12) to watch The Simpsons on a regular basis? As a parent I wouldn’t allow my kid to watch the show till he or she was at least 8 years old. Any age before that and I would be worried that they would get stupid ideas. At the age 8 kids start to become tough and if they get a stupid idea from the show and do it and get hurt, it just teaches them that it is a stupid idea and not to do it.

OR

Why do you think The Simpsons attracts such a large and diverse group of viewers and has retained its popularity?

Be sure to provide specific evidence to back your response. You may choose to refer to the episode you just watched or other episodes you have seen in the past. You may want to compare this show to other programs on television. Be creative and personal in your response!

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