Sunday, November 30, 2014

"The Simpsons," Satire, And "The Odyssey?"

Compare The Odyssey video excerpt from the Simpsons with Homer's epic poem The Odyssey Books 9,10,12,21,22,23. What does the Simpson's version satirize? What does it make you think about regarding the poem's characters, theme, relationships, and episodes? Please respond with specific support (i.e.-quotations) for your argument.

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

You see the Simpson's satirically make fun of The Odyssey with many brief details of what the story had to offer. Such as the beautiful Sirens are actually Patty and Selma. The "gross" twin sister of Marge. You also see how close they would get to Ithaca only to have Poseidon to toy with them and send them to other danger and tasks to be tested more and more. Such as their rude behavior at Circe's Island when they acted as poor guests and were turned into pigs. In the actual story Odysseus does what he can to aid his friends but in the Satire Homer just eats them,When Odysseus goes home and needs to cross the river Styx, not only does it make fun of the river of Styx and crossing through hell and the Hades it also makes fun of the band Styx. When he returns home, he greats his wife Penelope, but unlike the book Homer goes to visit Moe's completely turning away from the lesson of "The Odyssey"

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

The Simpson's version of the Odyssey satirizes the Sirens that sing and lure the men in and then kill them and also many other aspects such as the river that they make fun of using Styx.The Sirens are very pretty in the book but in the video the men row away from them saying "they're hideous". This video made me think about the poem and the relationships compared to those of the book and how much more detailed the relationships in the book are as opposed to those in the video. The video clip shortened all of the books majorly and left out some details.

Anonymous said...

Homer makes everything seem less extreme and makes fun of the more "scary" events. The suitors look very obsessed and wait the 20 years. There is a lot less fighting and a lot less detail in what was going on. This was more of a comic then a drama. It seems as if Homer never went behind his wifes back, where in the book he did at one of the other islands. By the time he gets home he is just about done with her nagging her, so when she says one final thing he says "im leaving!" So once again that was more of a comic then a drama. He was a lot less excited to see his wife after 20 years then in the book.

Anonymous said...

When they first get there they make fun of the singing girls then they make fun of the goddess and what happens with her. Then when he returned home he made a joke here and there. With everything that had happened to Odysseus the Simpsons changed it all and flipped it around. It was rather short but it did hold many important parts from the Odyssey even though they changed it.

Anonymous said...

Odyssey to the Simpsons with Homer’s epic poem proves that it seems Odysseus really isn’t a hero. It makes fun of the way he was a hero and how he had to face all. He was seemed to be a joke and that they were stupid for even trying to make it back home. The Simpson’s version satirize how stupid the men were and how the gods looked. It makes you think of how bad the actual trip was and his relationship with his crew and friends. His love for his wife is strong enough to make it seem that she will take him back in a heart beat. The episodes seem pointless because you don’t get much detail with the Simpsons but in the poem you know all that happens. The gods don’t help the people they seem like bullies who just hurt the people and not for their own good.

Anonymous said...

The video shows what happens in the story of Odysseus but it makes the story seem stupid and not how it was suppose to seem as glamorous and heroic. Which while reading the story the in class it is from the point of Odysseus so he makes everything seem so glamorous but in another point of view it makes it seem like a cheesy horror movie where the people make a bunch of stupid decisions. This idea of making the story of Odysseus a joke sounds weird because to most people the story of Odysseus is a heroic story which really may not be all that heroic. I think that the poem and the video of the Simpsons shows a lot of what happens in real life, of how we see something one way because of a point of view but it could be something totally different of what really happen.

Anonymous said...

The characters were just like the in the book because Odysseus has a long hard trek home and he is just waiting to go home and is expecting that he will get everything back after he has been gone for 20 long years. The theme of both of the stories is that Odysseus has been gone for so long and is trying to get back and it has been a long. When traveling home he gets stuck with Circe then he has to go to the river of Styx and is crossing through the worst parts of the world and struggling to get home to see Penelope and unlike the book it takes him way longer to get home in the book and he goes through a lot more struggles to get where he is now

Anonymous said...

The Simpsons film is a comical version of The Odyssey. They have a similar message that states, he never really cared about going back to his wife and he never made much of an effort. The view on the gods is different because in the book they are considered worshiped but in the film, they want to get away from them. The view of the underworld is very different because in the book they make it seem more dangerous but in the movie it would just be considered unpleasant. I think that the overall theme is similar because it his him going back home to his wife.

Anonymous said...

The men takes the drink that Circe offered them even though there were dead men surrounding it. At the end Homer explains how much he loves Penelope and she automatically forgives him even though he leaves right after. When Homer ate the pigs and was naive to the fact that the were is friends kind of emphasizes his stupidity.

Anonymous said...

