Viewers' Attitudes to Prejudice in The Simpsons

My reason for attempting to carry out a study on The Simpsons is to try to establish whether such programmes have any influence over the views and attitudes of their viewers. I will, especially examine the differences in their interpretations of prejudice expressed or portrayed by the characters themselves. This may seem rather far-fetched with such an apparently harmless cartoon as The Simpsons, but it is a 'sitcom', albeit a cartoon type, and previous studies have come up with some interesting observations about the potential influences of certain situation comedies. The American sitcom, All in the Family (1971) fuelled a debate between novelist Laura Hobson and its producer, Norman Lear. Hobson claimed that the way the main character (Archie Bunker) was portrayed, as a loveable bigot, gave the impression that bigotry is acceptable and that the programme even encouraged it. Against this idea was the proposal by its producer that the programme's humour was an effective weapon 'against' prejudice. (Vidma & Rokeach 1974).

Added to the argument were claims that the show could be influencing the younger, more impressionable viewers with racist ideas and the actor, Carroll O'Connor, who plays Archie, believed, from the many letters he received, that such a programme actually helped people to understand their own prejudices. David Buckingham carried out a study of young viewers who were fans of the British TV soap opera EastEnders. He observed that this programme invited its viewers to make judgements which related to the rights and wrongs of individual behaviour, and that criticising and debating the various characters was a way of using the television as a vehicle for working out their own values. (Buckingham 1987)

All in the Family was based on the British sitcom Til Death Us Do Part, shown in the mid 1960's, with its own (not so loveable) bigot in the form of Alf Garnet. Like Archie, Alf was an outrageous racist, making such remarks as, "He's a proper Blackie - born in the jungle...". Homer Simpson could not be accused of having such opinions, but once accepted and liked as a credible character, maybe the potential is there shaping and influencing the minds of the viewers, if only at the level of finding 'couch potatoes' loveable, rather than lazy and mindless, etc.

Theories have been formulated to try to predict certain traits in viewers which would indicate whether they were influenced by the prejudice of the characters.

1. The 'Selective perception hypothesis' is where viewers, according to their degree of prejudice, would:

a) find such programmes (sitcoms) entertaining for different 'reasons'.
b) identify with different characters
c) interpret the outcome of each episode differently

2. The selective exposure hypothesis would predict that people who identify with stimuli which are in tune with their own way of perceiving the world are more likely to seek more of that type of stimuli than those who do not.

In the case of All in the Family this issue was debatable because 'identifying with particular characters' was not the only desirable feature for its popularity - but appreciation of its satire on bigotry. These would, according to the selective exposure hypothesis, be the low-prejudice viewers who would identify more with characters in the programme who challenge Archie's racist remarks, because they disapproved of it. So, in this case, it would be the low prejudice viewers who would watch the programme more, not because they were prejudiced, but because they enjoyed the way the bigot's remarks could be ridiculed. Thus developed two 'competing' theories.

• Selective perception suggesting focusing on certain aspects of given stimuli, which are in line with own viewpoint/understanding/attitudes, etc.
• Selective exposure suggesting seeking more of something that is 'in tune' with own viewpoint/understanding/attitudes, etc.

Neil Vidma and Milton Rokeach (1974) carried out a study which would examine which of these theories was the most applicable regarding the influence of such programmes on reinforcing peoples prejudices. This involved a questionnaire with eleven questions designed to look at reactions of respondents to All in the Family. Such questions sought to ascertain which character the respondent identified with and whether they respected Archi's views or were offended by them, etc. In order to measure the persons racial prejudice, six questions were asked, each with a selection of two alternative responses. These questionnaires were designed to relate to the respondents own cultural context. The findings of this study tended to support the 'selective perception hypothesis' in that:

a) the more prejudiced ones identified more with Archie
b) saw Archie as relating things as they really are
c) believed that in the end Archie always won

Another interesting finding of this research was that the two types of viewers had very contrasting interpretations of the characters of both the Archie and of Mike. For example those who disliked Archie found his character distasteful and those who liked him seemed to interpret his ways as admirable.

Studies carried out by Cooper and Jahoda (1947) indicated that attitudes and values can affect a person's interpretation of social stimuli. Using a cartoon character called Mr. Biggott, they showed that the prejudiced viewer distorted the humour so as not to ridicule Mr. Biggott, whereas the non-prejudiced viewer appreciated it simply as humour directed back at Mr. Biggott.

