Analysis of advertising within the narrative world of the Simpsons

Abstract

This research aims to analyse the role of advertising in the narrative world of The Simpsons, focusing on the way in which the fictional brands present in the series imitate, distort or parody the techniques and strategies of real advertising. Throughout more than thirty seasons, the series has built an ecosystem of brands that, although fictitious, are easily recognizable with a strong visual and conceptual identity. The research, qualitative and comparative in approach, selects Duff Beer and Krusty Burger brands as case studies and are compared to their real-life counterparts, Budweiser and McDonald´s, respectively. The analysis is based on three fundamental pillars: the construction of their corporate identity, the advertising formats in which they appear and the use of brand characters as communicative resources. The main conclusion is that The Simpsons is understood as a fictional environment in which advertising is integrated not only as a set, but as an active element of meaning construction, offering a reading of fictional brands as a critical mirror of real advertising strategies.