The Simpsons and the Odyssey are very similar because even though the Simpsons version is making fun of it, it is like a shorter version of what the real story is. This Simpsons version helped me to summarize the books that we have read. I also think that the books were a little more passionate about their adventures and again the Simpsons were making fun of it, but still i was able to have a fun visual in my head to help me understand the book.

Anonymous said...

The Simpsons version of The Odyssey exhibits the story in a more humorous way. It makes the beautiful sirens into marge's ugly twin sisters which turns the men away from the island. When the men are on the ship they are all friends instead of justo odysseus being in charge. It also changes who they get the poisonous drink from and how Homer eats his friends.

Anonymous said...

In the Simpsons' version of Odyssey, there are multiple examples of satire. In the poem, when Circe turns the men into pigs, unlike Homer, Odysseus does not eat his men, but tries to save them. Also, towards the beginning of the video clip, the Simpsons use an "ugly" version of the sirens, while in the story, the sirens are very attractive and known for luring men into their clutches. The relationships in the movie aren't as sentimental as they were in the poem, the pigs and his love for Penelope are quite different. In the video when Penelope gives Odysseus a hug he says "Stop suffocating me!" But in the story, the final quote is, " ...her gaze upon her husband, he white arms around him pressed as though forever." The episodes on the islands are quite sarcastic and are not taken as seriously as they are in the poem. When the Simpsons' arrive on Circe's island, the first thing said is, "Who gave every weirdo an island?" While in the poem, the characters take a large amount of precaution towards the situation.

Anonymous said...

I think that the Simpsons episode clip was making fun of how many risks Odysseus takes and how he is willing to risk his men. In the video clip not only did "Odysseus" risk his men he was responsible directly for his men's death. This video shows exactly how unfaithful Odysseus's character is. The theme of the Odyssey is of home and challenges but in the Simpsons video Odysseus is even more irresponsible than he was in the book. The relationships in the Odyssey were great. Odysseus had many people such as his servants, wife and son that remain loyal. However in the Simpsons although people are still loyal to Odysseus, the same loyalty and love is not returned. Even though Odysseus isn't the most faithful guy in the Odyssey he is far worse in this Simpsons clip.

Anonymous said...

In the Simpson video compares to the poems that we read by how some of his crew gets turned into pigs, or that how long it took to get home. Also the souters have waited for so long and Penelope kept saying no to them. Another thing was the way that he had to go to get home. The Simpson video showed different views of the problems though, for example Odysseus ends up eating the pigs, but in the poem Circe turns them back into men. The video clip did not carry nearly information as the poem did

Anonymous said...

The book, Odyssey, relates to the show, Simpsons, because it shows that the Gods were in control of their destiny. The poem, Sirens, was included in the show to show that the sound makes sailors crazy and scared. The Sirens was included to be an ugly version rather than attractive like in the book. Penelope wanted Odysseus to come home and when he finally did, it had been so long. The Simpsons was made for people’s enjoyment and the book was made to tell a myth. The Simpsons version satirizes the fact the the voyage was long and the Gods were apart of it.

Anonymous said...

The Simpsons version game me a clear picture on how much of struggle it was to be Odysseus on what seemed like his eternal journey. Every time he got closer and seemed to be so close to becoming a hero, he was pushed back ten more feet. Also the desire and emptiness of the women he loved that he left behind. She never lost hope. Hope was still alive to see Odysseus again.

Anonymous said...

The video makes fun of the details in the poem. Also the video makes Odysseus look un heroic. In the poem, Odysseus makes the sirens beautiful, but in the Simpsons video the sirens are ugly. Also Just like in the poem the video makes the suitors out to be very ugly. In the poem sorceress turned odysseus's friends into pigs just like in the video, but in the video he eats his friends.

Anonymous said...

The Odyssey compares to the Simpsons because in the book Odysseus is gone for very long and they are challenged by so many different things in order to make it back to Ithaca. While Odysseus is out trying to get back to his home Penelope is also challenged by other suitors that believe Odysseus is dead. In the Simpsons the story is similar and Homer is trying to get home to his wife but is also faced with many challenges. Some of the differences were characteristics of the characters. In the book The Odyssey the Siren's are beautiful and they taunt every sailor to come and see them, but in the clip from the Simpsons the Siren's bring in the sailors but are not strikingly beautiful and they scare the sailors away. Another difference is the relationship between Penelope and Odysseus. Their love is supposed to show a true love and show how the strongest of loves cannot be broken. In the video clip, their love does not appear to be strong and it is not something that either of them cherish. Odysseus and Homer are also very different in the ways that they are portrayed in the book and in the video. In the book Odysseus stays with Circe, is selfish, and does not eat his friends, but in the video clip he runs away from the sorceress Circe, always thinks about his wife, and eats his sailors/friends. These differences show how The Simpsons did not capture the full story and details of the true story of Odysseus.

Anonymous said...

