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!

Disney's effect on childhood

A couple weeks ago, my mom sent me all of my Winnie the Pooh books in the mail that I loved when I was a kid.  Immediately I knew that she was missing me, and also wishing I was back to being a little kid again.  The Winnie the Pooh books were always my favorite, so receiving them in the mail automatically brought a smile to my face.  This feeling took me away from being an overly stressed college kid, and back to a carefree child. Disney offers a sense of youth and childhood to many throughout their entire lives.  The memories that Disney books and movies bring back are forever in the minds of many.  And on the other side, my mom also created memories by reading those stories to me when I was young.  The impact that Disney has had on my childhood never seizes to amaze me.

Mental Disability in Disney

In “Dopey’s Legacy: Sterotypical Portrayals of Intellectual Disability in the Classic Animated Films,” Karen Schwartz, Zana Lutfiyya and Nancy Hansen discuss the presence of negative stereotypes of mental disabilities in Disney films.  Focusing on the films Snow White, Cinderella, and the Beauty and the Beast, Schwartz uses contextual evidence to show examples of several characters who are considered to be mentally limited.  These characters face many hardships throughout all of the films, and are constantly laughed at, isolated and seen as different from the rest. 

“Dopey’s Legacy” is led with the strongest example of the argument, Dopey from Snow White.  Swartz comments on the fact that in the Grimms’ original version of Snow White, the dwarfs did not have as definite individual personalities, but in the Disney version they do.  “The seventh dwarf, Dopey, is characterized as an ‘idiot,’ ‘mentally retarded,’ and with ‘Down’s syndrome- like features,’ and was entirely a Disney fabrication? (179).  At first, I thought that this argument was absurd and over critical of Disney.  However, after considering Swartz’s evidence of this argument, I believe that she has a valid point.  Dopey is portrayed as being very incapable and “slow at figuring things out” (183).  Physically, he is different from the other dwarfs.  He looks childish, with some animalistic qualities, and also has blue eyes instead of brown like the rest.  These comparisons might seem minor, but when Schwartz brings in more examples, her argument is very well supported.  Gus, one of the mice from Cinderella, is also physically different from the other mice and often singled out for being slow and incapable.  These physical characteristics are very similar to Dopey’s.  “Like Dopey, Gus is presented as the ‘other.’  He is a chubby mouse, whose t-shirt fails to cover his belly, whereas the other mice are lean and wearing clothing that fits” (185).  In Cinderella, Gus is portrayed as being very incompetent, such as in the scene where he is trying to pick up all the rice he can even though the cat is about to eat him.  He needs to be saved by the other mice, which shows his dependency.  LeFou is the third example that Swartz uses.  He also has the same qualities as Dopey and Gus, which further supports the argument that mental disabilities are stereotyped in Disney films. 

It is clear that Swartz has some valid examples, however, what is more important is to understand the effect these examples actually have on the movie.  Disney’s use of mentally limited characters as a source of humor is very unethical.  Audiences find themselves laughing at the intellectually disabled character as he/she struggles to do basic tasks.  This is a negative way to teach children how to treat the intellectually disabled. 

Reading response to "Challenging Disney Myths"

Janet Wasko expresses her thoughts about five common misconceptions in the article “Challenging Disney Myths”.  Although her views offer a different perspective on Disney, both the man and the company, I believe that her main ideas are too radical and assumption based.  Wasko is very critical of Disney’s business decisions and motives.  She is very negative when referring to the way that Disney ran his business.  Accusing Disney of over exaggerating his past and upbringing seems rather ridiculous and unrelated to his success as a businessman.  She discounts his reflections of living on a farm because it was only for two years instead of longer which seems overly analytical to me.  It was not really made clear why this argument matters in the first place.  Also Wasko lacks sources in many instances, which make many of her arguments not credible.  In regard to Disney’s demeanor as a businessman, Wasko mentions that Disney was “praised for his masterful and inspirational leadership” and known as a “rare charismatic leader” (241).  However, Wasko continues by adding that “some of his employees called him a “benevolent dictator” and he was known for being “authoritative, moody and demanding” (241).  Personally, I believe that a good leader needs to be authoritative and serious in order to be successful.  If you consider all of the other powerful business leaders I am sure they are strict and demanding. I do not believe that Walt Disney should be held to a different standard simply because he managed a company that appeals greatly (but not exclusively) to children and families.  Disney (the company) is known around the world for its theme parks, products, movies, etc.  Clearly it would not have been possible for Walt Disney to accomplish this if he was not hard on his employees.  When I think about all the leaders of major corporations, I think of powerful and demanding individuals.  The amount of income that Disney has made is unbelievable; it is not shocking to me that Walt Disney was a demanding and ruthless boss.  There are certain points that Wasko make that I believe are valid and interesting.  Her thoughts on how the products of Disney, from movies to merchandise, target people off all ages.  When commenting how Disney appeals to multiple age groups, Wasko uses Eeyore as an example of how Disney can relate to teens.  Eeyore “is most popular with teens, possibly because he is a little different from the others” (Hirsch 1999, 38).  I thought this was an interesting point because Disney is present in almost everyone’s lives.  By the time you are a teenager, chances are that you are familiar with the story of “Winnie the Pooh”.  Eeyore represented the outcast, which can be related to by people of any age group, teenagers in specific.  This allows people of all ages to relate to Disney.  In addition, many Disney movies and shows have characters of all ages, so it is possible for almost anyone to relate to someone in the show or movie.   This reminded me of the story of Cinderella because she was a teenage girl who was treated horribly by her stepsisters and stepmother and ended up turning into a princess.  Many young girls who watch this can relate to certain aspects of the story, such as fighting with parents or siblings.  Wasko offers many controversial points in “Challenging Disney Myths”.  She does touch on many aspects of Disney that could be considered “myths,” but in my opinion her points do not change the way I view Disney as a man.  Her ideas and critiques on Walt Disney and his company are widely debated and will never be universally agreed upon.