Entrepreneur, ethicist, environmentalist, intellectual, inventor and feminist icon, little Lisa Simpson is the cartoon face of caring capitalism. A lily flowering above her genetic pool, the Simpson family’s middle child is an inspiration for future leaders keen to promote social and corporate responsibility.
Accomplished in several languages, a Mensa member, the recipient of many awards and a highly successful businesswoman, eight-year-old Lisa’s not afraid to turn her back on a profitable enterprise should it compromise her values. For example, when she starts a soon booming babysitting service, she quits when she has to look after Bart and Maggie.
Lisa constantly spearheads initiatives to curb the excesses of a greedy and bigoted world. And she teaches us how to turn protest into profit. When power-plant owner Mr Burns destroys Springfield’s media outlets, Lisa creates The Red Dress Press, which triumphs over adversity (a deliberate power cut) to the point that Mr Burns tries to buy it. Naturally, Lisa refuses.
Similarly, while Lisa initially collaborates with Mr Burns in creating a recycling factory, when he sells the swiftly corrupted venture for $12m and offers Lisa 10 per cent, she feels morally obliged to turn the money down.
Above all, Lisa is a natural motivator. “Having never received any words of encouragement myself, I’m not sure how they’re supposed to sound,” she tells Bart. “But here goes: I believe in you.”
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