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S25Ep18 Analysis

Bart's dream is a secondary revision of events that have happened earlier, and demonstrate his anxiety over his conflicting anger at and desire for his ex. Bart's many affairs are an expression of his repressed sexual desires, and of his desire to dominate his father. This is shown in the fact that Homer watches Bart during the affairs, the fact that Homer's robot penis is detached, and the appearance of Krusty (a childhood displacement of a father figure) in Bart's sex life. This dream is concerned not only with Bart's relationship, but with Homer's and Marge's as well, indicating that Bart must overcome repressions from childhood in order to get over his ex. His mother is drunk and tells him to stick to his decisions. Drinking beer at Moe's is an activity associated heavily with Homer, and so Marge functions as a condensation of Homer and herself. She and Homer both die (or become screensavers) at the end of this speech. Thus, in order for Bart to accept that things were over with his ex, he first needed to overcome his repressed desires to dominate his father and attain all his mother's affection. After his mother has professed undying love for Homer and chosen Homer, finally, over he and Lisa, he can come to terms with his problems in his relationship.

Other non-dream aspects of this episode have Freudian undertones. Homer's repeated death and reappearance has the qualities of an anxiety dream about a death wish that Bart, Lisa, Marge, or all three have against Homer. Lisa's love of zombies carries elements of her desire for her father's love, as he is depicted as stupid, uncontrollably hungry, and watches tv all day. Zombies represent this quality, as well as the disgust and shame of a taboo, repressed desire for her father's love. Fink's tirade functions as a kind of displacement of the family's anger at Homer.
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