To win back his son's love, Homer knows he has to do something to impress him directly: he has Tony Hawk help him win a skateboarding competition. Homer's willingness to eventually come through for his family is admirable. Marge's patience is even more admirable, because she has seen Homer risk the children's lives as well as her own. Ultimately, Homer and Marge Simpson set aside their differences and move on, still bonded together as husband and wife. They never reach the point where they are just "staying together for the kids" as many married couples do. In every episode in which Homer and Marge seem to be at the breaking point, they reunite with love and passion.
Their sexual relationship is strong too. Peterson & Green note that a "satisfying sexual relationship is one of the keys to a quality marital relationship." Several Simpsons episodes depict Homer and Marge exploring the sexual dimension of their relationship. Obviously a core strength of their marriage, Homer and Marge can become better parents when their needs in the bedroom are met.
Marge is the main disciplinarian in the Simpsons household. Homer is relatively hands-off and laissez-faire and in fact needs discipline of his own. Like a child, Homer gets himself into trouble and causes mischief. Marge is the one who puts her foot down and occasionally gets accused of being a nag. However, her role as both gatekeeper and as health officer ensure family stability and well-being. Marge is also the one who nurtures the family. She comforts her kids when they have bad days at school, and she also rescues Homer from his own bouts with depression. Because of the many roles Marge assumes for herself, she sometimes shows signs of psychological breakdown. In one episode, her hair starts falling out. She leaves the house to recuperate, and during that time the Simpson family has to hire a housekeeper. The housekeeper is modeled after the fictitious character Mary Poppins. Her role as housekeeper, disciplinarian,...
Marge once opened a pretzel franchise and once tried her hand at real estate sales but in general Homer is the only one who can pay the bills. Yet breadwinner is his only major role except for ensuring that the bedroom relationship between he and his wife is stable.
The Simpsons occasionally see members of their extended family. Grandpa Simpson, who lives in a nursing home in Springfield, sometimes watches the children and so serves as a resource provider too. His lack of emotional support shows where Homer got his parenting style from. Homer's mother is a fugitive from the law, an old sixties political activist. She did not conform to traditional roles of wife and mother. On Marge's side of the family, her twin sisters are cast as spinsters. Unmarried and on the anti-social side, they frequently berate Marge for marrying someone who they believe is beneath her. Yet even if Homer seems lacking in good parenting skills, the strengths of the family still keep them together. The main challenge the family faces is an exaggerated gap between male and female gender roles. Homer is a neglectful and self-centered father and husband but he loves his family unconditionally. Marge assumes too many roles upon herself but eventually asserts her needs in a balanced way.
Works Cited
The Factbook: Eye-Opening Memos on Everything Family." Retrieved Feb 26, 2008 at http://www.pobronson.com/factbook/pages/44.html
Peterson, Rick and Green, Stephen. "Families First-Keys to Successful Family Functioning: Family Roles." Virginia Cooperative Extension. June 1999. Retrieved Feb 26, 2008 at http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/family/350-093/350-093.html
Stage." Developmental Theories. Retrieved Feb 26, 2008 at http://www.nursing.twsu.edu/advhealth/lesson/8/additional8.htm
