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University offers 'Simpsons' as Philosophy Class
joestump98 writes "I ran accross a story at CNN that says a local Michigan college, Siena Heights, is offering a philosophy class on our favorite cartoon - The Simpsons. The Catholic school says the class is about religion and philosphy in popular culture." And I thought Rocks for Jocks was a hilarious concept in wasting a college education. That said, I'd take that class. Have to make sure to watch my homework tonight.
What's new about this is that an entire course is being dedicated to them.
"Bloody marvelous."
this isn't much of a surprise, as an oprah class has been in the works for awhile...
and they say education in the us isn't going downhill...
Runnin' On Empty
For 12 seasons, "The Simpsons" has mined religious subjects for laughs. The staple of the Fox network has sometimes been called sacrilegious
Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....sacrilicious.....
That episode, in my opinion was one of the best episodes ever. Lots o' religous commentary. I have always been really pleased with their social commentary as well. Little bits like "most people marry out of fear of growing old alone" is a resounding one.
This sound like it could be a great class and it would be a hoot to sit in on. One can always hope that the one of the questions on the final would be...
In 500 words or less describe the moral, ethical, and religous foundations in Homer's refrain of "Mmmmmmm donuts."
Either give it away or get top dollar, but never sell yourself cheap.
Worst class ever.
Won't somebody please think of the children..
Mmm.. Philosophy..
air and light and time and space
I know a local educator who I hold in very high regard. He is also a director of local theatre and occational on-screen movie critic. A rather senior fellow, he tends have very high standards for excellence. I was sitting in "Green Room" (where actors wait for the show to start) shooting the breeze. For years I dismissed the Simpsons as "pop trash." You could have picked me up off the floor when I heard him declare that the Simpsons was one of the finest works on television.
This is a boring sig
The Simpsons have been delivering witty, insightful, accurate and fairly balanced social and political commentry for years, without ever resorting to anything really base or gratuatious. They are consistenly funny and inoffensive. Mind you, if your average (American, but not only American) viewer paid more attention to what they watched they may be made to contemplate now and then, and realise that alot of the barbs snuck in to the families' banter is aimed at them.
I can't name the number of times I've stopped and said "hey, this is just like the Simpsons when Homer..." about my own behaviour or the bahviour of my friends. D'oh!
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Check out various offerings from a google search. No word on whether the class is still being offered.
Just so everyone knows why we're the fastest growing University of California:
Here's a list of some of the interesting classes that are availabe from time to time
Understanding Drugs (Bioc 80) -- Yes, you talk about doing various drugs...
Lesbian and Gay World (CMMU 80F) -- I'm still trying to figure out why it's bad to think people have nothing wrong with them until they tell me their gay... Nevermind, can't remember the group that was spouting that off...
Hope/Crisis Capitalism (Econ 80A) -- I don't know, haven't taken it and don't know anyone who has...
Technothrillers (Film 80A) -- Watching, you guessed it, technothrillers
Intro to Horror Films (Lit 80T) -- Horror movies are your friends... From what I hear you watch a couple dozen horror films (as far back as like the 1890s IIRC)
Beatles Music (MUSC 80V)
Saturday Night Live (Theater 80O)
80's: Film And TV (Film 80) -- 80's: The decade that only one good thing came out of: mst3k
Psychophysic Music (Phys 80a) -- I don't know about this one
Muppet Magic (Thea 80L) -- 10 weeks of Jim Henson's Muppets, and why we should all bow down to him... Or something
Queer Theater (Thea 80T) -- It just struck me as funny... I guess it shouldn't seeing as how we have a high proportion of homosexuals here...
Disney (Thea 80N) -- The class I took. The only thing I remember from it is that they used a really neat looking camera setup to do framed shots for their early movies-- Hence why they were better than other stuff from the same era.. Oh, yeah, and my TA (with a speech impediment) saying "nubile" in regards to the Little Mermaid, I think...
And to think, you have to take 2 topical (80) courses to get out of here...
Hasta luego,
ex
Besides that, the simpsons is funny as hell offers quotes for every occasion from "D'oh!" to "Ahhh the Navy, see the world and all the free gay sex you can handle." :-)
The simpsons first season is now on DVD.. I'm getting them all when they come out.
Humorless sig goes here.
The Simpsons, albeit a cartoon show, often offers social commentary and true philosophical views. A book that I recently read is The Simpsons and Philosophy, which goes into great detail about how different philosophers would interpret the characters of OFF (Our Favorite Family--abbreviation used a lot in alt.tv.simpsons).
