By Nikki Cain
Every Halloween, since 1990, The
Simpson's television show has regaled fans with new tales in The
Tree House of Horror series. There are now twenty-five episodes
of fantastically freaky fun in this series. Each episode is brimming
with intertexuality references. The first episode, The Tree House
of Horror 1, contains no less than twenty references to movies
and books, if not more. The series was originally inspired by EC
Comics Horror Tales. There are three segments or stories in
each episode which always parody popular and classic literature,
movies, radio, and television shows. With twenty-five Tree House
of Horror episodes, The Simpsons have touched upon
subjects and themes concerning every thing spooky often overlaying
plot lines from a variety of sources.
In the debut episode, during a segment
called Bad Dream House, the Simpson family finds that their
house is trying to possess their souls in order to convince each
family member to murder one another. The segment uses themes from The
Shinning, Ghost Busters, The Exorcist, Amityville Horror,
Poltergeist, Psycho, The Fall of the House of Usher, and The
Addams Family. In a funny plot twist, the house kills it's self
rather than continue to try and convince the family to do each other
in.
In the segment called The Raven,
a satire of Edger Allan Poe's poem, a grief stricken Homer is plagued
by a bat like Bart. This segment appears in the first Tree House
of Horror episode. Not only is The Raven referenced but so
is The Cask of Amontillado, The Pit and The Pendulum, The Tell
Tale Heart, and The Purloined Letter. Edgar Allan Poe's
poem is only slightly changed in it's wording so the viewer gets a
close rendition of the original Raven. Poe's bust appears in
the scene as well as the bust of Peter Lorre who stars in Tales of
Terror which was inspired by Poe's writings.
The Simpsons are a wealth of
intertexuality. Anyone craving a healthy dose of popular cultural
education needs only watch The Simpsons to
be fulfilled. The episodes are full of written as well as
visual references that create richer, deeper jokes for the audience
to enjoy. Reference layering is the joy of intertexuality; it
creates an enriched experience for the media consumer by representing
ideas and themes and creating fresh interpretations. The Tree
House of Horror series as well as the rest of The Simpsons
episodes, offer a rich assortment of intertexuality and parody
from a wide breadth of sources. Watching one episode will remind the
viewer of countless plot lines, characters, and themes from popular
culture. With twenty-five full and irreverent seasons to enjoy,
viewers can get a full sense of classic and popular themes in
literature as well as a good laugh.
