Bart Simpson

2007-05-20T12:40:06Z

Mothmolevna: Reverted edits by 24.23.75.59 (talk) using MWT

{{for|the comic book series of the same name|Bart Simpson (comic book series)}}
{{Simpsons character
|name=Bart Simpson
|image=[[Image:Bart Simpson.png|222px]]
|age=10<ref>Richmond, pg. 11</ref> 
|gender=[[Male]]
|hair=[[Yellow]]
|job=[[Student]]
|relatives= '''Parents:''' [[Homer Simpson|Homer]] and [[Marge Simpson|Marge]] '''Sisters:''' [[Lisa Simpson|Lisa]] and [[Maggie Simpson|Maggie]] '''Grandparents:''' [[Abraham Simpson|Abraham]], [[Mona Simpson (The Simpsons)|Mona]], [[Bouvier family#Jacqueline Bouvier|Jacqueline]] and [[Bouvier family#Clancy Bouvier|Clancy]] '''Aunts:''' [[Patty and Selma Bouvier]] '''Uncles:''' [[Simpson family#Herbert Powell|Herbert Powell]], [[Simpson family#Uncle Arthur|Arthur]] '''Cousin:''' [[Bouvier family#Ling Bouvier|Ling Bouvier]] (See also [[Simpson family]])
|appearance="[[Good Night (The Simpsons short)|Good Night]]"
|voiceactor=[[Nancy Cartwright (actress)|Nancy Cartwright]]
}}
[[Image:BartNews.png|right|thumb|Bart and his sister Lisa as news anchors.]]
'''Bartholomew Jojo "Bart" Simpson''' is a [[fictional character]] in the [[animated]] [[television series]] ''[[The Simpsons]]'', who is voiced by [[Nancy Cartwright (actress)|Nancy Cartwright]].<ref>Richmond, pg. 178</ref> He is the oldest child and only son of [[Homer Simpson|Homer]] and [[Marge Simpson]], and is the brother of [[Lisa Simpson|Lisa]] and [[Maggie Simpson|Maggie]]. According to ''The Bart Book'' he was born on [[April 25]], [[1979]]. He, along with many of Springfield's citizens, is [[ambidextrous]], but is most commonly seen writing [[left-handed]]. Along with his father, Bart is arguably the most well-known character on the long running animated series.

==Character origins==
[[Matt Groening]] first conceived the Simpson family in the lobby of [[James L. Brooks]]'s office. He had been called in to pitch a series of animated shorts, and had intended to present his ''[[Life in Hell]]'' series. When he realized that animating ''Life in Hell'' would require him to rescind publication rights for his life's work, Groening decided to go in another direction.<ref name="americasfirstfamily">{{cite video|people=BBC|year=2000|title='The Simpsons': America's First Family (6 minute edit for the season 1 DVD)|url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0250735/|format=DVD|location=UK|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> He hurriedly sketched out his version of a dysfunctional family, and named the characters after various members of his own family, substituting "Bart" for his own name.<ref name="americasfirstfamily"/> Bart then made his debut with the rest of the Simpsons clan on [[19 April]], [[1987]] in the [[The Simpsons shorts|Tracey Ullman short]] "[[Good Night (The Simpsons short)|Good Night]]".<ref name="goodnight">Richmond, p. 14</ref>

In an interview, [[Matt Groening]] claimed he chose the name "Bart" as an [[anagram]] of "[[brat]]". As the other members of the Simpson family are named after and loosely based on members of Groening's family, many believe that Bart is specifically based on Groening himself.<ref>http://www.snpp.com/guides/lisa-2.html</ref> Groening has made conflicting statements about this, saying both that he never had much in common with Bart,{{Fact|date=February 2007}} and that Bart is partly based on himself. Groening's older brother Mark also provided some inspiration for Bart.<ref name=SitterDVD>{{cite video | people=Groening, Matt|year=2006|title=The Simpsons The Complete Eighth Season DVD commentary for the episode "[[My Sister, My Sitter]]"| medium=DVD||publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref>

