Ralph Wiggum
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Character Information
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Ralph Wiggum is a character in The Simpsons, voiced by Nancy Cartwright.[1]. He is best known as the show's resident oddball, and has been immortalized for his random non sequiturs and erratic behavior. His lines range from completely nonsensical, to bizarre interpretations of a current event to sometimes rather clear and obvious statements that go over people's heads. For this, Ralph is somewhat of an outcast among his peers, although he seems to be on good relations with a good number of the major child characters on the show such as Bart, Lisa, and Milhouse.
The son of Chief Clancy Wiggum and mother Sarah Wiggum,[2] Ralph is a good-hearted and generally well meaning boy who unfortunately suffers either severe learning and social disabilities, or some other form of childhood psychiatric disorder. Ralph fits the stereotype of the school weirdo to a fault. The nature of his mentality however is kept rather ambiguous, much like many of the signature traits of much of the show's cast. Like almost every other character on the show, he may not be quite as simple as he first seems, as evidenced by his hinted immense potential as a performer.
Whatever his case may be however, this has not stopped him from being undoubtedly one of the Simpsons's most popular and beloved characters. With his bizarre, albeit rather interesting personality and his hilarious commentary, he is one of the most recognizable of Springfield's citizens. Show creator Matt Groening has stated that Ralph is one of his personal favorite characters on the Simpsons.[3]
Contents
Profile
Ralph is quite an enigma of a child. Upon first glance, one would mistake him for a child with dementia or perhaps even look at him as a mentally challenged child. Throughout the course of the show however, there have been many hints dropped over the true nature of his character. What is definite however, is that he seems to suffer from severe learning disabilities of some sort, as evidenced by his apparently slow grasp of things in the world around him, his difficulty in studying, and his potential speech impediments. His unique manner of speech is often the source of the character's trademark random quotes, where Ralph may make a commentary such as It tastes like...burning!, or Mr.Flanders, you're blindeded!, [sic] as well as his tendency to call his teacher "School Mommy" and on one occasion calling Superintendent Chalmers "Supernintendo Chalmers." Ralph is however, also able to speak in a normal manner much of the time, which only adds to the question of his condition. For more information on the mystery surrounding his mentality, see below. [4]
Ralph is often seen in very awkward situations such as eating glue paste and other such erratic forms of behavior that have since become a staple of the character. Ralph has quite an immense imagination, and is seemingly always somewhat oblivious to the world around him. As such, he is generally a very cheerful boy. However, Ralph also has a hint of tragedy and dark satire to him, like almost every other character on the show. Throughout the show's history, Ralph is eternally the odd one out among his peers at school. This was the basis of the episode I Love Lisa, one of two episodes in which Ralph played a significant role. Ralph may be fully aware of his difficulty fitting in with children his age. In this episode, he is heartbroken on Valentines Day over the fact that, despite his best efforts, he himself receives absolutely no valentines from any of his classmates. In a bout of platonic pity, Lisa Simpson rewrites a valentine card for Ralph to cheer him up. Ralph, however, sees this as something a little more. His genuinely endearing attempt to woo Lisa fills the majority of the episode, an escapade which unfortunately ends with heartbreak when Lisa reveals her true intention with the valentine.
Afterwards, a distraught and heartbroken Ralph laments over his heartbreak as well as social difficulty to his, unfortunately, rather clueless father. Ralph, however, is cast to play George Washington, the lead role in a major school play, alongside Lisa, and it is here that another of Ralph's hinted traits is revealed as Ralph literally stops the audience in their tracks with his incredible performance as the first president, which Ralph uses as an emotional outlet. Afterwards, a genuinely remorseful Lisa apologizes to Ralph and they agree to be friends. This would not be the last hint viewers would see of Ralph's hidden potential. As of now, Ralph has been the focus of one other episode, This Little Wiggy. In the episode, Bart is forced to spend a day with Ralph because Marge feels sorry for him when he is picked on in the beginning. While Bart is at first less than thrilled with this, he genuinely has a good time with Ralph during their time together, eventually learning a thing or two about him in the process. Despite Ralph's awkward behavior and occasionally irritating moments, he is consistently depicted as being generally a very nice kid who usually just wants to help. In the comic story The Squish of Death, Bart sums up his general opinion of Ralph quite nicely when Ralph states I like to color outside the lines! to which Bart responds We know, Ralph, and that's all right with us.
