The Other Simpsons Episode

The episode of The Simpsons we viewed in class the other day had many themes in it that we discussed in class. I'll avoid the really obvious ones, like the erotic triangle, and try to find some less blatant examples. One example was the exaggerated Hummer that Reiner Wolfcastle drove. He is a parody of Arnold Shwarzenegger, a model of many masculine stereotypes. Many of Wolfcastles actions are suggestive of those stereotypes, and the Hummer is no exception. It is an example of the alrge, gas guzzling, powerful vehicle that guys like to buy in order to show off. The idea is to make the other men jealous, proving their masculinity. Other men get a mimetic desire to have their own big muasculine car, and feel insecure if they can't. Another example is all the tough guy sayings, such as, "laughing time is over." All men feel the pressure to be tough; it is evident in many activities boys participate in while growing up. From that, the image of the ideal man becomes like Wolfcastle: big, tough, mean, and muscular.
The Simpsons has grown to include an audience of just about everybody, but overall it is for the most part still geared towards young men. This was the origional audience, and probably still the largest. The funny thing about it is that this message about masculinity is aimed at them; it is these young men who all try and become their own Arnold or Reiner. Messages like that are common in this V show, but often overlooked or underappreciated by a majority of people.