For example, maybe Maggie is just being silent to be silent, or maybe that silence could be interpreted as a social protest. Sartre would certainly think so, anyway.
My point is simply that this show goes far beyond what it appears to be on the surface. Plain & Simple, anything that stimulates your mind and provokes positive thoughtstreams is not waste; to call it that shows how much you truly still have to learn.
I'm not a philosopher, and I don't play one on TV, but my recollection is that many of the Greek philosophers used works of poetry as the starting point for their philosophical discussions. Since the poetry of that day was primarily entertainment, there is significant precendent for using something like The Simpsons as the basis for educational purposes.
Bleh, there's nothing philosophical about this season's (or the past two or three's) Simpsons episodes. They're just pointless. There's no plot, no jokes, nothing. I keep watching, in the vain hope that they'll improve, but they probably won't. That episode last week really was the Worst Episode Ever, totally dull and pointless. Whatever, rant over.
If it ain't broke, you need more software.
...that the education system is in complete shambles, when it becomes necessary to introduce courses like this.
In all likelyhood, they're the equivalent of the underwater soap-carving courses that engineering students take to "satisfy" the arts requirement component of their curriculum.
In the story, who's speaking up about the course? A biology major -- a geek who is apparently too dim to recognize that a broad education is valuable, and has chosen to take a flakey course to satisfy a requisite with minimum effort.
Why on earth are the universities catering to this sort of limited, lazy thinking?
The job of the university should be to create a graduation class of people who are going to lead the advancement of the arts and sciences. To do so, these people are going to require a broad education, one that has challenged them on all fronts and forced them to think creatively and thoughtfully. They need to be people who are eternally curious, doggedly determined, and, above all, brilliant.
Serving up Simpsons swill as some sort of philosophy substitute is not doing anyone a favour.
Perhaps the standards have dropped too low. Maybe you don't have to be particularly smart to enter university any more: you just have to have money. Perhaps there's too much emphasis in the job market on post-secondary degrees. And the past three decade's emphasis on sciences as the be-all and end-all goal of education is certainly at fault: we need more technically-trained people (ie. college-level job training) than we need science/structure-trained people.
"The Simpsons and Philosophy: The D'oh! of Homer," indeed. Next up: "An Overview of Political Philosophies: The Travels of Xena, Warrior Princess."
Bah.
--
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This isn't that amazing, really; Simpsons philosophy classes have been out there forever. I think I recall hearing about one at Stanford a few years back (and on here, no less!). I'm surprised that this made Slashdot, and even more susprised at some of the reactions that people are having. The Simpsons are an excellent way to teach philosophy; in fact, in my class this semester, quite a few people actually used the Simpsons as topics for the 15-page term paper at the end of the year (things like analysis of the Bart Loses His Soul episode, which really do get philosophical if you bring in some outside sources and philosophers).
If anyone's interested, there's even a book, called The Simpsons and Philosophy - the D'oh! of Homer.
-- K
This sounds like the sort of course that would be offered to people who are just there for the sports.
Everything is mainstream now.
I don't know what to think of these more "unconventional" classes. I took a "history" class in college on the Beatles. A whole semester!!!
We read books, studied the music, and looked at their impact on popular culture and the path of music development.
I even wrote a term paper on George Harrison's exposure and conversion to eastern philosophy and religion.
I guess the fundamental question on these kinds of classes is: are they just puff puff classes for an "easy A"? Or are they an interesting way to get young people to think about larger philosophical and societal question through subject matter they can really relate to?
I would be interested to see the philosophical context into which the professor inserts the simpsons. what would the reading list be like for this class?
"I think there is a world market for, maybe, five computers." __ IBM Chairman, 1943 __
one of the universities of california (possibly bezerkeley) offered one of these before. and it's really a serious class, about the social implications/messages/etc. of the simpsons. I mean so much of it _is_ soecial commentary. I remember the UC class had students write their own episodes with a particular political theme in mind. very good stuff.
Ohh and hey.... anyone remember this one?
Homer using church to skip town since PBS was hunting hime down.
His church tossed him on a plane and Homer was forced to become a missionary on a island paradise. (by the way, during the whole episode Homer referred to Jesus as "Jebus.")
Homer, of course, brought the island people western culture (and casinos). Soon enough the island paradise had gone to crap. Island folks began gambling so they could strike it rich and to an island paradise (since they no longer lived in one).
