TY - JOUR

T1 - The Psychosocial Ramifications of Videogame Naming and Representation in the Early Years of The Simpsons

AU - Butler, James Odelle

PY - 2015

Y1 - 2015

N2 - The Simpsons is a parody of suburban American life, and, as one member of the titular family is a 10-year-old boy, videogames make a number of appearances. This article is a comprehensive overview of every occurrence or reference to gaming made within the first decade (1989–1999), and will assess the stereotypical aspects of both games and gamers made throughout the series. The majority of entries are not actively depicted on screen, but provide names that match the exaggerated over-the-top violent nature of those that are, which forms a consistent satirical depiction of the hobby. This study seeks to add a new voice to the argument for names possessing semantic content, especially artistic onyms, in the ongoing critical debate.

AB - The Simpsons is a parody of suburban American life, and, as one member of the titular family is a 10-year-old boy, videogames make a number of appearances. This article is a comprehensive overview of every occurrence or reference to gaming made within the first decade (1989–1999), and will assess the stereotypical aspects of both games and gamers made throughout the series. The majority of entries are not actively depicted on screen, but provide names that match the exaggerated over-the-top violent nature of those that are, which forms a consistent satirical depiction of the hobby. This study seeks to add a new voice to the argument for names possessing semantic content, especially artistic onyms, in the ongoing critical debate.

KW - stereotypes

KW - parody

KW - videogames

KW - semantics

KW - titles

KW - artistic names

U2 - 10.1080/00277738.2015.1118985

DO - 10.1080/00277738.2015.1118985

M3 - Journal article

VL - 63

SP - 210

EP - 219

JO - Names: A Journal of Onomastics

JF - Names: A Journal of Onomastics

IS - 4

ER -