• The lesson is also historically significant in the context of The Simpsons. Paul McCartney and his late wife, Linda—well-known vegetarians—are guest voices in the episode. Paul agreed to do the show on the condition that Lisa remain a vegetarian in the future, a promise that the show’s writers have kept.
This clip starts at 2:45 into the episode, just as the family members notice the cute lambs at the petting zoo, and it ends at 7:30
minutes. Despite the short length of the clip, it is separated into three settings—at the petting zoo, at the dinner table, and at school. The only disruption to the flow occurs when the family returns home from the petting zoo; at this point Homer has a one-minute interaction with his neighbor Ned Flanders that has little to do with the main theme of the episode. This presents the perennial problem with using movies or TV shows in the EFL classroom—great clips often also include potentially distracting content that is best avoided. Although a minor inconvenience, I recommend fast-forwarding through—or, if possible, editing out—the Flanders scene. With the exception of this scene, the clip flows smoothly and coherently. The recommended viewing time for the following three scenes is just under four minutes:
• The petting zoo (2:45–3:20)
• The dinner table (4:20–6:00)
• At school (6:00–7:30)