New Religious Movements in the Town of South Park: Separating the Mainstream from the Marginal

Adult animated television shows such as South Park may come across as crude, juvenile humour, but they also reveal mainstream society’s disposition in regards to different social institutions. Building on the understanding that such programs offer viewers a sense of the “cultural climate,” this essa...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Miller, Christopher E. 1982- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: University of Saskatchewan [2020]
In: Journal of religion and popular culture
Year: 2020, Volume: 32, Issue: 2, Pages: 99-120
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B South Park (Television program) / Mormon Church / Scientology International / Parody
IxTheo Classification:AX Inter-religious relations
AZ New religious movements
CD Christianity and Culture
KBQ North America
Further subjects:B Scientology
B New Religious Movements
B marginal religions
B South Park
B Mormonism
B Mainstream
B Social participation
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Summary:Adult animated television shows such as South Park may come across as crude, juvenile humour, but they also reveal mainstream society’s disposition in regards to different social institutions. Building on the understanding that such programs offer viewers a sense of the “cultural climate,” this essay examines two South Park episodes—“712” and 912”—that parodied Mormons and Scientologists, respectively, in order to understand how these religions are depicted and interrogate what separates the marginal from the mainstream. In recognition of Mormonism’s comparatively positive portrayal, this essay suggests that the group may no longer be profitably studied alongside other new religious movements such as Scientology.
ISSN:1703-289X
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of religion and popular culture
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.3138/jrpc.2018-0039