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The Simpsons' Apu- a racist stereotype?

All Acting Regiment

19:52 / 18.03.05

Yes, it is really stupid to suggest that The Simpsons, as a program, is on the wrong side. Most all of the characters are stereotypes: Mr Burns the evil capitalist, Homer the slob, yada yada.

However, has it ever struck anyone else that the show's treatment of it's one Asian (Indian) character, Abu, seems more based on stereotype than any of the others.

Take for example the scene where Abu's wife, having given birth to eight babies, hears about a woman who has given birth to nine, and says:

"Nine babies? That's barbaric!"

Now, is this joke not implying hypocrisy in that the practice of having eight babies is barbaric itself?

Or is this an overly paranoid reading? Just one example mind, and personally i'm neutral. What does everyone else think?

sleazenation

19:58 / 18.03.05

Isn't the character in question actually called Apu?

Benny the Ball

20:17 / 18.03.05

the Simpson's has made a point og highlighting that it's characters are all sterotypes at one time or another.

To suggest that one character can be more or less sterotypical seems odd - they either are or aren't surely?

Our Lady Has Left the Building

05:47 / 19.03.05

Apu, especially at the start, was a stereotype, just as Burns is the stereotype of the evil Republican industrialist, Quimby the corrupt Democrat, Wiggum the useless cop, the show has made a point of the fact that Fat Tony is a gangster stereotype (Marge: "Fat Tony, why are you perpetuating this stereotype of Italian-Americans as gangsters? You could have been a pizza chef!"). The important thing is that when Apu has had a large role in a show, the writers have broadened his character slightly, so he's an Indian rather than an Indian stereotype.

Look at the episode where Apu looses his job, or faces being deported, or gets married, or has kids, or has an affair (Manjula: "Oh Apu, stop being such a Brahma queen!"). Those stories (with the exception of the marriage one) could have been mapped onto another character.

And when Apu is at his most stereotypical it's often for a joke at the expense of someone else, most often Homer.

Keith, like a scientist

15:36 / 19.03.05

i think when something is so obviously a stereotype ("thank you, please come again" in a thick indian accent), it no longer becomes racist. it's making fun of the people who think that is how all Indians speak and act, making fun of it being a stereotype in the first place.

Lama glama

15:49 / 19.03.05

Similarly, Apu is used to demonstrate the occasional shallowness of American society. A particular example of this, is during the episode where he battles against being deported and is posing as an American citizen:

"Who needs the infinite wisdom and compassion of Ganesha--when you have Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman staring at you from the front cover of Entertainment Weekly with their dead eyes!"

Every character in the Simpsons is a little ball of self referential, inward looking humour. Apu, as the poster above pointed out, makes fun of how some people perceive people from India. Homer is your fat, loud American. Willie is your stereotypical Scottish person.

There is nothing to be offended about from the Simpsons, as everyone is made fun of in equal proportions. It's a big ball of in-discriminate hatred and mockery.

Pity it's shit at the moment though.

Peach Pie

14:11 / 24.03.05

As Benny says, Apu exists as one stereotype amongst many, and I don't think it's a racist depiction.

I sometimes feel guilty about laughing at Apu humor, though. The running joke is about a well-educated immigrant stuck in a dead job. Whilst the other characters are often the author of their own misfortunes, I get the feeling Apu should really be doing something better.

Triplets

15:52 / 24.03.05

Yeah, but we've seen in countless episodes that Apu can't survive without the Kwik-E-Mart. (Whoo needs a Kwik-E-Maaaaart? I doooo!) or, more likely, the kind of anhedonic enabling it gives him.

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