Eventually the island folk were forced to adopt Homer's religion in order to be forgiven for there sins (which they never had until homer came along).
"Things are more moderner than before- bigger, and yet smaller- it's computers-- San Dimas High School football RULES!"
For example, maybe Maggie is just being silent to be silent, or maybe that silence could be interpreted as a social protest.
Or maybe that silence could be interpreted as the desire to avoid drastically changing the formula of one of Fox's cash cows. You think?
For example, maybe Maggie is just being silent to be silent, or maybe that silence could be interpreted as a social protest. Sartre would certainly think so, anyway.
You gonna pass that around or are you just gonna sit there and smoke the whole thing yourself?
I think not.
Therefore, you ARE not. Goodbye.
R. Decartes
...I can't wait for them to teach that!
This actually has a great deal of merit.
Think about it. The Simpsons is arguably one of the most popular shows of all time. Not only is it one of the longest-running shows currently on television, its been one of the most consistently popular shows of all time, across ethnic lines. All during a period of great competition from other networks: other cartoon series have tried and failed to duplicate The Simpson's popularity (King of the Hill and The Family Guy readily spring to mind as competition on the same network.)
Now, remember how the Simpsons developed? They were originally an animated short on The Tracey Ullman Show, produced by a small group of people, not the standard fare of corporate media development. So not only do we have this incredible, remarkable program, but the program developed from a different structure then typical programming.
Now, all of these traits are remarkable individually, but when combined, the show is truly unique and remarkable.
There might be a meaning hidden in those facts that would be worth study from a marketing, sociological, and philosophical point of view.
Here's another story on it from ABCNews.com
--You will rephrase your request for me to go to hell. Goto statements are not acceptable programming constructs
Also available is SOUTH PARK: A SATIRE OF SOCIETY and SEINFELD AND OTHER COMEDIC EXPRESSIONS.
At the University of Alabama we have both a Star Wars class and a Dukes of Hazard Class. I wouldn't be suprised if we get a Simpsons class added to the catalogue soon.
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Or maybe she's silent because most babies don't talk?
Unix is user friendly, it's just selective about who its friends are.
In the final for my Western Humanities class the professor used an example from The Simpson to show the role of the family in society...
Homer: Sometimes I think we're the worst family in town
Marge: Maybe we should move to a larger town?
--The Simpsons "Theres no disgrace like home"
Nikkos
The past few months have been so bizarre on a National level, that they could have come right out of a Simpson's episode. And I love the Simpsons deconstruction of TV news. I remember seeing one day the Simpsons watching TV news and the headline was "wild packs of dogs terrorizing neighborhood." Sure enough, we've had several "real" news stories here about the same exact thing. I live in Portland, OR, where the Simpson characters are named after streets in the NW neighborhood. Too surreal sometimes! Rob.
Because their entertainment was more meaningful than ours.
Because their entertainment was based upon a richer and more interesting culture than ours.
All employees must wash hands before seeking equitable relief.
was when Homer was recalling some earlier event, which started out in Moe's Tavern, and Barney, Lenny, and the rest of the Duff gang "discussing Wittgenstein..."
Anyone remember what episode that was? I don't think Wittgenstein's ever been mentioned on American television aside from that one gag.
You see? You see? Your stupid minds! Stupid! Stupid!
The Simpsons, albeit a cartoon show
:)
I think that this fragment of a quote pretty much sums up the entire point of the class. There always have been, and still are, some philosophers who write philosophical tomes which are quite clearly philosophy. But philosophy presented in the form of entertainment is no less worthy of consideration.
Consider, for example, "Candide" (by Voltaire) or "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenence". While they both take the form of a story, each is clearly a philosophical text as well. Likewise texts such as "Gulliver's Travels" and "Catch-22", while more focused on story, also contain plenty of social criticism, which is a form of philosophy.
Considering that "The Simpsons" is far more thoughtful than most of the rest of popular culture, I'm not at all surprised that someone decided to teach a class in it. Whether or not it lasts as part of the philosophical canon after it's off the air remains to be seen. It may not be good enough or philosophical enough to last, but I'm not surprised that it's being recognized in its time.
On a related note, Alan Moore (of "Watchmen" and "From Hell" fame, among other things) taught a class on comic books as literature at The University of California at Berkeley a few years back, and "Watchmen" is on the reading list for one Film/Rhetoric/English class there. This is another example of a "cartoon" that's being taken seriously. It has been known to happen
Actually spongebob squarepants is an amazing show for children. There are some definite lessons in on how to be a good person. However unlike many cartoons its no so obvious to turn kids off once they figure it out.