Another 'cartoon sitcom', South Park, was most definitely considered a bad influence on the British viewer and was eventually banned, although it still appears on Sky television (1999). The South Park characters used very offensive language, were racist and bigoted about everyone and everything including themselves, but were very popular with the young, even though they were supposed to be for adult viewing only. Their 'cartoon' status may have beguiled many parents into believing that they were innocent. This is possibly one of the biggest dangers of any cartoon programme - that it seems difficult to believe that it can be realistic enough to corrupt anyones values or attitudes. But their very popularity and 'cover of innocence' could act as a vehicle for expressing very extreme points of view.

One study was carried out on cartoons that showed either more black characters than white or vice versa, in which the racial minority characters were portrayed either positively or negatively and found that the racial attitudes of white children aged between 6 and 8 years could be affected after watching only one such cartoon (Gunter 1997: 87). The Simpsons does have a minority group of definite 'brown' characters; others are mostly 'yellow' but have various peculiar characteristics such as 'ape-like features' or protruding upper lips. But the 'brown' group do seem to be caricatures of 'real' races. For instance:

Bleeding Gums Murphy has an 'ape-like' appearance and plays jazz, which he learned to play 'at the feet of Blind Willie Witherspoon' (Groening 1997:22). Dr. Hibbert is the Simpson family's doctor. He laughs at inappropriate times, jokingly telling wives that their husbands are dead, or informing patients that their legs will have to come off instead of their 'wet bathing suits', etc. He has short, black curly hair. Lou, one of 'two of Springfield's finest' policemen. Favourite bribe: beer. Finest talents: abusing power, intimidating suspects. Weakness: solving crimes, keeping the peace. Carl is Homer's supervisor at the Springfield Nuclear Plant. He is the union organiser and enjoys beating Homer at playing Poker. Lucius Sweet is a boxing manager/promoter with electrified, frizzled-up hair. His reputation is shady and his biggest client pushed his mother in law down a flight of stairs. Apu Nhasapeemapetilon is the operator of the Kwik-E-Mart and comes from India. He has a poor memory and is a semi-legal immigrant and a strict vegetarian. Once said, "I know the procedure for armed robbery. I do work in a convenience store you know". (Groening 1997)

Again, it would take further research into the roles played by these characters, their accents and dress, in order to determine whether they are portrayed in a way which undermines specific races or cultures. But from the above descriptions they do give the impression of being stereotypical of particular groups and their characters are generally portrayed as being rather derogatory -

• a corrupt policeman
• a 'shop-keeper Indian' who is also an illegal immigrant,
• the association with Boxing and Jazz and connections with crime.

Stereotypes

All of The Simpsons characters are almost 'alien' in their appearance, but do reflect many recognisable characteristics of human people, but in an extreme, stereotypical way. These characters were all created by Matt Groening and the following are recognisably conventional stereotypes of the white cultures:

Couch Potato

Homer: loves sitting on the couch, watching TV whilst drinking beer

Militant ideologist

Lisa: Moral centre and middle child, questions the government, served as Little Miss Springfield but became disillusioned by pageant sponsorship of Cigarette Company; intelligent, serious, passionate for the good of the world.

The Rebel

Bart: Devious, under-achieving, school hating, irreverent, clever, possesses a huge repertoire of practical jokes and methods of revenge. Once sawed off the head of a statue of town founder Jebediah Springfield, blew Agnes Skinner off the commode by throwing a cherry bomb into a toilet in the boys' bathroom, etc.

'Holier than Thou' Good neighbour

Ned Flanders: Happy-clappy type Christian, Always does everything correctly. Favourite book - The Bible. Homer once said, "I dont care if Ned Flanders is the nicest guy in the world. He's a jerk - end of story". (Groening 1997: episode 7F23:10.3.91)

The Nerds

Benjamin, Doug and Gary: These three are physics students at Springfield university. Benjamin wears a calculator on his hip: Doug is fat and wears a pocket protector; Gary wears black-rimmed glasses. Their favourite game is Computer solitaire.

Scrooge

Mr. Burns: Very rich and ancient, owner of Springfield Nuclear Power Plant owner, most powerful man in Springfield.

