The Simpsons and the Raven

When I was growing up, there was one television show my parents did not allow me to watch: The Simpsons. And, as you can guess, there was one television show I wanted to watch more than any other: The Simpsons. I can remember the day I convinced my parents to illegally split our cable and put a 10 inch television in my bedroom. As an 11 year old, I was too young at the time to understand the irony when I watched the episode Homer vs. Lisa and the Eighth Commandment, when Homer steals cable, leading the morally perceptive Lisa into the difficult ethical decision of confronting her father.

Now that I’m a parent, I can understand my own parents’ trepidation with the cartoon. Gratuitous violence, questionable language, and irreverent religious humor make The Simpsons a cartoon that deviates from the norm.

But, The Simpsons have been around for a long time. Its 19 year run makes it the longest running cartoon ever. The show has become part of our culture. One reason for its longevity is its good writing that explores our everyday ethical dilemmas with humor. (For example, stealing cable.)

Take a look at this clip from the first Tree House of Horror, a series shown every year during the week of Halloween. The clip begins with a parody of another great television show, the original 1950s version of The Munsters. The Munsters were a very odd family, but they were harmless. The parents loved each other and loved their children. They were harmless citizens of their community. The only problem was that they looked different than everyone else, which led to them being misunderstood. I don’t remember if any of their neighbors turned violent in the original show, but The Simpsons parody shows what can happen to people who are misunderstood by their community. People who are misunderstood often become scapegoats. The scapegoat effect leads to unity within a community and violence against a scapegoat. The community becomes an irrational mob and unites in uncontrolled violence against a relatively innocent victim, the scapegoat.

Near the end of the episode we are treated to James Earl Jones’ rendition of Poe’s classic poem The Raven. This poem has had a large impact on our culture. Most of us (mis)understand the raven to be an evil creature, whose only role is to pester humans, causing us to become insane. It is true that ike many other birds, ravens are scavengers, but they are also extremely loyal to their family members. In reality, ravens are not much different than any other bird, and they are not the evil creature we have made them out to be.

In the clip, Homer plays the role of the main character in The Raven. He is overcome by irrational fear. Bart asks a great question to Lisa, “Do you know what would have been scarier than nothing? . . . ANYTHING!” After Homer is encountered by something, a harmless raven, he tries to attack it, but the raven outwits Homer. Homer lies destitute on his chamber floor. He lost his soul to a harmless raven, all because of his irrational fear.

Isn’t that the way fear works in real life? If we are not careful, fear and misunderstanding of another person can easily unite us against a relatively innocent victim. This happens in high school cliques, in business situations, and in politics. The Simpsons is popular because it is a reflection of our culture, and the writers seem to ask, “Is there a better way?”