Groening once claimed that Bart was partly inspired by the [[Diane Arbus]] photo "[[Child with Toy Hand Grenade in Central Park]], [[New York City]]",{{Fact|date=February 2007}} but in the DVD commentary for "[[Homer's Night Out]]", has denied it. Groening has also said that he found the premiere of ''[[Dennis the Menace (TV series)|Dennis the Menace]]'' disappointing and was inspired to create a character who was actually a menace.<ref>{{cite video | people=Groening, Matt|year=2005|title=The Simpsons The Complete Seventh Season DVD commentary for the episode "[[Two Bad Neighbors]]"| medium=DVD||publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref>

Nancy Cartwright originally auditioned for the role of Lisa, but soon thought that her voice would be better suited voicing Bart. Matt Groening let her try out for the part, and upon hearing her read, gave her the job on the spot.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/1017238.stm|title=Bart's voice tells all|accessdate=2007-05-16|date=[[2000-11-10]]|publisher=[[BBC News]]}}</ref>

==Personality==
He is a self-proclaimed [[slacker|underachiever]] who begins each show in [[Detention (Academia)|detention]] writing lines on the blackboard. He is pretty much distracted by anything, even, strangely enough, [[algebraic equation]]s. His penchant for shocking people began before he was born: Bart "mooned" [[Julius Hibbert|Dr. Hibbert]] while he performed a [[sonogram]] on Marge, and moments after being born (presumably on purpose), he set fire to Homer's tie. He is considerably undermotivated and takes great joy in disrupting the routine at [[Springfield Elementary School|Springfield Elementary]], yet his pranks are often elaborately complex, while his actions and speech frequently show considerable mental agility, street-smarts, and understanding, so he cannot be called "stupid" per se. Bart also shows amazing intelligence outside of his pranks. Out-smarting Sideshow Bob, figuring out how to save the snakes on Whacking Day, getting the lemon tree back in a Trojan Horse method, giving advanced knowledge about George Washington in the French and Indian war, and learning other languages are just a few examples. In "[[Separate Vocations]]" when Bart becomes hall monitor, his grades go up showing that he only struggles because he doesn't pay attention, not because he's dumb. Despite this, however, he seems to have trouble understanding even the simplest things, such as the word "irony", what the [[equator]] is and that the logo on his globe isn't actually a country. However, this may be because he remembers more advanced knowledge like the date George Washington surrendered a fort to the French. The fact that he is the son of Homer and shares many of the same mannerisms and behaviors may account for his antics. Homer even described Bart as "a younger, more in-your-face version" of himself. It is often joked that Bart is a pawn of evil due to his mischievous behavior, such as when Lisa calls him "the Devil's cabana boy", a role which Bart seems to relish in.

Although he gets into endless trouble and is mean, shallow and selfish, Bart also exhibits many qualities of high [[integrity]]. He has, on a few occasions, helped the love life of his school Principal [[Seymour Skinner]] and his teacher [[Edna Krabappel]] despite the fact he often terrorizes them. Although he hates school, he has also aided in various efforts to keep it open during times where it is dangerously close to being closed or actually is. He often befriends outcasts like his best friend [[Milhouse Van Houten]]. One great example of his [[quasi]] sense of honor is in the episode ''[[This Little Wiggy]]'' where Bart stands up for [[Ralph Wiggum]] at the cost of peer popularity.

[[Image:HomerStranglesBart2.jpg|left|thumb|Bart getting strangled.]]
Due to Bart's mischiviousness and Homer's often uncaring behavior, the two have a turbulent relationship. Bart will often address Homer by his first name instead of "Dad". Homer in turn often refers to him as "the boy" while his mother calls him her "special little guy". [[Marge Simpson|Marge]] is much more caring, understanding and nurturing then Homer. However, she often refers to Bart as "hand full" and is often embarrassed by his antics. Whenever [[Homer Simpson|Homer]] finds out that Bart has said or done something stupid or bad, he yells out: "Why you little–!", and strangles him in anger.

Bart shares a sibling rivalry with his younger sister, Lisa, but has a buddy-like relationship with his youngest sister Maggie (due to her infant state). While Bart has often hurt her out of jealousy, and has even fought her physically, he loves Lisa as deeply as she loves him, and has always apologized for going too far. He also believes Lisa to be his superior when it comes to solving problems, and always comes to her for advice. Both siblings formed a dynamic crime-solving duo during many of their encounters with [[Sideshow Bob]], Bart's nemesis.