Relations
Ralph seems to generally get along with many people, as well as occasionally irritate and baffle them as well. Ralph's father is the police chief of Springfield, Clancy Wiggum and his mother is Sarah Wiggum. Ralph's relationship with his parents seems to be very loving, Clancy in particular rather adores his son as the two do much together, such as various road trips or Ralph's first trip to a major league baseball game as depicted in the comic If you can't Wiggum, join 'em!. Ralph can apparently be quite a handful as well however, and there are times where Clancy can be negligent to his son as well. When it comes to school, Ralph is predictably not so popular, although he seemingly enjoyed notoriety after his role of Washington at least. Bart is probably the closest thing Ralph has to a friend, as he is often included in groups with the prankster for various hijinks. Although he can get irritated with him, Bart at times also defends Ralph from verbal bullying. It is hinted that in the future, Ralph and Bart's friendship may become much stronger. Ralph also does a fair bit with Lisa, although she too can get irritated from time to time their friendship after I Love Lisa has nonetheless endured. Ralph is often seen with a wide variety of children as well, but among the schoolgrounds Ralph is unfortunately known as "the most harmless kid in school" and as such isn't immune to bullying like much of the young cast of the show. Ralph is treated as somewhat of a nuisance by the school board, Marge Simpson however seems to have taken particular notice of Ralph and his potential strengths as well as generally positive character. Ralph has a multitude of imaginary friends as well, Wiggle Puppy and a pyromaniacal leprechaun being particularly well known among viewers. Ralph's teacher, Ms Hoover, is surprisingly patient (or more likely, indifferent) with his imagination. Though she will often correct him in a dull, condescending manner, she is yet to outright scold him.
The nature of Ralph's mentality and developmental problem is very ambiguous. Although it is easy to pass off Ralph as a mentally challenged child, there are many things which show that this may not be the case. Ralph is quite capable of acting in a normal manner, and often times his bizarre behavior is attributed to his wild imagination. Ralph's behavior and difficulty in school is highly reminiscent of a few childhood psychiatric disorders such as mild Autism, and Sluggish cognitive tempo, both of which are not impediments of intelligence but rather of social and environmental development.
Ralph often makes allegories of things to explain to himself how the world works around him, such as describing shutting down the Nuclear Power Plant to avert a meltdown by comparing it to catching a pixie and wrapping it in tin foil. This is a quality often associated with children who have a mild case of autism, and also by children who have a very high degree of creative and artistic intellect. As such, Ralph could be many things from a mentally disturbed child, to possibly even an artistic genius which brings up the subject of his prowess in performing arts. Ralph is consistently shown to have a high degree of latent creative and performing talent. Despite his subpar level of intelligence, when representing Canada at the Model UN club, he actually knows the words to the Canadian anthem as seen in Das Bus.
Aside from his role of Washington, Ralph apparently impressed Marge a great deal with his portrayal as Sir Lancelot and his acting exploits are referred to a few more times. His talents don't stop there either, he has impressive talent in singing (comic story Faking the Band), dancing (Last Tap Dance in Springfield), critique (Fraudcast News), he draws very often and in the comic a substitute teacher insists that he is an artistic genius due to his tendency to speak in Haiku. Although he has botched up on stage occasionally as well, generally it seems strongly implied that he has genuine talent. Ralph also seems to be aware that he isn't "normal".
Children who are highly gifted in creative and artistic intellect are often mistaken by school officials to be mentally disrupted. Ralph is often used as satire to poke fun at modern school's tendency to misjudge young children in this manner, as well as their inability to give children special attention they need due to budget constraints. Regardless of everything however, in the end The Simpsons can be just as random as Ralph himself. Much like the case with every character on the show, it is ultimately up to the viewer to decide what Ralph's true nature is.
The typical Ralph moment
Ralph's signature use as a character in the show is to deliver either an odd bit of behavior, or dialogue which either perplexes others or merely gives the audience a quick laugh. A good example is during class, Ralph's teacher Miss Hoover will stop lecturing the class for a moment to question Ralph's actions such as eating something he shouldn't, or saying something bizarre or oblivious. Another common use is that Ralph will be at a major event in the episode's story, and will say commentary which can either perplex everyone present or point out something so glaringly obvious it's funny. Ralph has quite a knack for getting himself into sticky situations as well, which is another type of scene he is often used for. There is criticism that as the show has gone on, Ralph has become less a merely clueless and eccentric child to more of a dim-witted one liner character with little subtlety. Although his endearing qualities are more inconsistent than before, this hasn't stopped him from being one of the show's most recognizable and remembered characters.
