...Disney’s Portrayal of Women and Simplification of Morals For most people, the first image that comes to mind when the subject of Walt Disney’s animated movies comes up is the studio’s popular princesses. Ever since Snow White made her debut in 1937, Disney has cornered the market on princesses. One primary topic that critics have discussed in Disney’s films is the way princesses are portrayed. The roles of the female characters are especially drawing the interest of academic critics. Jack Zipes, author of Breaking the Disney Spell, believes that the Disney princesses have regressed. On the other hand, Libe Zarranz, author of Diswomen Strike Back? The Evolution of Disney’s Femmes in the 1990s, and Rebecca Do Rozario, author of The Princess and the Magic Kingdom: Beyond Nostalgia, The Function of the Disney Princess, believe that the Disney princess has progressed. Another aspect of Disney’s movies that catches the eyes of critics is the moral simplification in the films. They believe that the morals from the original fairy tales are being manipulated and simplified in the Disney films. A. Waller Hastings, author of Moral Simplification in Disney’s The Little Mermaid, and Finn Mortensen, author of The Little Mermaid: Icon and Disneyfication, both agree that Disney’s simplification of morals is giving viewers the wrong depiction of life. Disney’s portrayal of women and simplification of morals are giving viewers the wrong impression of life and women. Many critics call the process...
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...The Little Mermaid is an example of how woman were seen in society. In the fairy tale, women are characterized by appearance rather than personality by both men and women. The little mermaid mentions “But if you take my voice, what shall I have left?”. In this quote, the little mermaid believes that she cannot just be herself to win the prince’s heart. The prince also looks at women the same way because of how he talks to the little mermaid. He asks her, “You’ve no fear of the sea, have you, my dumb child?”. He treats her as if she is still a small child just because she cannot speak. The tone helps shape the whole story into a feminist piece. Anderson relays the moral of the story for women in a cautionary tone to make them realize the message that is being said. The little mermaid gave up everything for the prince, and in the end, she paid a terrible price for it. Hans Christian Anderson’s writes her story The Little Mermaid in a cautionary tone with the usage of imagery and characterization to symbolize a feminist work of literature. The little mermaid’s grandmother demonstrates how appearance rules over personality. In the story, they characterized women in such a way that good looks are everything. When the little mermaid asked if the humans liked mermaids, the grandmother said, “They very thing that’s so beautiful here in the sea, your fish’s tail, seems ugly to people on the earth; they know so little about it that they have to have two clumsy supports called legs, in...
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...Eric. The Beast was not angry and violent. Mulan never fell in love with her general. At least not in the original versions of the stories; all these changes were added by Disney to make a more interesting movie, or to forward a sexist agenda. A multitude of sexist messages are present in Disney movies teaching young girls that they are expected to fill a submissive role in society. The fairy tales are symbolic of women’s lives being shaped by male influences. Over time, the sexist message in Disney movies has become less apparent, but it has never disappeared; it is merely buried within a classic fairy tale that the “magic of Disney” has transformed into a sexist lesson. Naturally, these movies must not have a traumatic affect on little girls. Parents are not actually harming their daughters by allowing them to indulge their fairy tale fantasies. Not according to Jack Zipes, leading expert on fairy tales and German professor at the University of Minnesota, the movies have “a type of gender stereotyping . . . that has an adverse effect on children, in contrast to what parents think . . .. Parents think they’re essentially harmless – they are not harmless” (Giroux, “Roared” 103). Maria Tatar, Harvard folklorist, also sees harm in the movies since “[Disney] capitalizes on the worst part of fairytales” placing the focus on the material world and removing the cunning and intelligent roles that the females once played (Healy). However, these messages surly must not be intentional...
