format_quote Originally Posted by
~Juwairiyah~
:sl:
Don't know about it being "creepy" and all, but my 19 month old son loves it. He becomes glued to the tv the minute it comes on. If there is any cartoon that sends nothing but bad messages to kids (be they young or old) is the simpsons!!!
The Simpsons :D They're certainly not perfect, but:
"Does the Simpson family really embody all that is wrong with western society? Or, with its humanity, clear-sightedness and shrewd observations on how we actually live, does The Simpsons offer invaluable lessons for life?
Homer and Marge's marriage may have its ups and downs, but they are determined to stay together. Take the episode 'A Millhouse Divided', where Millhouse's parents decide to split up, prompting Homer to take a long, hard look at his own marriage. When he fears it may be disintegrating, he too files for divorce. But only so he can remarry Marge, giving her the perfect wedding she missed out on first time round.
Although Homer's relationship with his children is flawed, at least he has one. Indeed, in a world where so many marriages end in divorce, Marge and Homer can be seen as teaching us lessons about stability and conflict resolution.
Childcare expert Dr Pat Spungin, founder of the website raisingkids.co.uk, believes Homer is indeed a role model. "He spends too much time on the couch and drinks too much beer, but the good thing about him is he's always there, a constant presence in his children's lives. He works and he provides them with financial and emotional security," she says.
"And they all do things together as a family: they eat together, watch TV together and go on trips. Marge is a good mother: very level-headed and very strong, reining in Homer. They form a very solid unit and when they fight, they fight constructively, they don't shout and scream, they articulate their problems and sort it out."
No matter what chaos reigns during an episode, moral order is always restored by the closing credits. Neither Bart nor Homer are malicious, and they generally come good in the end. The episode where Bart gets caught stealing a computer game ends with him buying Marge a frame for a family photograph with his own pocket money, while the daddy-daughter episode which starts with Homer exploiting Lisa's ability to predict baseball matches, ends with Homer resolving to spend more quality time with Lisa after all.
Paul Cantor, English professor at the University of Virginia, agrees. "The Simpsons continually offers an enduring image of the nuclear family in the very act of satirising it," he says. "Many of the traditional values of the family survive this satire, above all the value of the nuclear family itself. In effect, the show says: take the worst-case scenario - the Simpsons - and even that family is better than no family at all."
For that reason it makes perfect viewing for children of all ages.
"The Simpsons teaches children lessons that some adults may not want them to learn, but which are important nonetheless," says Baggini. "It teaches them to be cynical, but about the right things such as when adults tell them they should be holier-than-thou, and not about things such as relationships and friendship. "
Source