The Simpsons VS The Ten Commandments
When we look at the Commandments we will see Homer in his true form and get a closer look at the relationship between Marge and himself. The Simpsons is a show that deals a lot with religion, but at the same time Marge is the only really true Christian in the household. Lisa is a Buddhist, Bart is the same as Homer, which I will show is not a religious person and Maggie is just a baby and does what her mother does. “Marge, the 34-year-old mother of the family, is the glue that holds the family together. …She is a devout Christian, who looks to God and religion to give her the strength necessary to keep her family going.” (Shalda) Homer tends to break all the commandments in his everyday life and Marge is the one who always knows the right way to do things.“Homer and Marge remain true to their marriage vows. This is mostly indicative of the generous spirit found in Marge for her often inconsiderate husband,…” (Guida) This is a great example of how Marge is the "glue" in the Simpson family. It even shows that she is the reason for the marriage lasting this long. In the episode "In Marge we trust" we see Ned Flanders calling and asking Marge for marriage advice. I intend to show that Homer, while he has some good points, is the opposite of Marge in that he does not live according to the Ten Commandments.
Marge is always preaching the good points of going to Sunday School, for Bart, while trying to convince Homer to go to church. She Believes in the Holiness of the church and that it provides the correct way to live. We see this in the episode where Homer stays home from church and Marge says that she has a "Moral responsibility to raise these kids right". It is obvious that Marge thinks that one must go to church in order to live a good life. This will be more evident later when I discuss the Ten Commandments. But the show is full of situations where Marge is the voice of reason for Homer. “If these two characters -- Homer and Bart -- were allowed by the writers and directors of The Simpsons to triumph on each show, it could be argued that the program was morally objectionable …But in fact they do not. …Moreover Bart and Homer are balanced by the observant Christians Marge (who tells Homer never to make her choose between God and her man because he just can't win) and Lisa (who refuses to watch pirated cable TV because of her wish to honour the 8th Commandment and win Heaven). They represent the voices of sanity and piety and they always (or almost always) triumph in the end” (Bowler). Marge always finds a way to relate to Homer and his immoral ways, where as another wife may not be so inclined to do so.
We hardly ever see grampa Simpson in church so, I believe that the only reason that Homer has any ties to church life is through Marge and her beliefs. She is always trying to convince
Homer to be a better person and act better in public. In a number of episodes we see that Marge won't go somewhere with Homer because of his behavior. In one episode she will not go to the
chili cook off because Homer gets drunk and embarrasses her. This is the same reason why she will not go with him to the annual ball. At the same time she will defend him to others and
ask for his opinion around the house.“The fact that Marge ultimately redeems Homer, …, also reflects how Homer continually regains the family's respect and dominates the family environment.” (Van Allen)