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The D’oh of Homer: Professors employ TV’s Simpsons

FILE - This undated image from files, provided by Fox Broadcasting from "The Simpsons," shows the popular cartoon family posing in front of their home, from left, Lisa , Marge , Maggie, Homer and Bart Simpson. University students have been studying Homer's "The Odyssey" for centuries. More recently, Homer Simpson's "Odyssey," and a quarter-century of episodes from the animated sitcom have been undergoing similar scrutiny at several college campuses around the country. (AP Photo/Fox Broacasting Co., File) 1998 FOX BROADCASTING FILE - This undated image from files, provided by Fox Broadcasting from "The Simpsons," shows the popular cartoon family posing in front of their home, from left, Lisa , Marge , Maggie, Homer and Bart Simpson. University students have been studying Homer's "The Odyssey" for centuries. More recently, Homer Simpson's "Odyssey," and a quarter-century of episodes from the animated sitcom have been undergoing similar scrutiny at several college campuses around the country. (AP Photo/Fox Broacasting Co., File) 1998 FOX BROADCASTING

By Associated Press December 17, 2014 1 min read

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. (AP) – Bart and Lisa Simpson have been in elementary school for 25 years. But that hasn’t stopped them from showing up on college campuses.

TV’s animated smart-mouths are now a teaching tool at colleges across the nation.

At Hofstra University on New York’s Long Island, a class examines Broadway musicals, American literature and other topics using plot lines from “The Simpsons.” One course is titled “The D’oh! Of Homer.”

Hofstra professor Richard Pioreck (pee-OHR’-ihk) says using “The Simpsons” is a way to engage students familiar with the pop culture phenomenon.

He says that if the references are important enough to be lampooned by “The Simpsons,” then the works must be important cultural milestones.