Plus its just so ridiculous sometimes its easy for an adult to watch as well.
Still what is so wrong with studying the philosphy of current culture?
--- I do not moderate.
Many people do a lot of writing about the simps, so why not.
Also, check out
From Davey & Goliath to Homer and Ned. I'll but you didn't expect to find it there.
actually, no. Remember the episode when Lisa is to get married? Even then, when Maggie must be in her late teens, he still doesn't talk. (and yes, they mayke a point of showing that)
This is not that unusual of a thing really ... Professors need to engage students. Having a class about a subject they are interested in is ceartinily a way to do this ...
At my university, (UC Riverside) there is a course on Star Trek! I think it focuses on ethinc issues or something.
Free Techno/Jazz/DNB/MI Music by guys obsessed with monkeys!
The woman who worked there then proceed to explain to the youngster all about shark mating behaviour. My lady friend and I hardly made it out of there with breath left in our lungs, we laughed so hard.
(Anyone who doesn't understand, watch the whole run of the Simpsons until you hear Homer yelling "ZOOKEEPER! ZOOKEEPER! THOSE MONKEYS ARE KILLING EACH OTHER!")
Endless arguments over trivial contradictions in books written by ignorant savages to explain thunder in the dark.
Actually, IIRC she is known to the family as quite a chatterbox in that ep. She doesn't speak because someone (Marge?) interrupts her, saying that she is always talking. They make a point of NOT showing her talking. I love the idea of her representing some kind of protest, but it seems more likely just a longplaying gag.
Incidentally, she also talks in the episode where the kids are adopted by the Flanderses, and I _think_ there's a third as well, though I can't put my finger on it at the moment.
"All these years believing you're the signified monkey, only to find out you're just a big hunk of nobody cares."
Perhaps they should call the Simpsons course the Tao of D'oh ...
In the episode where they show Bart and Lisa as babies who always called Homer "Homer", the last scene is Maggie saying "Daddy".
How to solve most of our problems: 1.Lots of nuclear plants. 2.Cure aging.
Something like this (social commentary) got done by my local paper (I think). They had an interview (quote?) of a woman asking about the debates between Gore/Bush. She said she had no clue who won, but watched SNL (Saturday Night Live) to figure it out. The candidate that got laughed at more was the loser.
So yeah, TV can influence real life, and as we all know the material is what you make of it. Reminds me of Finding Forrester when he says something like, "I hate it when critics talk about 'What did he really mean when he wrote this?'" You can read anything you want into the Simpsons. (And you can, you can always say "That reminds me of that Simpsons when...")
No sig for you.
"Animated Philosophy and Religion," taught by Kimberly Blessing...
Seriously though?
Skiers and Riders -- http://www.snowjournal.com
Literature, philosophy, blah blah blah aren't civics lessons, and they don't put food on the table. They're there to help you appreciate the so-called finer things in life, and, honestly, well-concieved and -executed humor is one of the finer things. So what if there isn't some tangible value? There isn't supposed to be one.
"Hardly used" will not fetch you a better price for your brain.
More clearly than anything, it represents a real crisis in North American universities today: people think of them as valuable only insofar as they provide job training and a career boost. Departments like History, English, Religion and Philosophy once used to put undergraduates through serious courses that required them to struggle through real scholarship. They resented it at first, but came away with a substantial understanding of our intellectual roots, and of certain timeless questions, along with history's most elligible answers to those questions.
Fast forward to now, and you'll see core departments struggling to attract students in universities that are increasingly asking the departments to compete with one another for students and funding. The cheapest way to win that competition is not to hire an outstanding faculty, provide your students with individual attention, and make demanding courses which require lots of writing. The cheapest way is to pack a huge lecture hall using provocative course titles. Unfortunately, the students don't complain when the course itself is a half-baked piece of crap, designed primarily to stroke the ego of an aging professor trying to overcome his insecurity that he might no longer be "with it." They don't complain when the exams are on bubble sheets; "electronic grading" is, according to their insecure professor, the new, hip thing. The reason why they don't complain is because they don't know what they're missing. Once one department at a university resorts to this strategy, the other departments must respond in kind. It doesn't take long for things to get all fucked up. I've seen this first hand.
Please, students: if you actually want to learn something in college, do your research on a course before enrolling. Sadly, many of your options today are courses that will amuse you, but leave you just as ignorant as you were when the course began. One warning sign that you might be in for mere amusement is: an overly up-to-date or hip course title and topic.
