I don’t think Lisa Simpson is someone we may think of when we think about fictional feminist role models. I mean, she’s an eight-year old, fictional cartoon character with yellow spiked hair that’s the same colour as her face. However, Lisa Simpson is now one of my favourite fictional feminists.
If you know me you know how much I love the Simpsons. I watch it a lot, and I have watched it for many years. Quoting the Simpsons is part of my every day. So, I was really surprised that I had never seriously considered the feminist qualities of Lisa Simpson until just recently.
I was listening to one of my favourite feminist podcasts, Stuff Mom Never Told Me – check it out – and they did an episode called Lisa Simpson IRL. Bridget interviews Yeardley Smith, who voices the character of Lisa. Smith first audition for the role in 1987. On the podcast, they have a chat about feminism and of course the feminist attributes that make up Lisa Simpson. This podcast inspired me to think more about Lisa, a character who I have watched so many times. A character I have connected with, or been influenced by, kind of without ever realising. I am so grateful to have grown up experiencing and viewing this strong, young, female character who demonstrates that its okay to be a smart girl.
The writers behind the Simpsons have developed a likeable and caring character that is Lisa. Lisa is a feminist role model because she is resilient, smart, talented, a proactive activist and politically interested. I’m going to unpack some of these ideas in this article, basically an excuse for me to re-watch some of my favourite Simpsons episodes. Hopefully you too can get inspired by Lisa Simpson and see why I think she is a feminist role model and why you should too.
What I love about Lisa is that she is a young girl but she is really smart and interested in making a difference. Maybe you’re not that into the series, but you might have seen the Simpsons movie at least. One of Lisa’s first on-screen appearances, in the movie, is her knocking on doors, house to house campaigning to make changes to save Lake Springfield. This is just one example of Lisa’s interest in activism.
Her love interest in the Simpsons movie is with a talented and equally enthusiastic activist Colin. They almost have this nerdy “fact-off” as their first meeting. I really liked how the characters connected over proactive activism. It can demonstrate to young people that finding someone attactive can be beyond merely looks.
Lisa Simpson is also a vegetarian. Now this is really interesting to me, especially as she has been a vegetarian for a very long time – it’s not just a jump on the late 2000s vegan hype by the writers. Lisa is also a resilient vegetarian. You might be familiar with the song “you don’t win friends with salad” that Homer and Bart mock her senselessly with. The beautiful part of this episode is, by the end of it Homer, who is the biggest eater let alone meat eater of them all #porkchops accepts Lisa’s vegetarianism. To me this shows her resilience, but also how influential and strong she is as a young girl. Homer’s understanding of her choices is a demonstration of this.
Now this resilience I mentioned is an inspiring attribute of Lisa Simpson. Although she is frequently mocked, especially by Bart and Homer, she often gains their respect. When I think of comparable fictional female characters, for example Meg in Family Guy, all I think of is “shut up Meg.” Whereas Lisa is frequently given the chance to be heard rather than silenced. She is a strong feminist role model because she refuses to give in to people who put her down.
One of the best instances of her feminism is Lisa’s fight against her favourite doll makers, Malibu Stacey. On release of the first talking Stacey doll, Lisa sets up a mini podium, excited for her other dolls to hear Stacey speak for the first time too. When Stacey comes out with a bunch of misogynistic lines such as “don’t ask me I’m just a girl” and “let’s bake cookies for the boys.” Lisa begins a mission to create a doll that can be a good role model for young girls in retaliation. This sense of injustice from such a young age is obviously commendable. But what I love the most about this episode, is that Lisa doesn’t even hesitate to consider that Stacey is wrong and not a role model for young girls. She is also not afraid to loudly tell others this. This self-assurance demonstrates the ingrained feminism in Lisa that is absolute.
The way the character Lisa Simpson is written is really clever. This is because historically “smart kids” are usually very unlikable characters. Especially if they’re girls. Lisa is also shamelessly smart and a bit nerdy. But at the same time, she fully owns being smart, isn’t afraid of it and is a likeable character. Lisa often gets bullied for being smart and often she is depicted as feeling somewhat alone. But she always stays very true to herself. I think it’s important to have more fictional female characters that demonstrate that girls are intelligent and are good at subjects such as science. Not just subjecting girls to subjects deemed “lesser” or just being unintelligent in the first place.
There are instances when Lisa tries to fit in. You’ll probably recognise the GIF of Lisa dressed in the tie-dye shirt and cap. That image is from an episode where Lisa changes her appearances to try and fit in with some “cooler” older kids. But by the end of the episode Bart shows her she should be herself through his own methods. I think Lisa’s character spends a lot of time getting to know herself and this is really inspiring to watch on TV.
Not only is she smart but Lisa is also talented. For example, she helps Homer with his writing when he decides to become a food critic. Of course, the iconic image of Lisa is her playing the saxophone. This is also a key feature in the opening credits of the Simpsons. Lisa especially loves the blues as a music genre. The blues is a very complex and emotional genre, and it is usually a sad one – hence “the blues.” I never regard Lisa as a tortured artist. But I think her interest in this music genre adds interesting and subtle complexities to her character as a talented and compelling girl.
I think Lisa Simpson has a very big heart. Combined with her other personality traits, you might imagine that she would be someone with less empathy. But she cares strongly for people, the environment, and animals. I think all of these traits represented a well rounded and inspiring individual.
Lisa Simpson for 2020 am I right? Lisa is often advocating for political change. In the episode “Bart to the future” Lisa is actually president of the United States. Oh we wish. This is just another example of her continuing to advocate for and represent strong female characters and the rights of women.
All these traits contribute to making Lisa Simpson someone to look up to. She is a subtle yet obvious feminist fictional character at the same time. And for me, feminism is best practised in everyday life and by one’s self, to inspire others. I think Lisa Simpson achieves that often. And I strive to be more like her. She is one of my feminist role models.
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