SAMPLE MEDIA PROJECT ESSAY 2
Today's society is overwhelmed with the media. They try to get their message across to
whomever they possibly can. Until I was
assigned a project in school, I never looked at the Simpsons
as an educational program. The show is
based around the adventures of the somewhat plump, donut and beer-loving Homer,
his wife Marge and their kids, the troublesome Bart, the smart Lisa and the
pacifier-sucking Maggie, who live in the fictional town of
Many people who watch the show, find Homer's stupidity combined
with his Amazing luck, to form the basis for one of the funniest characters on
television. Although Homer appears to
have no common sense in anything he does, he shows some intelligence when it
comes to raising his children. He does
not always make the right decisions with his children, but he is always there
for them when they need him. Homer is
not very concerned with the educational aspect of his children,
he leaves most of that to his wife. Marge is always the one who maintains the
sanity and keeps the family going. She is the only voice of reason in the
household. She keeps up with the
children and makes sure their homework is done.
In today's society, this is probably the case in many households. The father is usually busy making the money
to provide for the family and the wife is the one who takes care of the
responsibilities with the children.
Bart, of who's name was originated from the word brat, is just what
his name describes him as. In many ways
he is very much like his father, especially when it comes to common sense. Bart, however, has his own unique personality
that comes through very often. Bart can
be described as simply evil, but he is more than that. He has learned morals that shine through sometimes,
especially when he gives up his hall monitor position to rescue his sister from
expulsion.
Lisa stands
up for what she believes in, which is excellent for younger children to
see. If you believe in something why not
stand up for yourself? That has always
been my belief, but has sometimes gotten me in trouble. Lisa is extremely intelligent and this
alienates her from her peers. This is
the only thing I have a problem with, this is saying
to our students that it is not cool to be smart. She responds to this by immersing herself in
her hobbies, including the saxophone and her schoolwork. Maggie, may be the
smartest of them all. Although she does
not have a huge role or say many things, she shows intelligence in how she
figures things out. The majority of her time is spent sucking on her pacifier
but when she was placed in a day-care center, her pacifier was taken away from
her and she devised a way to get it back.
We use our knowledge in many different ways and when you are a kid it is
usually to get what we want. Younger
children need to be exposed to many different kinds of people and in the town
of
The Simpsons fit pretty well into Kohlberg's theories of moral development. Homer and Bart are a prime example of the "punishment-avoidance and obedience" stage, because Homer basis his decisions basically on his self interests and Bart will always disobey rules if he knows he can get away with it. Lisa would fit right in to the "good boy/good girl" stage, she is always concerned with doing well for herself and others. Marge and Maggie would fit into all the other stages because Marge just "goes with the flow" and Maggie is always there with her.