The Simpsons and philosophy

Irwin (philosophy, King's College, PA) and his co-editors present 18 essays that look at the philosophical implications and underpinnings of the popular animated satire The Simpsons. Contributed by academics specializing in philosophy and literature, the essays explore the moral universe of the five major characters in the Simpsons (including a reflection on baby Maggie's silence as a protest against stifling society) and use situations on episodes of the show to look at a variety of philosophical questions, including the nature of hypocrisy, the sexual politics of the show, the example of neighborly love skewered by the depiction of Ned Flanders, and a Marxist critique of the show as being an opiate that distracts us from the true realities of capitalist evils. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) -- Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, LLC.