...Becoming a Princess: The Transition From Individual to Sex Object (Ali Wachutka( rince Charming did not kiss Snow White to wake her. Ariel never really loved 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”...
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...Every little girl wants to feel beautiful. She dresses up in sparkly costumes and stumbles around in her mother’s high heels because this is what has been ingrained in her mind as beautiful from her favorite Disney movies. From infancy to adulthood, we cherish the princess movies that we feel connected to. We all wanted to be part of Ariel’s world or be rescued from Maleficent’s evil grasp. However, we never question the value of these Disney Princesses influence on young girls. Are these princesses setting a good example for the aspirations of today’s children? The grasp of Disney Princesses reaches incredible lengths. They’re international symbols that are recognizable all over the world, but perhaps they are not the best role models to idolize. Disney Princesses do not represent positive icons for young girls because they glamorize unrealistic concepts of beauty and promote naïve life choices. Disney released its first Disney princess film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, in 1937. Since its release, Disney has created twenty-three other animated Disney films that could be considered princesses. These princesses bring in billions of dollars of revenue through Disneyworld merchandise, attractions, characters, and movies (Disney...
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...Hi, Be Our Guest & Be A Part of Our World I know they say that every fairytale starts with “Once upon a time…” but honestly this fairytale happened last week and it won’t be all that magical to tell you. I guess I should probably introduce myself right? Hi, I’m Cinderella. I’m just your average blonde who looses glass slippers at balls. Don’t let me fool you though. This story has absolutely nothing to do with me. I’m just the narrator. It all began last Tuesday when this guy named Ryan met a beautiful girl walking along the pier. I know this just sounds so romantic right? Trust me it gets better. This beautiful girl, well, she didn’t have a name, but let me tell you she was one beautiful person. Ryan, being the typical guy who thinks he’s hotter than the sun and that every girl should bow down in his presence, chased this girl all day long using every pick up line he’d ever heard. Here’s the catch my friends. This girl, wasn’t just any girl, she was Ursula, the evil sea witch. This is where that gloomy music that sounds like “dun dun dun” is played right? Anyway, Ursula saw right through this superficial man and put a spell on him that split him into seven little men that represented his traits and characteristics. Ryan was no longer Ryan, in fact he was now Studly, Jockey, Druggy, Dummy, Lusty, Nerdy and Giant. I didn’t pick the names so don’t blame me. Ursula told these seven little men that the only way she would restore them into one was if they mined for her...
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...Snow White Fairy Tale Comparison The story of young girl forced to flee from her home due to the jealously of her step-mother has been told in many languages in a variety of ways since its first publication by the Brothers Grimm in 1812. Storytellers capture their audiences by relating the common man’s plight to that of Snow White. To gain a greater understanding of this story, it is best to examine three versions that have been told at significantly different times within society. The original story “Little Snow-White” by the Brothers Grimm, Disney’s “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”, and Disney’s “Mirror Mirror” serve as inspiration when discussing the story, language, art direction, heroines, heroes, conflict and resolution with them. As each new adaptation of the story Snow White is told, many individuals will reference the Walt Disney version as fact over the original story by the Brothers Grimm. Two hundred years have passed and the story of Snow White has kept true to its original telling with only minor changes that have been implemented only as a way to appeal to the intended audiences at the time. The physical description of Snow White, our heroine, has always remained close to the original, “a child as white as snow, as red as blood, and as black as ebony wood” (Taylor, 1884). With Walt Disney being a family oriented individual he made only a minor change to her description, "lips red as a rose, hair black as ebony, and skin white as snow" (Snow White and the...