When I was an undergraduate getting my degree in physics, my most important courses were in philosophy. I had to know Kant and Quine and Nietzche inside out, and there was nothing more intellectually rewarding than that. If you take philosophy classes, take some real ones. Only after that should you consider doing something philosophically frivolous like the Philosophy of the Simpsons.
But by all means, watch the Simpsons! It's about to start in 15 minutes! Spork
Hehe, he actually does try to take roles with artistic merit every once in a while for what it's worth. Even when playing the Buddha in "Little Bhudda" though, he still seemed to be in the character of Bill. I think that probably would've been the case in the movie he was in recently that Raimi made (sorry, forgot the name, some psychic murder-mystery), but he didn't talk much if at all - not much of an opportunity to say "woah."
This site, snpp.com, is a Simpsons archive full of guides, papers, and all kinds of resources for research if anyone really wants to look into studying this further. The quality and content are solid. I highly recommend it.
The Simpsons quite often has a "moral" as blatant as Aesop, but sneaks it in using a cynical tone. Homer and Bart's misdeeds are punished in some hilariously twisted way. Good deeds don't often go unpunished either, but that's pretty well acknowledged in the Judeo-Christian tradition, e.g. Job. It does get lots of laughs from organized churches and from Ned Flanders' excessive zeal, but Flanders is prosperous and far happier than anyone living next door to the Simpsons ought to be. And balancing the mockery are some _really_ religious messages, for instance when Bart sells his soul...
On the other hand, considering that the Rev. Lovejoy and Flanders seem to be Protestants, maybe this Catholic college just thinks the mockery is appropriate...
I Love Lucy and The Simpsons.
Oh, what a wonderfully warped wife I have now... ;) In any case, I think they were particularly good choices given the immense influence they've had on our society as well as the reflection of the society itself.
"You can never have too many elephants on your team."
She said "Daddy", in the episode titled "Lisa's First Word", after being put to bed, and everyone else leaving. Elizabeth Taylor provided her voice.
--
"Outlook not so good." That magic 8-ball knows everything! I'll ask about Exchange Server next.
...in my middle school Social Studies class. We studied The Simpsons as an example of a "fad", ie something that would vanish very quickly. Heh. The other pop phenomenon we studied at the same time was "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles". One outta two ain't bad, I guess? :)
"Mind, as manifested by the capacity to make choices, is to some extent present in every electron." -Freeman Dyson
First point about people who complain that some things are getting worse: Look, some things are getting worse. I gave you reasons for why I thought things were getting worse. You can't just dismiss them by your observation. I doubt you think that every aspect our world is as good as/better than it was before. My last post made me realize that I'm pretty convinced our universities have taken a turn for the worse.
That's not to say I want to resist the intrusion of popular culture into academia, or that I somehow don't like pop culture. I'll bet my car that you can't beat me in Simpsons trivia. And of course you need to study popular culture in media and communications classes. I also understand you can learn a lot by analyzing popular culture with academic care. In the early 90's my girlfriend published the first academic paper about Hillary Clinton jokes. It was a serious study and it was good.
Philosophy is not cultural studies, however. It is the study of reasoned argument about fundamental questions. Of course, one sometimes sees glimmers of reasoned argument about fundamental questions in popular culture, and the Simpsons has more such glimmers than most sitcoms. Still, there is just as much/little philosophical content as there is fundamental physics content. I hope you would agree that "Physics of the Simpsons" should not make a good GE course at a university that hopes all its students learn physics basics. While we're at it, let's have "Civil Engineering of The Simpsons," or how about "Accounting of The Simpsons." I guess I see "Philosophy of the Simpsons" as being equally misguided. If it doesn't seem that way to you, that might be because you never read a book by Kant or Quine.
You say I was "mistakenly implying that anyone is going to throw out Descartes 101 for Barney and Moe" but later go on to say "they are important cultural artifacts at least as worthy of study as your Kant and Nietzche." So it seems you would be comfortable with replacing the greats with pop shows, and that's exactly what I'm not comfortable with.
I worry that what underlies the attitude that "The Philosophy of The Simpsons" makes a fitting course for a university is the belief that philosophy courses aren't really about anything anyway, so we might as well dress them up with The Simpsons. This attitude dissolves very quickly when one reads a book by Hume or Russell, but too few people bother to do so.
My god, you're right. Ted it is then.