The Creep

Smithers: Follows his boss, Mr. Burns, everywhere like a little lap dog

Dumb Blonde

Amber Dempsey: Curly, blonde hair, fluttery eyelashes, glittery smile. Once said, "Hi, I'm Amber Dempsey, and when I grow up, I want to be a Sweetie Pie".

The Teenage Yob

Otto. Long haired, gambles, plays guitar until all hours, hair clogs the drain in the bathroom. Fifteen driving accidents and not a single fatality. (Groening 1997: 87)

The Scumbag

Jimmy. Occupation: Criminal. Appearance: unshaven and tired.

The stereotype is generally seen as an exceptional type of attitude, that is difficult to change. When someone is prejudiced they tend to judge according to dogmatic beliefs rather then through examination and experience. The stereotype reflects this attitude in that a fixed set of presumptions are projected onto a person or group. The media makes use of stereotyping as a means of sharing common cultural assumptions with its viewers. It can be a means of referring to quite complex social relationships. The danger lies in the reinforcing of the shared assumption to such an extent that it is applied to 'all' who appear to resemble the particular category, i.e. the 'dumb blonde' may imply that all blonde women are low intellect. Such use of stereotypes are more commonly portrayed in soap operas, but The Simpsons does contain many characteristics of the soap such as its story-line revolving around family life and 'everyday-life issues'. This could, therefore, lead its viewers to identify with and empathise with its various characters.

It is generally the soaps that makes use of stereotypes and deals with social issues in a 'true-life' serious way, whereas The Simpsons, being a comedy, presents them in a very far-fetched humorous way. Social issues covered in The Simpsons, have included paganism, shop-lifting, dummy sucking, fear of the Apocalypse, crime, dealing with crude eating habits at the table, sexual inadequacy, secrets of a successful marriage, and many issues centring around television viewing, and so on. Hartmann and Husband (1974) studied the contribution of the mass media to racial prejudice amongst the white population. They recognised that journalists try to make their messages fit into familiar frameworks which conform to existing expectations and stereotypes and traditional images such as black symbolising evil (in Barrat 1986: 50).

David Morley carried out a study of Nationwide to see whether the television audience accepted the 'intended' messages of its programmes or whether they interpreted it differently according to their age, sex, race, class, group, etc. He was especially interested in Parkin's theory concerning the effects of dominant ideology on the various 'groups' of the population. He carried out his study with specific social groups and found that their responses within their groups were similar, but different between groups to such an extent that it was obvious that every group did not receive and passively accept the 'intended message' of the programme. (Morley 1980).

Livingstone carried out a study with 66 regular viewers of Coronation Street to look at the various ways that the viewers might identify with its characters. She selected a particular narrative which took place over several months and was interested to see if different interpretations of what appeared to be taking place. She sorted her viewers' reactions into 'clusters' of The Cynics, Negotiated Cynics, Romantics, and Negotiated Romantics. The main issue centred on whether the viewers actually identified with the characters and whether this reflected in how they interpreted the narrative. Her findings were consistent with the identification being clearly related to the evaluations given (Livingstone 1990).

As regards The Simpsons and racial prejudice, there was one programme which involved 'anti-immigrant Fever' in Springfield, when no-one would shop at Apu's store, and another programme centred around the closure of his store because, he sold 'out of date meat' to Homer at a cut price and Homer became sick. Homer then took his story to "Bite Back with Kent Brockman" and Apu was fired (Groening 1997: 134). A little, catchy jingle was introduced by Apu himself which reverberated throughout the British population from the lips of both adult and child, "Who needs the Kwit-E-Mart....?" (sung in an appropriate Indian-like accent).

The Kwik-E-Mart Lyrics

Whether igloo, hut or lean to
Or a geodesic dome
There's no structure I have been to
Which I'd rather call my home.
When I first arrived
You were all such jerks
But now I've come to looove your quirks.
Maggie with her eyes so bright
Marge with hair by Frank Lloyd Wright
Liza can philosophize
Bart's adept at spinning lies
Homer's a delightful fellow
Sorry 'bout the salmonella
Who needs the Kwik-E-Mart?
Now here's the tricky part
I doooo!

(Greoning:1997,p.134)

Later Apu saves actor James Woods' life during a robbery attempt and gets his job back. But whether such programmes could actually assist in the reinforcement and possible 'light hearted' mockery of ethnic minority British Indian store keepers - or could have turned them into 'loveable heroes' would require a more intensive study.