Homer Simpson makes fun of and satires the intensity of all the Greek drama relating back to the odyssey book. "This is a face that launched a thousand ships, the other way" says Athena in the Simpsons skit. This quote shows the skit makeing a joke of how Anthena is now old and ugly putting a spin on her endless beauty in Greek mythology. Also the Simpson skit makes light of the dark underworld and Homer is terrified by the under world, but because of the terrible song that is playing! Turley there are direct retations between the Odysey and the skit on the Simpsons.

Anonymous said...

The Simpsons version of the Odyssey satirizes the ideas of marriage and some of Odysseus decisions. The book version shows that Odysseus basically made lots of mistakes such as going to Circe's island and the Simpsons make fun of that by showing Odysseus as clueless and ignorant. The Simpsons almost portray Odysseus as blinded by his own pride or ego.

Anonymous said...

The Simpsons version of the poem Odyssey makes the character go through some of the somethings but make it less scary and more funny.With the sirens they were making fun of hem and how they were ugly in the show. He has to got through hell river, but they make it more friendly by using the band Styx. The Simpsons make what he went through more funny and less scary.

Anonymous said...

Odysseus is often seen to express strong godly actions but not at other times, I see Odysseus as a human god. When his men are in harms way he often stands up to the task and shows tremendous godliness but when tempted, lacks in zeal for the codes of the gods. As humorously portrayed in the Simpson's version of the Odyssey, Odysseus (portrayed by Homer Simpson) and his men are tempted by Circe as well as he himself is and he gives into the pressure. Odysseus could really be seen as both god and man at different times and I believe that in the end of the Odyssey, Odysseus begins to really stand up to his godly label.

Anonymous said...

The Odyssey video from the Simpsons and the Odyssey book are similar in many ways. Homer being the Odysseus, they sailed to islands and dealt with Ciece. He was trying to find his way home to Ithaca and lossed his men in the Journey. When he got home he killed the Suitors like in the book and made up with Penelope. Simpson's version satirize the fact that the women sirens were ugly and it caused them to go a different route rather than in the book they had to fight their way passed. They also mocked that one of the suitors didn’t want Penelope but rather their son. It mocked the gateway of hell by playing a song from the 80’s that Homer (Odysseus) didn’t like that kind of matched up with the scenario. It makes me think that their could be many different stories told. We really could change the story up and think it is the real story. The characters were immature and in the movie, they added a character. It was Penelope’s and Odysseus’s son. The theme was original though. It was just like in the book, maybe a little off, but pretty close. It was different because in the book Odysseus did cheat on his wife and was extremely angry with his wife. When Homer got home from the journey he and his wife were not angry at all. The relationships were different too. Odysseus cheated on his wife in the book but didn’t in the movie. Also when he got home, Penelope moved his bed but in the movie he just got home and made up with barely any talk. In the movie Odysseus was also not mad at his wife like in the book, but the wife was mad at Odysseus for staying away too long.

Anonymous said...

In this saturization created by the simpsons about Homer’s The Odyssey, the characters undergo all the treacherous troubles that the heroine figure Odysseus had to endure. However in the Simpsons version, the characters make every situation humeros. This is done in many ways including, making fun of some of Odysseus’ seemingly thoughtless choices that result in him losing his men. This makes me think that if something similar to Odysseus’ journey were to happen today, him doing whatever it takes to save himself and get home to his wife is not very heroic at all. When the main character of the Simpsons episode does exactly what Odysseus does he comes off as selfish. A hero in today’s society would put all others above himself, which was not the case in the Odyssey. Odysseus sacrifices his men just to return. This is shown in book twelve when the men have to face the sirens. He says “ But as i sent them on toward Scylla I told them nothing, as they could do nothing” (Homer, The Odyssey). He knows they will die but still does nothing and the Simpsons version makes fun of the things like this.

Unknown said...

The video excerpt from Simpsons has many things in common. In the Simpsons video it shows how left his wife Penelope to go through the sea, and her many suitors. The comparison is that all the suitors sit there in a long line but the truth is they were fighting each other waiting. They also showed how the sirens were calling them in the comparison was how in the Simpsons they were ugly and in the book they were beautiful and almost couldn't resist. It also shows lightly how he ate his friends because they were pigs but really was committing to cannibalism in the book.the Simpsons excerpt has many things in compare to many things in the book.

Anonymous said...

They thought the sirens where horrifying and they almost made it home when they where flicked back and Homer ate his friends that were pigs. It makes you think that Odysseus did care about his crew.

Anonymous said...

They are both very similar. The Simpsons Is very humorous and exciting. In the Odyssey the gods are worshiped and beautiful but in the Simpsons they are fat and unattractive. The Simpsons is also kinda of making fun of it by the fastness of the movie and how they flicked Odysseus back. They are both similar by how they occur.