Bart's interests include [[Krusty the Klown]], [[skateboarding]], reading [[comic book]]s (especially ''[[Radioactive Man]]''), terrorizing [[Lisa Simpson|Lisa]], playing [[video games]]/[[computer games]], helping Lisa solve various problems (e.g. reuniting Krusty with his [[List of recurring characters from The Simpsons#Hyman Krustofski|estranged father]]), and pulling off various pranks (such as [[mooning]] unsuspecting people and [[prank call]]ing [[Moe Szyslak]] at his tavern). In "[[Bart the General]]", Bart has hinted that his favorite movies are ''[[Jaws (film)|Jaws]]'' and the ''[[Star Wars]]'' trilogy. Bart is allergic to butterscotch, imitation butterscotch, glow-in-the-dark monster makeup, cauliflower, and shrimp (this was most likely inherited from his mother, as [[Marge]] is also allergic to shrimp). His best friend is [[Milhouse van Houten]]. Though he has not demonstrated the ability since the [[The Crepes of Wrath|episode in which he learned]], he speaks near-perfect French. He also learned Spanish in matter of hours in preparation for the family's trip to Brazil. Upon learning that Brazilians speak Portuguese not Spanish, Homer orders his son to forget what he learned, prompting Bart to strike himself over the head until he forgot the language. In "[[Homer's Barbershop Quartet]]", Bart says that he has a serious problem in which he can't remember anything over 15 seconds ago. Although he repeatedly insists that it was serious, the rest of his family laughs. He soon forgot why they were laughing and laughs along.

In his book ''Planet Simpson'', Chris Turner describes Bart as a [[nihilist]]. Bart's character traits of rebellioness and disrespect for authority has been likened to that of America's founding fathers, rendering him an updated version of American icons Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, rolled into one."<ref>Cantor, P: "The Simpsons: Atomistic Politics and the Nuclear Family", page 738. Political Theory, Vol 27 No 6, Dec 1999.</ref>

==Cultural influence==
{{verify}}
[[Image:Malta anti-EU.JPG|thumb|left|200px|Since the inception of ''The Simpsons'', Bart has become internationally recognized as a symbol of defiance to authority. This [[Maltese language]] anti-[[European Union]] [[bumper sticker]] became popular during the contentious deliberations regarding [[Malta]]'s admission to the EU. (Photo taken in [[Tarxien]] in [[August 2005]].)]]
In 1998, ''[[Time Magazine|Time]]'' magazine selected Bart as one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century (he came in number 46)—the only fictional character to make the list.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.time.com/time/time100/artists/profile/simpson.html|title=Bart Simpson|accessdate=2007-05-16|date=1998-06-08|publisher=Time}}</ref> He had previously appeared on the cover the [[December 31]] [[1990]] edition.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,1101901231,00.html|title=TIME Magazine Cover: Bart Simpson|accessate=2007-05-16|date=1990-12-31|publisher=Time}}</ref> Both Bart and Lisa ranked #11 in ''[[TV Guide]]'s'' "Top 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://archives.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/TV/07/30/cartoon.characters.list/ |title=CNN - TV Guide's 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters |accessdate=2007-03-14 |date=2002-07-30 |publisher=''[[CNN]]''}}</ref>

Bart's catchphrases, "[[¡Ay, caramba!]]," "Don't have a cow, man!" and "Eat my shorts!" were featured on t-shirts in the early days of the show's run.<ref>Turner p. 25</ref> However, the latter two phrases were rarely actually spoken on the show itself until after they became popular through merchandise, and the use of many of these catchphrases has declined in recent seasons. The use of catchphrase-based humor was mocked in the episode "[[Bart Gets Famous]]" in which Bart gets famous on the Krusty show for saying the line "I didn't do it."<ref>Turner p. 61</ref> During the show's early years, Bart was rebellious and frequently escaped without punishment, which led some parents' groups and conservative spokespeople to believe he provided a poor [[role model]] for children. This prompted [[George H. W. Bush]] to rally, "We're going to keep trying to strengthen the American family. To make them more like [[the Waltons]] and less like the Simpsons."<ref name="mikescully">{{cite news|first=Nick|last=Griffiths|title=America's First Family|publisher=The Times Magazine|pages=25, 27-28|date=[[2000-04-15]]}}</ref> This lead to many ''The Simpsons'' [[t-shirts]], most featuring Bart with phrases such as "Underachiever ('And proud of it, man!')", being banned from several public schools in the United States.<ref name="mikescully"/>