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...Vračević Željka University of Banjaluka Faculty of Philology English Language and Literature REPRESENTATIONS OF FEMININITY IN DISNEY CARTOON PRODUCTION: An Analysis of Selected Examples The purpose of this essay is to explore how media, especially Disney cartoons, affect gender, particularly young girls and how the representations of females within the media affect the viewers through stereotypes or ideals to live up too. THE INTRODUCTION (the explanation of media influences and basic notions of women representations in Disney Production) A good deal of feminist writing in the field of culture has been concerned with the representations of gender and of women in particular, and it is claimed that these representations of females reflected male attitudes and constituted misrepresentations of “real women”. Meehan (1983) analyzed the stereotypes into which women are commonly cast on television and the analysis showed that “good women” are, or are expected to be submissive, domesticated and home-centered while “bad women” are rebellious and independent. She concludes that “American viewers have spent more than three decades watching male heroes and their adventures, muddied visions of boyhood adolescence repete with illusions of women as witches, bitches, mothers and imps “. All researches about the media influence give the same conclusion that the mass media is a powerful resource through which viewers develop their...
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...Inadequate Role Models On the surface Disney Princess films appear to be innocent tales about happy endings. Upon closer inspection, they are almost always stories about damsels in distress that are hardly sufficient role models for young girls. Impressionable youth delve into these movies while their parents are unaware or uninterested of the implications these movies have. In some cases, one can find violations of women’s basic rights as human beings. These rights are outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and John Locke’s Of Civil Government. For example, Disney Princesses almost never have the right to their own property, much less ownership of their own bodies. They are also portrayed as obedient wives with offensive flaws that are later corrected by their husbands. Disney delineates a helpless, subservient role for women in society that undermines the work of feminists such as Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and all those involved with the Seneca Falls Convention; this portrayal encourages young women to put up with violations against their basic rights as human beings. In Disney Princess movies, women hardly ever have the right to their own property and in some cases, have no right to their own bodies. According to John Locke, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, “One Woman, One Vote”, and the Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions, these conditions violate their basic right to their property as human beings. In the film Aladdin, all...
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...them. Young girls look up to the different princesses hoping that one day when they grow up, they will meet their prince charming the way Cinderella met as well as physically being pretty. Whereas young boys, they look up to Prince hoping that when they grow up having a lot of girls running after them as well as being their powerful figure with a muscular body. Disney Films give society the impression that women have to act a certain way to impress someone and that your value is determined by your physical traits rather than your personality, which influences younger generation that this is how you are valued. Disney Princess movies targeted young children and are none other than a fairytale story in which innocence and moral virtues are questioned. They create this magical world that targets the youth audience especially young girls and has directly exposed the idea that young girls should make their main goal in life to find their prince charming, falling in love and living happily ever after. The Production also tells the audience that in order for women to be happy she needs a man in her life and that they are dependent upon men. They also suggest that a woman’s main priority is that she needs a lover in her life. Another thing that the production tells their audience is that looks are everything. In the article “Gender Role Portrayal and Disney Films” by Dawn Elizabeth England and Laura Descartes, The authors talk about how the prince and princesses are coded...
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...Feminism in 1990s Princess Movies In the late 1980s and 1990s, with the third wave of feminism introducing women to take actions to obtain their goals, the Disney Company experienced a renaissance by returning to its most successful genre—fairytales. After the huge success of The Little Mermaid in 1989, the Walt Disney Company released another well known story, Beauty and the Beast, in 1991. With the enormous success of the film, many scholars criticized that these princess films actually promoted an anti-feminist message and were worried that the films would influence the thoughts of young girls and women. However, these films in the late 80s and 90s evolved from previous films. In fact, Linda Woolverton, the first female Disney animation writer, was the script-writer of Beauty and the Beast. The Walt Disney Company always cared about what the fans wanted and thought. By hiring a female script writer, Disney could make audience better understand feminism, especially at the time of third-wave feminism. The 1980s and 1990s movies, especially Beauty and the Beast, convey a feminist message because of the themes of inner beauty, progressive gender roles and freedom of choice. Beauty and the Beast presents the importance of personality and ambition over physical appearance. Some people argued that the message that being pretty is very important in princess movies is anti-feminist. They thought the pretty princesses suggested to young girls that women’s appearances were the most...