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...Snow White and the 10 planks of confidence “Hello my name is meera, im allison, and im fayha and we will be presenting the 10 planks of confidence through the story of snow white and the 7 dwarfs” Narrator: Once upon a time in the depths of the Planko Forest, a long lost princess makes her way to an isolated cottage in the middle of the forest. As she approaches the small house hoping to find help, she notices a bright light and hears a cry for help. She peers through the window and sees a strange image. Witch: “You dwarfs haven't been very loyal, so for that I take away any memories you have of yourselfs. See if you can find your way out of this.” [witch gestures hands in a spell like movement] [witch leaves] Narrator: Confused Snow White slowly makes her way into the cottage Snow White: “Hello? Is anyone there?” [walks around the class slowly, looking around] Narrator: She stumbles upon a group of small people Snow White: Hi! What’s your name? Dwarf 1: Umm I…. i dont know.. none of us do Snow White: You don’t know your name? well then I’ll name you Contenta, it stands for content. Narrator: Content: you pick a topic worth talking about. And you Research, research, research. Snow White: Do you want to help me name your other friends? Dwarf 1: Yah! [Snow White and dwarf 1 goes around naming 9 other dwarfs] Snow White: Your name is going to be Orgo for Organization. Narrator: Organization: You have a well planned outline that is easy for you and your...
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...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 features. I will study how this representation changes over time: has Disney’s highly criticized construction of gender roles changed over time, and if so, what realities do contemporary Disney discourses construct? I propose to research how femininity is represented in Walt Disney‘s animated features, how this representation changes over time and what kind of effects this has on the...
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...The original Snow White is a centuries old, German fable titled Sneewittchen. It gained notoriety after its publication in the first edition of The Brothers Grimm collection “Grimms' Fairy Tales”. Many believe the character of Snow White was based on the life of Margarete von Waldeck, a German countess born to Philip IV in 1533. When Margaretewas 16 she was forced by her stepmother, Katharina of Hatzfeld to move away to Wildungen in Brussels. There, Margarete fell in love with a prince who would later become Phillip II of Spain. Margarete’s father and stepmother disapproved of the relationship as it was ‘politically inconvenient’. Margarete died at the age of 21 after being poisoned. Margarete's father owned several copper mines that used...
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...Once upon a time there lived a lovely princess with fair skin and blue eyes. She was so fair that she was named Snow White. Her mother died when Snow White was a baby and her father married again. This queen was very pretty but she was also very cruel. The wicked stepmother wanted to be the most beautiful lady in the kingdom and she would often ask her magic mirror, “Mirror! Mirror on the wall! Who is the fairest of them all?” And the magic mirror would say, “You are, Your Majesty!” But one day, the mirror replied, “Snow White is the fairest of them all!” The wicked queen was very angry and jealous of Snow White. She ordered her huntsman to take Snow White to the forest and kill her. “I want you to bring back her heart,” she ordered. But when the huntsman reached the forest with Snow White, he took pity on her and set her free. He killed a deer and took its heart to the wicked queen and told her that he had killed Snow White. Snow White wandered in the forest all night, crying. When it was daylight, she came to a tiny cottage and went inside. There was nobody there, but she found seven plates on the table and seven tiny beds in the bedroom. She cooked a wonderful meal and cleaned the house and tired, finally slept on one of the tiny beds. At night, the seven dwarfs who lived in the cottage came home and found Snow White sleeping. When she woke up and told them her story, the seven dwarfs asked her to stay with them. When the dwarfs were away, Snow White would make delicious meals...
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...what extent is the film of snow white and the huntsman based on Grimm’s Snow White (from Kinder-u. Hausmarchen)? What differences are there between Grimm’s 1812 and 1857 treatments of this particular story? In 1812 Jacob Grimm who was interested in languages and discoveries wrote his first edition book called Kinder- und Hausmurchen. This book included many well-known stories even Snow White. Recently a movie called Snow White and the Huntsman appeared in theatres. This particular movie has a great relativity as to the way the story is being told. The following paragraphs will include details about the movie of Snow White and the huntsman and its relativity to Grimm’s versions of the story. The movie Snow White and the Huntsman is mainly about a women who becomes a queen after being found by the King. The queen whose is named Ravenna lures the king into falling in love with her beauty. The night of their wedding Ravenna poisons the King and stabs him in the heart. She then sets out and opens the gates for her brother and their army in order to take over the kingdom. While the kingdom is being overtaken by Ravenna and her army, some of the kings close companions try to escape, though the gates are closed off before the kings’ daughter, Snow White can escape. The queen makes the decision to spare Snow Whites life and imprisons her. Ravenna believes there will come a time when Snow White will be of good use to her. As time goes on and Snow White gets older, Ravenna realizes...
