1) I'm aware that there is no cute play on words in the thread title.
2) Chris Pfeiler has an excellent lengthy review of this episode. However, I've wanted to discuss this in depth here, and Cosmo Kramer requested it.
3) My little spill deals with religious elements that we probably don't see eye to eye on. HOWEVER... that isn't what this is about. Any argument about spirituality/religion OUTSIDE of the context of analyzing this episode will be ignored, for the good of all parties involved.
Now, I'll dive into this, and try to convey what I get out of this episode and why it is my favorite ever, after rediscovering it a few months ago.
Something that I love in this story is that it is told mostly from a child's POV, with most of the meaningful and insightful dialogue taking place between children. The reason that I love this is that I have an idea that some of the most substantial wit and insight is conveyed through innocence. I also love Bart's meaningful self-discovery opposed to Lovejoy's nitpicking of something so relatively trivial as whether or not rock and roll is immoral.
The most immediate thing established in this episode is that it will not be examining the concept of a soul from the standpoint of organized religion.
- In the earliest scenes, Rev. Lovejoy exploits the children's fear of hell to flush out Bart, which seems to attack a tendency to base faith on fear rather than love. There is also the unmistakable swipe with Milhouse's "What would they have to gain?" and the cut to Lovejoy counting up the day's collection.
- When Milhouse defines the soul for Bart, it's a very childish, simplistic thing. This could be an expression of doubt over an actual physical existence of a soul, or it could be a stab at how the idea of a soul is simplified in organized religion (or both). Concerning the latter, I can't say that it applies universally, but in my experience, the soul isn't meditated on in christian church, it just seems to be 'you' after you die, nothing particularly deep or meaningful, just a part of you that wriggles out your nose and goes to heaven or hell when you expire.
- Bart's line "It's just something they made up to scare you" is particularly important both in relation to the criticism leveled at church as an establishment, and the character decision Bart will soon make. That's probably been his experience with ideas of the soul; it's been presented as a mysterious concept to threaten him, as happened after his prank. Bart's nature is to rebel, and he dismisses the soul as a tool of authority. Interestingly, following this thought, Bart's experience with the church authority is more or less responsible for how he views a 'soul.'
- Lisa, as the sage, cites philosophers to shed insight on the nature of the soul, rather than scripture.
And so the meditation on the soul begins to unfold, starting from something as simple as leverage to interrogate the kids at church, or a piece of paper, to an abstract, philosophical idea
Is the soul something that can be bought, sold, lost and found? Or is the soul an inalienable part of all of us, yet it must be discovered? When Bart sells his soul, he simply writes down "Bart's Soul" on a piece of paper. The whole premise is probably a throwback to classic legend, such as The Devil and Tom Walker. But stepping back and looking at it, it seems silly that something as abstract as the soul could be transferred with a pen and church stationary. I believe that this piece of paper that drives Bart's character throughout is a symbolic device to put the search for his soul in a more contained context. I would also say that the entire episode has deep symbolism:
- Bart's initial dismissal of the soul, trivializing it to a piece of paper.
- The hostile nature of nearly everything around him (his pets, the menacing automatic door at the Kwik-E-Mart, the pesticide man at the Van Houten's, the street cleaner) when he fears he actually has lost his soul.
- Bart's desperate chase throughout the third act, which is IMO paralleling a personal search.
While discussing symbolism, the direction and animation can absolutely NOT be overlooked. The spooky echo when Bart declares that 'there's no such thing as a soul', the scene where he walks home in the rain empty-handed the subtle changes in Bart's appearance from normal, to haggard, to tired but content. All of this creates mood and atmosphere that never crosses the line to melodrama. The way it backs up and enhances certain moments is absolutely flawless, without ever being obtrusive or in-your-face.
Throughout the episode the notion of a soul is separated from religion, and even God, save for Bart's prayer. One can decide for himself if Bart's prayer had been answered by God. But my interpretation is that for Bart it doesn't matter. For all intents and purposes his prayer WAS answered, even if it was only Lisa that he owes his redemption. My favorite line in this is probably Lisa's last line- "noone is born with a soul, you have to earn it, through suffering and prayer, like you did last night." This captures what I love about the story, a painful and even dark self-realization that concludes with a personal salvation.