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...Disney and the American Princess: The Americanization of European Fairy Tales [pic] Marina Alexandrova Student number 3021874 MA Thesis, American Studies Program Utrecht University Course code 200401064 23943 words 12 August 2009 Contents Title page………………………………………………………………1 Contents……………………………………………………………….2 Introduction……………………………………………………………3 Chapter 1: European Fairy Tales and Values about Gender and Class………………………………………10 Chapter 2: Disney Animation and American Culture…………………24 Chapter 3: Disney Animation and (Gender) Commodification…………………………………………..55 Conclusion…………………………………………………………...73 Bibliography…………………………………………………………78 Introduction Among the various aspects which define contemporary life, popular culture – and in particular, American popular culture – is undoubtedly one of the most ubiquitous and long-lasting. Throughout the twentieth century, people around the world have enjoyed film, music, animation, and written works by various authors and artists. One of the most famous and significant American entertainers of the lot has been Walt Disney, introducing millions of children and adults to his world of limitless (or so is widely believed) imagination and magic, from the earliest short cartoons produced in the 1920s, to full-length feature animations such as Snow White and the Seven...
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...She was addressing at a private liberal arts college for women in Wellesley, Massachusetts. The speech was delivered on June 1, 1990. The total length of speech was about 11 minutes. Barbara Bush’s commencement address successfully honored and inspired the graduates of Wellesley College. The is an important speech of Barbara Pierce Bush’s “Commencement Address at Wellesley College” speech because she encouraged women to stay true to who they are, enjoy life, and most importantly to cherish their families rather than to focus only on studying and wasting their life's becoming well educated women only, because at the end of the day with family, friends, and children are by far more important than a textbook and a pen. I think that she was little nervous because she was so cautious that don’t miss to think anybody and constantly looking at the piece of paper for this. In the introduction, Barbara Bush successfully grabs the attention of her audience as she sparks interest, honors the occasion, establishes credibility and relates to her audience. I think she very well knew that what kind of the audience, she is going to address and she seems prepared for it as she as written the speech keeping in mind her audience. Barbra bush’s speech made an impact on the woman of Wellesley because they were expecting somebody to tell them how great a class one education would be on their futures and how money and a great job would benefit them, but instead they got a speech about life and goals...
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...“Behind the Fair Façade” Representations of Femininity in Three Walt Disney Animated Features Bachelor Thesis Bethany Schouten, 3278972 Media en Cultuurwetenschappen Genderstudies Supervisor: Domitilla Olivieri May 31st, 2011 “Behind the Fair Façade” Representations of Femininity in Three Walt Disney Animated Features Bachelor thesis by Bethany Schouten, 3278972 Index Introduction 3 Methodological and theoretical Framework 4 Corpus 9 The Research: SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS 11 The Research: THE LITTLE MERMAID 18 The Research: THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG 24 Findings and Interpretation 31 Identity Formation 35 Conclusion 38 Literature 41 Media 43 Introduction The Walt Disney Company’s cultural products have been a great influence on popular culture since the 1930s and an inspiration for generations all over the world ever since. For many, including myself, the Princes, Princesses and fantastical creatures of Disney’s animated fairy tales have become symbols of their youth. Seeing the films gives rise to a feeling of nostalgia, they become a memento of one’s childhood world. But what kind of world is this? What kind of realities do Disney’s fantastical representations construct? In my thesis, I will analyze a specific element of Disney films: gender roles constructed through the representation of femininity in their animated...
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...reciprocated it into unrealistic standards. The media's concept of the ideal women's body isn't immovable. Over centuries women internationally have worshiped a variety of body types determined by societies morals of beauty. Each decade represents a new era of shockingly dramatic fluctuations from the hourglass figure of the 1950's to the meagre frame of the 1960's, encouraged by fashion icons such as Marilyn Monroe and Twiggy. Becoming a "size zero" has gone from a fad to an...
