The Word for World Is Forest "The Dispossessed", which made "The Word for World is Forest" less complex than those other works. Charlotte Spivack stated that although the novel was "deftly written and imaginatively conceived", its "polemic" style made it a lesser literary achievement than many of Le Guin's other works. She says that unlike many other characters that Le Guin has created, such as George Orr and Dr. Haber in "The Lathe of Heaven", several characters in "The Word for World is Forest", such as Davidson, exist only as one-dimensional stereotypes. She described the style of the novel as "moving and hard-hitting", but said that
The Bart Wants What It Wants episode, Jean stated that the scene was written at a time when celebrity look-alikes were making "excellent livings". At one point in the episode, Bart and Greta are seen playing Scrabble, a word game manufactured by Hasbro. The music cue that plays before and after Skinner's comedy routine is based on the intro music from the American television sitcom "Seinfeld". The episode title is a reference to the common phrase "the heart wants what it wants". In its original American broadcast, "The Bart Wants What It Wants" received a 6.1 rating, according to Nielsen Media Research, translating to approximately 6.4