In the official Simpsons comic by Bongo Comics, Ralph is often featured prominently in short stories and one takes.
Miscellaneous
Future
Ralph's future is one of the murkiest and most vague of all the children on the show. The Simpsons frequently features non-canon episodes, however, and the 'future' episodes could be among them. Due to the timeless nature of the show as well, dates are relative:
- Lisa's Wedding: By far Ralph's most mysterious sighting. "Sideshow Ralph Wiggum" is a name mentioned on a very fast scrolling list of celebrities being hunted in a witchhunt like manner. The reference is very easy to miss, and may require a DVD player going frame by frame to catch. Ralph can also barely be seen behind an aged Krusty the Clown during the wedding.
- Bart to the Future: Ralph's most prominent role in a future episode. Ralph is very good friends with Bart, and shares an apartment with him. Surprisingly, Ralph seems to be the voice of maturity in Bart's immediate life, and he is pretty well composed with a full head of thick brown hair and a more focused attitude. Despite this however, he isn't above the random behavior of his child self from time to time it seems. His friendship with Bart is turbulent due to Bart's flakey ways, but he apparently sticks with him in the end.
- Future-Drama: Ralph has a brief cameo during his high school prom, in which he claims he can use the toilet. Although he is only briefly featured, he appears to be an older version of his younger self here complete with non-sequitur. Ralph becomes inadvertently intoxicated when Nelson Muntz spikes the punch, leading to humorous hallucinations.
- The Rise and Fall of Bartholemew J. Simpson: This story in the comic series featured a future reminiscent of the one in Lisa's Wedding, but still different in many ways. Ralph has a cameo alongside his aging father where Ralph is surfing a futuristic version of the Internet.
- Lisa the Simpson: In a future scene, Ralph is Lisa's husband.
Ralph's unconventional eating habits
- Paste in Separate Vocations, Marge vs. the Monorail, and Team Homer
- His red crayon in I Love Lisa
- Grass in Sideshow Bob Roberts
- The caps from his cap gun in Bart's Girlfriend
- His worm in Lisa the Vegetarian
- His control knob in The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show
- "The Purple berries" in Das Bus
- A thumbtack in Wild Barts Can't Be Broken
- "Plastic candy" (the set and props for his dance recital) in Last Tap Dance in Springfield
- LEGO building blocks in Today I am A Clown
- Dollar bills in See Homer Run
Quotes
Some examples of Ralph's famous dialogue include:
- Ralph:(with stranded group looking for food) "I eated the purple berries! Ohhhh...ohh." (groans and collapses)
Bart: "How do they taste Ralph? Good?"
Ralph: "They taste like... burning!" - "My cat's breath smells like cat food."
- "You need to be ironed." (Upon seeing a group of senior citizens.)
- "Me fail English? That's unpossible."
- "In my house, we call them uh-oh's!" (Brothers Little Helper, referring to fires)
- "Hi, Lisa. Hi, Super Nintendo Chalmers." (Instead of 'Superintendent' Chalmers.)
- "When I grow up, I want to be a principal or a caterpillar! I love you principal Skinner!"
- "I'm happy and angry"
- "I bent my wookie"
- "I love glue" (instead of "I Love you")
- "I'm cuckoo for contraband!"
- "Duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck, duck ..." (35 times at least)
- "Lisa is a sell-out, Lisa is a sell-out. Lisa, what's a sell-out?
- "I can make Opi-O's!"(Ralph is in the opium den smoking.)
- "Principal Skinner, I got car sick in your office."
- "Why do people always run from me?" (immediately before wetting his pants)
- "I got hit by boy Lisa AND girl Lisa!"
- "Bart Simpson is my bestest boyfriend."
- "I found a moon rock in my nose!"
- "I'm a dog!" (Ralph as a peacock on the Island of Dr. Hibbert)
External links
- The Simpsons Quotes
- The Ralph Wiggum File at SNPP.com
- That's Unpossible! A very comprehensive fansite featuring Ralph's appearances by episode, character profile, and a massive image archive among its features.
- The Simpsons official site A profile on the official Simpson website.
