Disney / Pixar, By Ken Gillam And Shannon R. Wooden

Disney movies have been the leading outlets for child education and social learning. Due to such power of influence controversies have been raised which include the following, but not limited to, gender roles and stereotypes, issues of independence, and misrepresentation. Many people argue that despite the morals and messages that occur within such films there are still underlying messages that deal with beauty standards and norms. However, others may argue that Disney is evolutionary and evolved the imagery of male/female standards. The controversy then becomes: are Disney films doing more harm than they are good? Due to certain themes brought on by such movies, it has left younger audiences with both positive and

In the article, “Post-Princess Models of Gender: The New Man in Disney/Pixar,” written by Gillam and Wooden, they argue that Disney's line of animated movies depict a “new man.” Their argument is based around three movies: Toy Story, The Incredibles, and Cars. Gillam and Wooden then state that all three of the movies start with a traditional alpha male character who, throughout the movie, begins to accept his more “feminine” aspects. The idea that the two present is that the lead characters show traits of “acute loneliness and vulnerability.” From there, Pixar emasculates the character through some type of disempowerment that then leads to the overall maturing of the characters (Gillam and Wooden). Throughout the article they bring up many great arguments of which I agree to. However, Gillam and Wooden only cite the three movies mentioned above, when in fact Disney/Pixar has continued with the trend of having an “alpha male” character who throughout the film becomes more mellowed out and less dominant. The idea of emasculation can be carried into the Pixar movie “Up,” where the viewer can witness acute loneliness, slight depression, and eventually the admittance of defeat, where the character is forced to take on help and accept the “emasculation”.

Questioning the masculinity within male characters of Disney/Pixar, by watching their son's perspective on the film "Cars," in "Post-Princess Models of Gender: The New Man in Disney/Pixar," Ken Gillam and Shannon R. Wooden examine multiple movies and point out that the leading male characters in "Cars," "Toy Story," and "The Incredibles," are victims of emasculation. Prior to Disney/Pixar releasing nine movies, Disney conveyed all its main male characters to be "alpha male" (472). However, Pixar opened new types of characters, those that led to having the characters' masculinity stripped by another supporting character in the film. The authors draw attention from the strong male model to the "New Man" (476) role. Gillam and Wooden focus on the main male characters in each of the movies who all start with a high machismo personality, which rapidly transitions into an effeminate identity.

For my final paper where we had to pick a topic from current popular culture, I decided to write my paper with the focus on Disney movies. More particularly with the focus on the Disney princess movies. When it comes to the Disney movies they have always been and will always be such a huge part of our society. While growing up most children grow up watching these movies and get the idea that that is what they want to be when they grow up. When you ask a young girl what she wants to be when she is older there is a good chance that she will say that she wants to be a princess when she grows up. I have always been such a huge fan of Disney movies and I have a feeling I always will be. I found it very interesting this semester when we spend the short class period talking about the Disney female and male characters. It is rather interesting and something that I can say that I really never noticed before but the fact that the majority of all the female characters all had the same face shape. Whereas the males there were none two that were the same. However for this paper I will be looking into the relationship to cultural meanings about gender and other identity markers, such as race, sexuality, and cultural norms as seen in some of the more classic well known Disney movies.

In the past years, Disney/Pixar has revolutionized the premise of their movies by shifting away from princesses and portraying resilient male characters as the protagonists of their highly successful animated feature films. From 1995 to 2008, Disney/Pixar released eight films, all of which included a male lead, yet these characters are arguably unlike any other protagonist in early Disney animated films. In their essay, “Post-Princess Models of Gender: The New Man in Disney/Pixar,” Ken Gillam and Shannon R. Wooden call attention to the new manner Disney/Pixar use to depict their heroic male characters in their movies. Gillam and Wooden claim that Pixar is using their movies to promote the acceptance of a new standard of masculinity capable of embracing feminine traits, as conveyed by the male characters within the films. As a viewer, it is easy to recognize the emasculation of the male protagonists within Pixar movies, however, the authors’ claim is faulty; they fail to acknowledge that society now has room for a new sympathetic man because it is straying way from a patriarchal beliefs of the past.

Media is a powerful agent in entertaining children. It also influences and teaches the youth of society the suitable and appropriate gender roles that they inevitably try to make sense of. The power of media is very influential especially in the minds of the youth. Disney movies target the youth and plant certain ideas and concepts about social culture into the vulnerable minds of children. Media uses gender to its advantage, just like Disney productions. Humorous caricatures reveal some harsh realities about the portrayal of Disney Princesses in many movies made by the Walt Disney Company. Disney mixes innocence with the ultimate form of fantasy to capture an audience. Predominantly, Disney helps highlight the gender roles by showing the