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...be categorized under these two sexes. Hermaphrodites, now more commonly known as intersex, are becoming a commonly known and used term in society with 17 in every 1000 babies having some kind of intersex condition. Gender is only one of the fundamental principles in organisation of social life, in particular in structural organisations of; childhood, sports, media and employment and economy. Childhood As children we are all brought up and identified differently usually due to several factors. For example class, where we are on hierarchy that is our society. Class usually has an effect on our childhood, poorer- lower class, richer- upper class and middle class. This then effects our education, expectations from society and even ones morals and beliefs. Class...
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...Brandon Case 10/08/2013 Communications Europa Europa Report The movie Europa Europa is nothing like the movie Europa Report, which is the movie I was going to watch for this assignment, before my know it all girlfriend decided it wasn’t “multicultural” enough. The film should not be confused with the 1991 Lars von Trier film Europa, which was initially released as Zentropa in the United States to avoid such a confusion. Europa Europa is directed by the young European director Agnieszka Holland, who previously directed the films Angry Harvest, and To Kill A Priest, and would later go on to direct such films as In Darkness and Burning Bush a three part miniseries which aired on the premium cable channel HBO this year. After doing a good amount of reading on Wikipedia, I am a big fan of the director, despite not knowing anything about the director, nor having seen any of his movies. My girlfriend insists the director is a woman, and begrudgingly I admit to her that she is in fact correct. This is a gender bias I have displayed unwittingly, and a multicultural stereotype of men directing war movies that I have internalized. I recognize that this is a negative bias. Dark sided. I have displayed a misogynistic tendency here in this situation. Irregardless, the female director has quite the repertoire of Nazi war movies. I am ready to accept her for who she is and empathize. I will probably have to empathize for the next three or four hours for a myriad of different reasons....
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...Rebecca Stroker February 2, 2015 Introduction: I. Attention Getter: a. Type: Quote b. Attention getter: In the Disney movie, The Little Mermaid, Sebastian, the hermit crab, says to the main character, Ariel, “the seaweed is always greener in somebody else’s lake. You dream about growing up there, but that’s a big mistake. Just look at the world around you, right here on the ocean floor. Such wonderful things surround you. What more is you lookin’ for?” c. Lead in purpose: We all get envious of other people’s lives and I am no exception. I am learning every day to love my life in every way and to learn and grow from my challenges. II. Introduction topic and purpose: Today I would like to tell you how my life is like seaweed. III. Relate to audience: We all know where seaweed grows and how it dances in the ocean. Many of you probably like to eat it, but I’d like to show you how it is comparable to my life. IV. Establish credibility: I admire the ocean and have studied many different aspects of it, including plant life living in the salt water. Seaweed and the algae that live in the ocean are essential to the ecosystem as they provide food, shelter and diversity. V. Sign post and preview main points: My life is like seaweed for three main reasons. The first reason is that I remain rooted even when the current it pushing me in every direction. The second is that I go with the flow in situations instead of remaining rigid and resistant. The third reason...
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...PHILIPPINE FOLKLORE: ENGKANTO BELIEFS HISTORICAL BACKGROUND: Philippine mythology is derived from Philippine folk literature, which is the traditional oral literature of the Filipino people. This refers to a wide range of material due to the ethnic mix of the Philippines. Each unique ethnic group has its own stories and myths to tell. While the oral and thus changeable aspect of folk literature is an important defining characteristic, much of this oral tradition had been written into a print format. University of the Philippines professor, Damiana Eugenio, classified Philippines Folk Literature into three major groups: folk narratives, folk speech, and folk songs. Folk narratives can either be in prose: the myth, the alamat (legend), and the kuwentong bayan (folktale), or in verse, as in the case of the folk epic. Folk speech includes the bugtong (riddle) and the salawikain (proverbs). Folk songs that can be sub-classified into those that tell a story (folk ballads) are a relative rarity in Philippine folk literature.[1] Before the coming of Christianity, the people of these lands had some kind of religion. For no people however primitive is ever devoid of religion. This religion might have been animism. Like any other religion, this one was a complex of religious phenomena. It consisted of myths, legends, rituals and sacrifices, beliefs in the high gods as well as low; noble concepts and practices as well as degenerate ones; worship and...
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