Small-scale Aberystwyth Study

In an attempt to carry out a small scale study on The Simpson viewers similar in design to that of the All in the Family Study, I designed a 'Simpson Questionnaire' and a 'General (racial attitude) Questionnaire' for six people in Aberystwyth, three were Indian/British and three were White/British and all were males. The questions could not exactly comply with those of the All in the Family questionnaires, because (as in question 5) the programme does not have two specific opposing characters (apart from Homer and Flanders the Christian neighbour, though only at a stretch of the imagination). So the questions did have to be modified to suit the different programme generally and special questions were designed under the heading of 'General Questions regarding racial attitudes in Britain today', to attempt to appraise each person's rating of high or low prejudice. Again these were modified to be appropriate to British knowledge/context.

Questions and Answers to The Simpsons Questionnaire

1. How often do you watch The Simpsons?

Name, Occupation, Age; Frequency of viewing, Reasons for not watching it more

Ben: Scientist, 24; 'have watched every programme + taped them'
Kevin: Journalist, 37; 'sometimes', because not on at convenient times
Paul: Civil Servant, 24; 'sometimes' no reason not to watch it more
Fotique: Chef, 24; 'sometimes' - it is children's programme
Hussain: Asst Chef, 25; 'sometimes' - it is a children's programme
Abdus: Asst Chef, 17; 'every day' - it is a children's programme

3. Feelings about the programme: How funny is it?

Ben: very enjoyable, extremely funny
Kevin: very enjoyable, extremely funny
Paul: enjoyable, very funny
Fotique: very enjoyable, extremely funny
Hussain: enjoyable, a bit funny
Abdus: enjoyable, very funny

5. Which character do you like or admire the most?

Ben: Homer and Apu equally
Kevin: Lisa, the daughter
Paul: Bart, the son
Fotique: Homer and Bart equally
Hussain: Lisa, the daughter
Abdus: Homer

6. Do you consider that Homer is in any way typical of a middle-aged, working-class husband?

Ben: Yes, but a stereotypical, exaggerated version
Kevin: Yes, especially in the USA
Paul: No
Fotique: No
Hussain: Yes
Abdus: Yes

7. How would you describe Homer Simpson?

Ben: as being summed up in a particular episode which showed that monkeys evolved from him.
Kevin: as a product of his society (American)
Paul: as funny, dim, naive
Fotique: as active and funny
Hussain: as a bit funny
Abdus: as funny and enjoyable and watchable

8a What do you think of Flanders, the Christian neighbour?

Ben: as typifying the public's view of the Christian and as being like a lot of Christians.
Kevin: as being another caricature
Paul: (left blank)
Fotique: as friendly and jolly
Hussain: as a 'low life guy'
Abdus: as a nice guy and friendly and jolly

8b Which of the main characters is usually at the centre of being made fun of?

Ben: Lisa, the only sensible one
Kevin: Homer, even when he doesn't realise it
Paul: Homer and Flanders
Fotique: Bart, the son
Hussain: Bart, the son
Abdus: Bart, the son

9. Do you usually agree with Homer's point of view or Flander, or any other characters'?

Ben: (commenting on Homer's view 'of Flanders') is probably most people's view of that type of person, though they may not say so openly.
Kevin: No, but I would hope you're not supposed to.
Paul: No-one's in particular.
Fotique: No
Hussain: (left blank)
Abdus: N/C (?)

10. Do you think that in 20 years' time your own attitudes and values will be similar to Homer's or to another main character?

Ben: No - because all the views are exaggerated and extreme
Kevin: No - I hope not!
Paul: No
Fotique: No
Hussain: No
Abdus: No I don't.

11. Has watching The Simpsons made you aware that you might have certain prejudices you were not previously aware of?

Ben: yes - against people who get everything but do nothing to earn it - see 'Homer's Enemy' (which influenced Adam)
Kevin: Possibly - it's a very clever reflection of a society, especially the role that television plays in it.
Paul: No
Fotique: No
Hussain: Yes
Abdus: No I don't.

12. Did you see the programme when 'Anti-immigration' Fever hit Springfield?
13. How did you feel when no-one would go to Apu's shop?