The portrayal of Feminine aspects within Disney movies has been widely criticized, however the way masculinity is portrayed in films is also very controversial but infrequently discussed. My goal for this research paper is to look at two Disney films through a feminist lens and queer lens to decipher any stereotypical aspects of masculinity that are shown within the main characters. I am hopeful to find a film that breaks the norm of having a masculine main character that is hyper masculine like Gaston from Beauty and the Beast or Jaffar from Aladdin. I would also like to analyze the damsel in distress situations in films where the male role seems to always be the heroic figure even when they aren’t the main character in the story. Even though

Walt Disney over the years has impacted the lives of millions of children with his animated films. His Disney movies have evolved in the last years and have moved from the traditional damsel in distress theme. Specifically, the classic movie Cinderella gives the wrong idea about what it is to be a woman for young girls. The movie portrays a young woman facing emotional, mental, and physical abuse by her evil stepmother and later falls in love with a charming prince. However, if viewers take a closer look, Disney’s anti feminist message is firmly emphasized. The story of Cinderella is sexist due to it’s lesson to girls that beauty and submission will award them a rich bachelor. This is seen through Cinderella’s submissive behavior, Prince

The central objective of the present study was to investigate how the influence of individual’s favorite Disney princess, Cinderella or Mulan, can impact participant’s beliefs on gender role and romance. In this study, participants that favored Cinderella held a more traditional belief on gender roles compared to those who favored the Disney princess Mulan. This finding supported our first hypothesis. This could be because of the traditional female role that Cinderella held throughout the movie in comparison to Mulan. Unlike Cinderella, Mulan was portrayed like a soldier, who had a strong-minded character. Mulan did not fit into the stereotypical model of what its meant to be a female, instead, she transcended the gender binaries. In contrast, Cinderella was portrayed as your stereotypical female character. She was depicted as a loving and nurturing caregiver who was also very submissive and weak. All in all, Cinderella was basically a damsel in distress with her evil witch being her stepmothers and stepsisters. This sharp contrast in characters and their message may influence children in different ways. We as people are more prone to gravitate towards things we resonate with on the terms of our experiences, values, beliefs and even our philosophy on life. Therefore, it was assumed that people who favor Cinderella would have a more traditional view of gender roles.

The essay by Gillam and Wooden attempt to prove that in many Pixar/Disney films, the often male protagonist goes through a change where they are “stripped of their identity” and made into a new more female like character (470). The two authors assert that Pixar has been making movies that create a new model of masculinity – one that does not follow the ideals of the “ubermacho Gaston” but rather a gentler and more understanding man (471). Gillam and Wooden assert this to appeal to the reader who has seen all or some of the movies they are refrencing not only to prove a point but to make the reader aware of what has occurred in the movies.

In the diverse society of today, the topic of equal rights and equal treatment of every person is a heavily focused and pronounced topic. With time and tremendous amount of effort by many advocates of civil rights, the enormous rift between races and genders have minimized to fractions of what it used to be. This change of belief from the white male supremacy to the diverse equality is a significant turning point of the world history. Not even 100 years ago, women were not able to vote and were supposed to stay at home while the husband, the man of the household, went out and worked for the family. Within the past few decades, women and men

Disney vs. The Future of Men: How have our beloved animated movies affected the men of yesterday, today and tomorrow.

perpetuated over the years throughout Disney’s movies. Disney is one of the largest media companies in the world. According to Forbes, the “net worth and market capitalization of Disney Company has been estimated as $103.96 billion in 2013” ("Walt Disney Company Net Worth - Celebrity Net Worth,”). From the premiere of the Steamboat Willie cartoons in 1928 Disney has transformed pop culture as we know it today. This paper is designed to look into four major issues gender identity, gender roles, ethnicity, social class throughout Disney’s Cinderella (1950) and Frozen (2013). I aim to show that in these films can be found a subtle manual for social norms, a supplier of dominant family values. I will assess certain sociological concepts that are represented in these films namely ‘The American Dream’, standardization, pseudo-individualism and the creation of false needs. As a society, the understanding of these issues are instrumental to our being since our identity is often distorted through long term norms, ideals and merits set forth through these animated films.

For decades now, Disney Corporation has been providing us with countless films made to delight and amuse children and adults alike. But not all Disney films seem particularly appropriate for their target audience. Many of these films portray violence, gender inequality, and skewed views of leadership roles that seem altogether inappropriate for impressionable young children. Better and more contemporary heroines need to be added to Disney’s wall of princesses in order to counteract years of sexism.

Walt Disney Animation Studios is a large part in America’s entertainment industry. Reaching children and adults through their many platforms, Disney has been influencing people for over 90 years. These films have played a huge role in the society displays of gender roles. This is seen in the representation in their characters, more importantly females. Culture has been going through changes in the past couple of decades and Disney reflects the changes in society through its characters. Popular culture rises with each of Disney’s films and become well known with their recognizable roles. The Disney Princess line up has been a rising influence since 1937 with Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, and continues to present with the current release of Moana, the most revolutionary Disney Princess as of yet.