Analysis of "Blackness, Bayous and Gumbo: Encoding and Decoding Race in a Colorblind World"

“Blackness, Bayous and Gumbo: Encoding and Decoding Race in a Colorblind World” written by Sarah E. Turner discusses the controversial issues around Disney's production of The Princess and the Frog.  Tiana is Disney’s first black princess.  Many aspects of the Princess and the Frog are under criticism for being racist.  First of all the story is set in New Orleans in the 1920’s.   The fact that Tiana is black and the story is set in the Deep South raises question about what Disney is trying to suggest.  Also, the prince Tiana marries is considered “brown” because he has no definite race.  It would make sense if the Prince Naveen was black like Tiana, but instead Disney chose to depict him as being of a mixed race.  One of the major Turner points out is that Tiana has to work to be successful.  All of the other Disney princesses had success and love basically handed to them.  Although the fact that Tiana has to work hard is a positive message to send to kids, it cannot be ignored that she is the only princess who had to work hard and she is black.  Turner also recognizes that there is very little reference to Tiana’s “physical attributes.”  Most of the other Disney movies place an emphasis on the princess’ physical features.  It is unarguably a good thing that Disney is focusing less of physical attributes and more on mental strength, but it is under criticism because it is the first movie to show this new idea and also the first movie where the princess is black.  Despite all of these possible critiques of The Princess and the Frog, Turner is a strong believer that Disney is “colorblind.”  What she means by this is that despite all of the unique characteristics of Tiana, she is a princess just like Cinderella, Belle, Ariel and all of the other Disney princesses.  Race does not matter, it is simply an external quality like hair color.  In my opinion, I believe that Disney does have an aspect of colorblindness in their films, especially the Princess and the Frog.  I believe that Tiana was supposed to be a normal Disney princess, but critics over analyzed the movie to find issues simply because they wanted to prove that Disney is racist.  For example, if Tiana had married a black prince, critics would have asked why does the black princess have to marry a black prince, why can’t the prince be white?  Also, the fact that Tiana is a hard working princess is a great improvement to the stereotypical Disney princess.  Many of the other princesses take very little action in their respective films.  They are usually rescued by a prince, who they immediately fall in love with, and then live happily ever after.  I believe that the reason that Tiana had to work to get what she wanted is a reflection of the time period the movie was produced in, and has nothing to do with her race.  In the 21^st century, women are more empowered and strive to achieve success.   Tiana is a great representation of a modern and progressive princess.

"Home Is Where the Heart Is: Pixar's Up"

In "Home Is Where the Heart Is:  Pixar's Up," Dennis Tyler explores the success and message of Disney's production Up.  He starts with explaining the immense success that Up achieved.  Tyler points out the statistical evidence of Up's success by recognizing "as of February 2010, the film had made over $720 million worldwide.  This box office success surpassed all other Pixar films except Finding Nemo (2003)" (Tyler 268).  The first point that Tyler emphasizes is how Up may not necessarily be a strictly children’s movie. When considering the messages that Up portrays and the situations that the characters face, the movie is more meaningful and realistic than past Disney movies.  In “Home Is Where the Heart Is:  Pixar’s Up,” John Lasseter, a movie producer at Pixar, explains how Pixar movies were structured to appeal to children as well as other age groups.  He says, “We make movies for the kind of movies we like to watch” (272).  Lasseter continues to say “there’s so often that I’ve been to a movie for my kids that I’m bored to death.  And I said I just don’t want that to happen in our movies.  It’s not about the cynicism, or getting humor from putting somebody else down.  That doesn’t happen in a Pixar film” (272).  In this article, both Tyler and Lasseter emphasize how Pixar focuses more on ‘heart’ and this may be the more mature piece that attracts people of all ages to Pixar.  Up is an example of a Disney movie that offers the idea of family not being limited to blood related connections.  Tyler states that “throughout the Pixar canon, 'the family' is not simply the biological entity of the nuclear family, but rather a grouping of individuals who care for each other whether technically related or not” (269).  This is an example of a life like situation and a more mature message to be presenting.  In my opinion, Up, as well as many other Pixar movies, are far more entertaining then earlier Disney movies.  The plots are more complex and the characters have a personality and more ‘heart’.  These are all contributing factors to why Up is such a popular Pixar film today. 