Ben: Yes - I felt sorry for him, but he would do worse (things) if there was money involved.
Kevin: Yes - I felt angry
Paul: No (did not see it)
Fotique: No - I felt sad
Hussain: No - I felt disappointed (that no-one went to Apu's shop)
Abdus: No I didn't - I felt very sad

Conclusions

The very characteristics of situation comedy, whether using cartoon or real people, conveys its messages through making fun of 'every day situations'. Its humour appears to be its greatest appeal and neither the Indian/British or the White/British claimed to be offended by its content. They all found it at least 'a bit funny'.

The whole point of this investigation is to look at 'differences' in interpretation of any prejudice expressed by the characters in The Simpsons. The selective exposure hypothesis hypothesis claimed that 'high prejudice' viewers would watch the programme more often 'if they agreed with the views of the 'prejudiced character/s' (but they could equally watch it more because they really appreciated the satire). So the first task might be to establish whether the three white respondents are high or low prejudice. This was a very difficult thing to judge, because the racial questionnaire allowed for comments which did not always directly give a for or against answer. In retrospect, it would have been better to use an already 'tried and tested' one (perhaps used by personnel officers or social workers, etc.). But on the basis of the answers provided in this one it would seem that Ben was somewhat prejudiced and that Kevin and Paul were not. But it could be argued that Ben was, as a Scientist, more likely to question everything, but he was the one who did all he could to watch every single episode and the only one to show doubts over whether there was a genetic difference between races (because, he later claimed, it was still an issue under investigation).

As regards The Simpson questions, it was important, according to the selective perception hypothesis to see who each respondent identified with (liked or admired the most). In this case Ben liked both Homer and Apu equally, but it could not be claimed that either of these characters were in any way typical of himself as a Scientist. It has also occurred to me that 'liking or admiring' need not equate to 'identifying with'. Ben liked them because they were extremely funny, not because he necessarily shared their views. But three factors stood out in Ben's answers. Firstly, he claimed to enjoy the programme for its humour, secondly he admired Homer and considered him typical of a middle class, middle aged husband, and thirdly, although he laughed at Homer's views, he saw Lisa as the main one being laughed 'at' (for her liberal views).

Both Ben and Kevin did accept the reality of the image of Homer as an extreme 'stereotypical character' of the working class, middle-aged husband, though Paul definitely did not. This may be worthy of a further study into the social backgrounds of the respondents as in the David Morley study. Kevin most admired Lisa, the daughter who is portrayed as an intelligent ideologist, though Ben saw her as the one most being laughed at. Now this raises the question as to why Kevin most admired Lisa - for her type of character or because she made him laugh the most? It could be easy to jump to the wrong conclusions. If Ben actually found Lisa's behaviour something to be laughed at, it could reveal that he was prejudiced in favour of the antagonists (as in the case of those who saw 'Archie', in All in the Family, as 'winning' in the end.)

The three Indian respondents all (from the 'Racial attitude questionnaire') believed that 'lack of initiative and hard work' was accountable for the failure of certain minority groups to achieve equality of opportunity, whereas the three White respondents all ticked 'restrictions imposed by white society'. This poses interesting questions in that the Indians were possibly considering the differences between themselves and the African black ethnic groups who were also immigrants to Britain, but who had not been so successful financially or academically. Also, if they had been white and had disagreed with mixed marriages and adoptions, they might have been judged as high prejudiced. Again the question arises as to whether they meant mixed between themselves and the white groups or between the black groups. Both the Indian and the whites had shown sympathy for Apu when no-one would go to his shop.

One of the most interesting considerations which emerged from the study was not so much the prejudice portrayed relating to cultural/ethnic minority groups, but concerning the portrayal of the middle-aged, working class father. The Simpsons head of the family is portrayed as a rather stupid person as is the stone-age character, Fred, in another American cartoon sitcom The Flintstones. Homer is also irresponsible and immature. He is not a good role model of a father and certainly not someone to try to identify with. In both The Simpsons and The Flintstones, the wives are portrayed as strong-minded, intelligent characters, (including Homer's daughter, Lisa). This presents a poor image of working class, white (even though yellow) men, so could present a case for these cartoon sitcoms presenting a definite statement about the men of the working classes. Kevin who is from a middle-class background summed up his contempt for Homer's views, when asked whether he agreed with his point of view by saying, "I hope you're not supposed to".

References