After first airing as an independent series in [[1989]], ''[[The Simpsons]]'' broke many [[taboo]]s. For a significant period of time, Bart struck a chord with countless young viewers for his rebellious tendencies, arguably becoming the show's most spotlighted character. Bart symbolized the ever-changing youth of America, constantly doubted and criticized for its eroding morals and questionable conduct. Bart consistently outraged many conservative (and even some liberal) critics for nearly a decade for being a terrible role model, often being a poster child for many parents denying their children access to the show. Although there were children on television with disruptive tendencies before Bart, never before was a young character with [[delinquent]] tendencies given such mainstream exposure as a [[protagonist]] or [[anti-hero]] rather than a [[villain]].

However, countless people who grew up watching Bart and ''The Simpsons'' assert that Bart is actually a very effective role model. Child characters in film and animations had tended to conform to idealistic and arguably unrealistic temperaments up to and around the time ''The Simpsons'' first aired. Bart was, in contrast, a cynical, [[jaded]] and often more realistic portrayal of childhood, which can be frustrating as well as idyllic and whimsical. Bart's delinquent tendencies do not go unexplained, as the show often satirizes adult arrogance and mistreatment of children's feelings and desires. Although Bart is a troublemaker, he is often misunderstood by other children and adults alike on the show—something with which many young people can identify themselves. Bart is essentially good at heart, as he often does the right thing and struggles with personal moral dilemmas. In many ways, he defined and [[personified]] an entire generation. Although Bart's influence on both the show and pop culture is less pronounced today than in the past, he is still an international symbol of defiance in the face of oppressive authority, as well as a prototype of rebellion to children growing up in a radically changing world.
Bart also arguably influenced an entire new generation of anti-hero characters such as the raunchy young cast of ''[[South Park]]'' and many other characters both in animation and live action.
[[Image:SP-s10e04-wall.jpg|thumb|right|Bart in "Cartoon Wars".]]
Bart is undoubtedly the most depicted ''Simpsons'' character on various memorabilia such as T-shirts, car decals, and even graffiti art. Bart, and other Simpsons characters, have appeared in numerous [[television commercials]] for [[Nestlé]]'s [[Butterfinger]] candy bars from [[1990]] to [[2001]], with the slogan ''"Nobody better lay a finger on my Butterfinger!"''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3289/is_n6_v167/ai_20897150|title=Don't lay a finger on his Butterfinger - Nestle USA Inc. Nestle Chocolate and Confections' television advertisements - Brief Article|accessdate=2007-05-17|publisher=Prepared Foods at Find Articles}}</ref> This association was parodied in an episode when he discovered a [[video tape]] with Lisa that he participated in a TV commercial for an anti-odor product when he was a baby; Bart says that he doesn't remember being in a commercial, then holds up a Butterfinger and eats it.

Bart has appeared in several other shows. He featured in the ''[[South Park]]'' episode "[[Cartoon Wars Part II]]", although he was not referred to by name nor did any of the characters react to him as if he were a well known personality.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/701/701605p1.html|title=South Park Recap: ''Cartoon Wars: Part 2''|accessdate=2007-05-17|date=2006-04-13|publisher=IGN.com|author=Goldman, Eric}}</ref>

==See also==
{{wikiquote}}
* [[Chalkboard gags|Bart's chalkboard gags]]
* ''[[Do The Bartman (Song)|Do The Bartman]]''

==References==
*{{cite book|last=Richmond |first=Ray|coauthors=Antonia Coffman|title=[[The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to our Favorite Family]] |year=1997 |publisher=Harper Collins Publishers|id=ISBN 0-00063-8898-1}}
*{{cite book | last=Turner | first=Chris | title=[[Planet Simpson: How a Cartoon Masterpiece Documented an Era and Defined a Generation]] | id=ISBN 0-679-31318-4}}

{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
*[http://www.thesimpsons.com/bios/bios_family_bart.htm Biography from the official Simpsons website]

{{Simpsons characters}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Simpson, Bart}}

[[Category:The Simpsons characters]]
[[Category:Fictional Americans]]
[[Category:Fictional criminals]]
[[Category:Prank phone calls]]
[[Category:Child superheroes|Bartman]]

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Wikipedia - Benutzerbeiträge [de]

Bart Simpson