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...Marriage”, she gives insight on how marriage has evolved throughout centuries and the norms within them. In the article “Paradise Lost”, author Terry Hekker writes of her own personal testimony concerning her marriage and how societies view on marriage has shifted over the years. She explains what she expected marriage to be when she was married in the fifties and how it panned out with examples from outside testimonies as well. In the online article “The Problem with Modern Marriage”, Dr. Erica Slotter discusses common issues with today's marriages in the United States with examples. In Catherine Orenstein's article “Fairy Tales and a Dose of Reality”, she illustrates the connection between fairy tales or princess culture and how it affects modern views on marriage through media. Princess media, to an extent, sets unrealistic expectations and tainted views of romantic relationships and...
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...portrayals in these movies are not the fairest of them all. Since the first moment that Snow White bit into that succulent red apple, it was obvious that Disney was entrenched in misogyny that dates back to the mythology of Adam and Eve. Don’t get me wrong: I too was a doe-eyed Disney devotee and it took me a while to realise that it was better to depend upon charming chocolate than a Prince Charming. However it is now the 21st century and times have changed; Disney is no longer ‘Frozen’ in antiquated gender stereotypes. Notice the pun? Quite literally, “Frozen” (2013) has shattered princess stereotypes with a beautiful and funny adventure that’s a sure-fire Disney classic. “For the First Time in Forever” says the main song of the movie, and I kind of felt like singing the words too because for the first time in forever, the main characters of a Disney picture are independent females that don’t appear to rely on a guy, or a prince, that solves everything with a smooch. It’s true that Frozen is the rectification of a more modern woman role because there have been- in the past- some Disney movies with strong female protagonists such as Mulan (1998) and Pocahontas (1995). They didn’t need a man to be the saviour of the picture! This movie empowers girls to keep moving, to do things that matter and reinforces the value of family bonds- not just bonding with a new bloke that you may have met once or twice. Before she escapes the clutches of her royal duties to let her issues...
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...Is she a real new “Princess”? Media has grown into the ultimate medium of mass communication, a popular agent used to illustrate a “reflection” of the societies throughout the ages. In general, media has overcome multiple issues of representation of different genders, sexuality, classes, ethnic and racial groups (Hoynes and Crouteau). Nevertheless, these matters are not completely evolved yet. Media producers substitute the blunt way of displaying their demeaning opinions, into a subtler version of prejudice defined as: “modern” racism and sexism. Fundamentally, rather than discriminating and showing direct hatred towards who they claim are “genetically inferior”; producers present a positive evaluation and acceptance towards the “minorities”...
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...Megan Woodrow December 10, 2012 Human Symbolic Activity Final Paper Gender and Communication: Disney Princesses Evolve Over Time Women have been around since the beginning of time, and have been stereotyped towards having “weaker natures and bodies” and “silly and emotional desires”. The women in the classic Walt Disney films are no exception to this criticism. But there is a saving grace. As women in real life have changed over time, our counterparts in fantasy film animation have also changed. The classic Walt Disney Princesses have therefore evolved through, and with, the media. After thinking back on what made Disney such a huge hit and major part of all of our lives, one answer came to mind: The Disney Princesses. Walt Disney and the Disney Company started out with young and beautiful Snow White, and then eventually moving onto the long line of famous Disney heroines such as Cinderella, Aurora, Belle, Ariel, Jasmine, Mulan, and many more to recent date. There have been so many princesses (and other strong heroines) added to the Disney list, but has anyone ever thought of how these princesses have changed over time, or how they have evolved due to how women in real life are represented in the media today? Before I go into any more on the Princesses themselves, I first need to explain what events and stereotypes have made the basis for the Disney Princesses of the past, and even the for the women of the past, due to how the media and others have portrayed...
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...Once upon a time… but exactly when is that time? The time is past present and future. Oh how times have changed since the time of Snow White and Cinderella now we have Rapunzel and Moana. If you have ever seen these movies then hopefully you see the differences I see not only in the quality of the movies made, but the way they portray the characters in each movie. Gender roles have changed throughout time which is clearly seen in everyday life. Women are finally able to do many to most of the things that men do. We also see a huge difference on the way Disney portrays love in their older movies compared to now where a male love interest in not even included in the story. Disney is even beginning to give credibility to the LGBTQ community through...
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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 Dwarfs...
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