Watching with The Simpsons: Television, Parody, and Intertextuality

by Jonathan Gray

Using our favourite Springfield family as a case study, Watching with The Simpsons examines the textual and social role of parody in offering critical commentary on other television programs and genres.

Jonathan Gray brings together textual theory, discussions of television and the public sphere, and ideas of parody and comedy. Including primary audience research, it focuses on how The Simpsons has been able to talk back to three of television's...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0415362024
• ISBN13: 9780415362023
• Release Date: December 2005
• Publisher: Routledge
• Length: 216 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.4" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

A book for the Simpsons Geek in all of us

Jonathan Gray has guest lectured several times at a class I teach on The Simpsons and Philosophy at UCB, and I whole heartedly give his work my highest endorsement. Gray's knowledge of parody is well-articulated and incisive and he has a way of conveying his ideas with savvy and wit. Unlike some of those other Simpsons books which have found their way onto bookshelves, this one strikes a balance between satisfying that Simpsons geekdom we all crave and a solid theoretical acumen. His knowledge and love of The Simpsons is top notch, and this book easily compares with the very best of the Simpsons books already published, such as those by Alberti, Pinsky, or Turner.