Beer and Brandy
Parody is defined as "a literary or musical work in which the style of an author or work is closely imitated for comic effect or in ridicule". The elements of parody are apparent throughout many of the episodes of The Simpson's. The episode that I thought showed the best elements of parody, when contrasted to a movie is the episode called, "Bart of Darkness" which parodies the Alfred Hitchcock movie Rear Window. The similarities I will examine are the setting, and the similarities of the female characters. I believe that though seen by many as a low humor cartoon, The Simpson's incorporates many aspects of high humor as well. This is achieved through the parodying of a classic film such as Rear Window. As the movie Rear Window begins it shows the thermostat, to give the impression that it is a incredibly hot summer day. Because of the heat, most of the people keep their windows and blinds up to help manage the hot temperatures, and this leaves everyone's personal lives open for any voyeur to intrude upon. With nothing better to do within the small confinements of his one room apartment than sit around with a broken leg, Mr. Jefferies sits at his window and becomes familiar with his neighbors daily routines, and activities. The
setting in The Simpson's episode is set up in a similar, but more humorous way. In the "Simpson's" episode the heat is established be scenes such as Homer in the kitchen with a tent built around the refrigerator to make a cooler area for him and Bart. Nonetheless it is depicted as an incredibly hot day. It is because of the heat, that the Simpson's get a pool, and the pool is responsible for Bart's broken leg. After Bart breaks his leg, he is confined to a very small room, with nothing to do, but be nosey. Bart looks at everyone outside, from his window, in the very same manner that Mr. Jefferies does in his apartment. Bart, like Mr. Jefferies, witnesses the strange behavior of his neighbor, and explains to the common female character Lisa, what he is witnessing. But when Bart is restricted to his room he is in a sense "smartened-up". Bart has turned to his brain, and thoughts for entertainment, he becomes intellectual and begins to write plays. This is done to contrast Lisa Simpson's character, which will be further discussed later. This brings me to my next element of parody, which are the similarities, and differences between the two female characters in the in both the movie, and the episode. When breaking down the similarities between the setting, and the common female character, it is obvious that the use of parody is used throughout the episode. I also realize the method that the show uses to raise their status from a slap-stick comedy, to a very intelligent piece of comedy, is their choice in movies to parody. So as I reread my paper, I read the definition in my introduction of parody, and realize that there is something missing, something very important when talking about parody. Yes, parody is often used to ridicule and mock something, but proven in this particular episode, parody is used to show admiration towards a master like Hitchcock. The character of Lisa in The Si
Some common words found in the essay are:
Rear Window, Lisa Fremont, Lisa Simpson's, Lisa Simpson, Bart Nonetheless, , Bart Jefferies, Lisa Jefferies, rear window, Simpson Lisa, lisa simpson, character lisa, simpson's episode, lisa simpson's, low humor, Alfred Hitchcock, lisa fremont, movie rear, movie rear window, common female character, incredibly hot, parody realize, film rear window, lisa simpson lisa,
Approximate Word count = 1281
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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