lly occurred, although its viewership in the beginning was, in fact, primarily under the age of 18. The show was all but ignored by the older viewing public, who discounted it as a trashy cartoon. The "consumption" (duGay, p.3) of the program and its messages by the American public when the show first aired regularly was drastically different than what it is now and what the writers of the show intended. On face value alone, "The Simpsons" is not much more than a cartoon about a middle-class family and their ridiculous escapades. But when examined more closely and with a more objective eye "consumed" as the shows writers would intend one can see that "The Simpsons" is truly a comment on American society."The Simpsons" basis a father, a mother, and three kids is far from unusual. The typical American is a blue-collar worker not unlike the father, Homer, who works a mindless job at the local nuclear power plant in the Simpsons hometown of Springfield which is basically Anytown, USA. Marge, the mother, is a fairly typical housewife besides her large blue beehive hairdo. Bart, is the rebellious older son; Lisa, the under-appreciated middle child; and Maggie, the adorable baby. The Simpsons dont live in luxury, but they are a generally happy family that encounters the problems of everyday, and not-so-everyday, life something that millions can relate to. But there is something that sets "The Simpsons" apart from the traditional family sitcom of the "Family Ties" and "Full House" era.The shows constant satirical exaggerations, allusions and spoofs involving this typical family help demonstrate that "The Simpsons" is no simple sitcom. There is something deeper here that many people missed in the beginning of the shows run. "The Simpsons" instead represents the need for Americans to laugh at themselves and because of that becomes a true parody of American life. When more people began to realize the intelligence of this humor, i...