"If Disney Movies Had Honest Titles" - BuzzFeed

There are tons of interesting articles, blogs, and posts about Disney on the internet.  In my opinion, some of the funniest ones are featured on BuzzFeed.  This one is titled "If Disney Movies Had Honest Titles," and it is hilarious because it is completely true.  Some of the messages Disney movies portray can be interpreted in different ways, and this author chose to recognize a clear perspective on the message she received.
http://www.buzzfeed.com/donnad/if-disney-movies-had-honest-titles
My two favorites are Cinderella being renamed Make Overs Change Everything and The Little Mermaid being renamed Change for Your Man.

Adult Disney Halloween Costumes

This past week I found myself searching through pinterest for hours trying to find a good Halloween costume idea.  As I was browsing through the pages, I could not believe the amount of adult Disney themed costumes there were!  I understand the obsession with young kids wanting to dress like their favorite Disney characters, but the fact that adults still have to desire to do that shows how universal Disney is (no pun intended).  Here are some examples,

Cinderella..

Jasmine..

Rapunzel..

Snow White..

Little Kids are Obsessed with Frozen

When I went home for fall break, I went out to eat with my extended family.  I sat next to my little cousin Alexandra who is 4 years old.  The first question she asked me was who did I like better, Olaf or Elsa?  I cannot begin to explain how confused I was because I had no idea what she was talking about.  Seeing how lost I was, my aunt explained to me that Olaf and Elsa were two characters from Frozen.  I have never seen Frozen, but Alexandra was ready to have a full on discussion about it, so I had to pretend that I had seen it and go along with the conversation.  Although Alexandra is only 4 years old, she knows more about Frozen than anyone I know.  She has a Frozen backpack, Frozen toys, and is searching everywhere to find an Elsa Halloween costume.  This got me thinking about how obsessed some little kids are with Disney, especially Frozen.  I am sure that the movie Frozen and it's messages will have an impact on her for her entire life.

"Simba's Revolution" Analysis

“Simba’s Revolution,” written by John Morton, is a clear and concise response to arguments made my Gooding- Williams.  In his argument, Morton agrees with some ideas presented by Good Williams, but corrects these arguments to make them more understandable and realistic.  The idea that the Lion King proposes the segregation of social classes is a topic that Morton addresses.  The hyenas live in the elephant graveyard, which is many ways which represents a ghetto.  Led by Mustafa’s evil brother Scar, the hyenas are violent savages.  Pride Rock is associated with hunting and grazing as a source of income.  However, the hyenas in the elephant graveyard are just scavenger with no real job or steady food source.  This shows that hyenas could represent the ‘unemployed’ low class.  Much of the corruption of the elephant graveyard is said to represent the poor conditions of an inner city.  I agree with all of Morton’s points and I think he did a great job of supporting them.  His ideas are not too radical that it is hard for readers to follow. These points are somewhat made by Good- Williams, but Morton only focuses on the strong and reasonable arguments which makes his point more effective.  Morton states that he intended to disagree with Gooding Williams on two main points, “1) his picturing of Disney’s Africa as a place without history, to which Scar’s revolution is a counter-trend; and 2) his nearly exclusive depiction of inequality issues through the medium of the excluded hyenas” (312).  Morton also challenges the ‘circle of life’ idea and introduces the idea of the ‘circle of death.’  This refers to how the hyenas are scavengers who basically feed off of death.  Scar is considered a political revolutionary, but I do not think that this is because of his class status.  I think that Gooding- Williams’s argument is flawed because The Lion King is depicting Scar as evil, not just poor.  He is trying to over through Mustafa and Simba because he is evil, and that has nothing to do with his class status.

Simba in Real Life

My good friend recently rescued a kitten and decided to name him Simba.  I was never really sure why he named him that because I had not seen The Lion King in years and did not remember much about it.  However, after watching The Lion King this past weekend, I can see exactly why someone would want to name their kitten Simba.  Clearly The Lion King had a huge impact on my friend because at 20 years old he still chose to name his kitten after a Disney movie.  Disney movies have the ability to make an life long impression on people. I always believed that being exposed to Disney had a life long impact on a person, and this serves as a perfect example.  Here is a picture of Simba!