2) Chris Pfeiler has an excellent lengthy review of this episode. However, I've wanted to discuss this in depth here, and Cosmo Kramer requested it.
3) My little spill deals with religious elements that we probably don't see eye to eye on. HOWEVER... that isn't what this is about. Any argument about spirituality/religion OUTSIDE of the context of analyzing this episode will be ignored, for the good of all parties involved.
Now, I'll dive into this, and try to convey what I get out of this episode and why it is my favorite ever, after rediscovering it a few months ago.
Something that I love in this story is that it is told mostly from a child's POV, with most of the meaningful and insightful dialogue taking place between children. The reason that I love this is that I have an idea that some of the most substantial wit and insight is conveyed through innocence. I also love Bart's meaningful self-discovery opposed to Lovejoy's nitpicking of something so relatively trivial as whether or not rock and roll is immoral.
The most immediate thing established in this episode is that it will not be examining the concept of a soul from the standpoint of organized religion.
- In the earliest scenes, Rev. Lovejoy exploits the children's fear of hell to flush out Bart, which seems to attack a tendency to base faith on fear rather than love. There is also the unmistakable swipe with Milhouse's "What would they have to gain?" and the cut to Lovejoy counting up the day's collection.
- When Milhouse defines the soul for Bart, it's a very childish, simplistic thing. This could be an expression of doubt over an actual physical existence of a soul, or it could be a stab at how the idea of a soul is simplified in organized religion (or both). Concerning the latter, I can't say that it applies universally, but in my experience, the soul isn't meditated on in christian church, it just seems to be 'you' after you die, nothing particularly deep or meaningful, just a part of you that wriggles out your nose and goes to heaven or hell when you expire.
- Bart's line "It's just something they made up to scare you" is particularly important both in relation to the criticism leveled at church as an establishment, and the character decision Bart will soon make. That's probably been his experience with ideas of the soul; it's been presented as a mysterious concept to threaten him, as happened after his prank. Bart's nature is to rebel, and he dismisses the soul as a tool of authority. Interestingly, following this thought, Bart's experience with the church authority is more or less responsible for how he views a 'soul.'
- Lisa, as the sage, cites philosophers to shed insight on the nature of the soul, rather than scripture.
And so the meditation on the soul begins to unfold, starting from something as simple as leverage to interrogate the kids at church, or a piece of paper, to an abstract, philosophical idea
Is the soul something that can be bought, sold, lost and found? Or is the soul an inalienable part of all of us, yet it must be discovered? When Bart sells his soul, he simply writes down "Bart's Soul" on a piece of paper. The whole premise is probably a throwback to classic legend, such as The Devil and Tom Walker. But stepping back and looking at it, it seems silly that something as abstract as the soul could be transferred with a pen and church stationary. I believe that this piece of paper that drives Bart's character throughout is a symbolic device to put the search for his soul in a more contained context. I would also say that the entire episode has deep symbolism:
- Bart's initial dismissal of the soul, trivializing it to a piece of paper.
- The hostile nature of nearly everything around him (his pets, the menacing automatic door at the Kwik-E-Mart, the pesticide man at the Van Houten's, the street cleaner) when he fears he actually has lost his soul.
- Bart's desperate chase throughout the third act, which is IMO paralleling a personal search.
While discussing symbolism, the direction and animation can absolutely NOT be overlooked. The spooky echo when Bart declares that 'there's no such thing as a soul', the scene where he walks home in the rain empty-handed the subtle changes in Bart's appearance from normal, to haggard, to tired but content. All of this creates mood and atmosphere that never crosses the line to melodrama. The way it backs up and enhances certain moments is absolutely flawless, without ever being obtrusive or in-your-face.
Throughout the episode the notion of a soul is separated from religion, and even God, save for Bart's prayer. One can decide for himself if Bart's prayer had been answered by God. But my interpretation is that for Bart it doesn't matter. For all intents and purposes his prayer WAS answered, even if it was only Lisa that he owes his redemption. My favorite line in this is probably Lisa's last line- "noone is born with a soul, you have to earn it, through suffering and prayer, like you did last night." This captures what I love about the story, a painful and even dark self-realization that concludes with a personal salvation.
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