The Flimpsons
Ariela Haro von Mogel February 22nd, 2009
Homer Simpson once said that the world would be a better place if the Simpsons and the Flanders’ joined together and became one family. Well, I think the world would be a better place if female and male characters got equal representation on television. I know, you may be thinking, wow, this woman really has too much time on her hands to be analyzing the female to male ratio representation on The Simpsons. Well, that’s fine. I don’t have that much time on my hands. I just like to prioritize when I need to complain. And The Simpsons is one of my favorite shows and the quintessential American cartoon. Almost everyone you know has heard of The Simpsons.
I never really thought about this until a good friend of mine from high school pointed out the male-bias in The Simpsons. And he is right. More episodes center on Homer and Bart than on Marge and Lisa. Precious few are about Maggie (though she is a baby, so that might be kind of boring). But the part that really gets to me is the fact that the side characters are so heavily skewed towards male characters.
Let me illustrate.
Here is a list of side characters that are important, visible, and receive character development.
Male – Mr. Burns, Krusty the Klown, Ned Flanders, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, Reverend Lovejoy, Principal Skinner, Moe the Bartender, and Milhouse Van Houten.
Female – Patty and Selma Bouvier, and Mrs. Krabappel.
A ratio of 8:2. So 80% of the important side charcaters are male.
Now, here is a list (debatable and not thorough) of important and visible characters that receive little to no character development.
Male – Mr. Smithers, “Diamond” Joe Quimby, Nelson Muntz, Jimbo Jones, MartinPrince, Ralph Wiggum, Fat Tony (and other Mafia members), Troy McClure, Lionel Hutz, Groundskeeper Willie, Dr. Nick Riviera, Dr. Hibbert, Kirk Van Houten, Cletus, Fat Comic Book Guy, Lenny and Karl, Otto, Rod and Todd Flanders, Grandpa Simpson, Hans Moleman, Kang and Kodos, Professor Frink, Superintendant Chalmers, Bumblebee Man, Sea Captain, Barny, Sideshow Bob, Sideshow Mel, Kent Brockman, and Jasper (Grandpa’s friend), and Duffman.
Female – Agnus Skinner, Maude Flanders, Lunchlady Doris, and Manjula Nahasapeemapetilon.
Wow! That’s a damn difference. And I was being generous with the female characters. Again, there is about a 80-85% difference between male and female representation.
The barely visible side characters that reiceive almost no character development are a little more equal (sadly enough). And it is interesting to note that a lot of important male character’s wives are in this category.
Male – Dr. Marvin Monroe, “Bleeding Gums” Murphy, Akira (Sushi Chef), Luigi (Italian restaurant owner), Arnie Pie, Disco Stu, Rabbi Krustofski, Roger Meyers Jr., Sanjay Nahasapeemapetilon, Rainier Wolfcastle, Squeeky Voice Teen, and Uter.
Female – Princess Kashmere, Cookie Kwan, Mrs. Hibbert, Mrs. Wiggum, Mrs. Lovejoy, “Mother” Simpson, and Mrs. Hoover.
The ratio for this is 2:1. So, for about every stupid female character you see, there will be two male characters to top them off.
So there it is. The Simpsons is extremely biased towards the representation of male characters. Which is really too bad, because it sends the message that female characters are simply not that funny. One of the funniest shows in the history of American television centered around the antics of a housewife! So I don’t believe men are funnier than women, or boys funnier than girls. The ironic part, though, is that the voices of the boys in The Simpsons are mostly done by adult women!
