Gender Stereotypes In Disney/Mass Media

Stefan Babich, a blogger for Periscope Magazine, a blog for women.Wrote a online article in 2011 that Brings up an issue many of us might not have even knew existed, that there is a lack of female protagonists in Pixar films. Babich brings up many points that are important to think about, because whether we realise it or not films,books,video games, and the media in general, at times do treat women to be less than their male counterparts.

When I was younger and learning about life is when I probably watched the most television. I fell in love with watching animated television shows and movies; in fact the first movie I had ever seen in theatres was Aladdin in 1992, a well-known Disney classic. Disney movies became my all-time favorite. Now watching them I have come to the realization of how they could affect how any child’s views on different gender roles. As Michael Kimmel explains “We now know that gender is one of the central organizing principle around which social life revolves. (Kimmel, 2)”

According to the article, “Post-Princess Models of Gender: The New Man in Disney/Pixar,” Gillam and Wooden believe that many of the Disney movies are about the person being strong, and not expressing their feelings. They also state that they are making an effort to change it to be more feminine, so it would teach children to let out their emotions. The way Disney made it’s movies before, i do not feel it's right because it teaching kids to be strong and uptight about situations, and because of that it can even make them firm on what they are dealing with. A representation of that would be when the child would see stereotypes happening around him, they wouldn’t try to change it because they learned to be uptight of the

Since 1937, Disney has been creating several animation movies for children, as well as adults, to enjoy. From Snow White to Cinderella to Tangled, Disney has produced household names and characters for children to look up to. Without disregarding the happiness Disney has brought to billions of children, it has also enforced multiple societal norms that are otherwise alarming. At first glance the typical Disney fairytale seems entertaining, but when examining closer they have portrayed patriarchy, unrealistic body images and racial stereotypes. For years Disney has portrayed woman as tall, beautiful and thin.

Furthermore, Disney utilizes gender by applying sexual and erotic connotation that are observe by young children which are heavily emphasized in stories and fairy tales produced by Disney Productions. Zipes continues his argument towards Disney demonstrations of hyper sexualized images and reveals, “The carefully arranged images narrate through seduction and imposition of the animator’s hand and the camera” (Zipes 351). Zipes reminds us that Disney use delightful images, humorous figures and erotic or sexual signs to deprive the audience through the production and manipulation. Audiences can no longer visualize a fairy tale for themselves as when they read because pictures and film remove the audience from envisioning their own characters, roles, and desires. Once again Disney aims for young girls with their objectification of femininity in society by incorporating

According to amother, her child stated “Mommy, mommy, the hyenas, the hyenas”, and she looked up and saidthere was a group of black children on the carousel and playing (Maloney; Mickey MouseMonopoly, 27). The social roles presented by Disney media embody the gendered stereotypes,which negatively affect how children learn and eventually perform gender (Heather Gutekunst,106). Disney films specifically have been shown to portray some stereotypical depictions ofgender (England, Descartes, Collier-Meek, 92)EvaluationLet’s face it, the Disney Princess movies and product line are completely surrounded bythe idea of gender roles because they want to create a fairytale where boys and girls act the waythey are meant to act. According to a current study on the gender-roles in Disney Princess films,it was expected that the princesses would show more traditionally feminine than masculinecharacteristics, and the princes would show more traditionally masculine than femininecharacteristics (England, Descartes, Collier-Meek, 93). Gendered stereotypes and roles aredesignated by Disney as limited rules of traditional femininity that is reiterated through andmirrored after popular culture (Gutekunst, 105). A quote by Carmen Faught written in theWashington post stated, “We don’t believe that little girls naturally play a certain way or speak acertain way, they’re not born liking a pink dress. At some point we teach them. So a big questionis where girls get their ideas about being girls” (Guo, 121). In Beauty & the Beast, you haveLumiere, the candlestick, and the broom, the feminine broom, acting out these male/femalethemes, where he’s the aggressive and she’s saying ‘oh, no, no, no’ and then by golly, he sweepsher off her feet after she said no, no, no, no (Carolyn Newberger; Mickey Mouse Monopoly,

The typical paradigm of a princess is to be gentle, nurturing, beautiful, and dependent upon somebody else to guide their fate and to also find their “one true love or prince charming.” Examples include Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella, The Little Mermaid, and Sleeping Beauty. According to Orenstein (2011), she reinforces this model that “the first thing that culture told her about being a girl [was] not that she was competent, strong, creative, or smart but that every little girl wants – or should want – to be the Fairest of Them All” (p. 3). It was not until recently when the standards of social or gender norms have been challenged by modern princesses where the princesses wield a trait or some traits that exemplify strong attributes. Being a strong princess would be defined as a princess that controls her own actions and controls her own life, regardless of what is dictated by social or gender norms.

Disney movies play a role in the childhood of many. Parents would expect not to have any troubles with showing these movies to their children, but infact there is many forms of gender stereotyping within these movies that can leave subtle impacts on a childs growing mind. In the Disney story of Cinderella, after her parents die Cinderella's wicked stepmother makes her a servant in her own house. Living with her two jealous step sisters. Cinderella wants to go to the royal ball which she has no chance of attending. Cinderella then gets a fairy god mother who makes her dreams come true. Cinderella enchants Prince Charming at the ball, but must face her enraged sisters and stepmother when the spell wears off at midnight. The message shown throughout this movie is that having good looks will help you succeed in life. Its shown throughout the movie that

People grow up conditioned to believe heavily in gender roles. One of the major contributors to our way of thinking is the media. Many young children watch Disney movies, through which, they learn how certain actions affect how they are seen; even material goods like clothes becoming symbolic of not only gender roles but status. At that age, people are easily influenced by the information that is presented in front of them. What little girl didn’t dream of being a Disney Princess? What little boy didn’t want to be a brave saviour? Girls are taught to want to be damsels in distress, waiting for their princes to come and rescue them. They are taught to be feminine and use their body in an exclusively seductive (and arguably, provocative) way.

Disney princess movies over time have followed roughly the same plot outline: the princess and her strife in finding her prince charming. However, in Disney’s latest princess movie “Moana”, the audience is exposed to a great example of leadership. Moana does not demonstrate her leadership role through defiance as seen in previous Disney movies such as the staring character Elsa in “Frozen” or Ariel in “The Little Mermaid”. Moana is driven by the desire to protect and serve her people. The movie illustrates Moana’s journey attempting to restore the ring island that her and her people inhabit. Taking matters into her one hands, Moana sets out to sea to restore the heart of the goddess Te Fiti, who reigns over the islands, and hopes to save her

Disney wrote in a time where women were in fact lesser than men, and were valued more differently than they are now. “We typically accept “masculine men” and “feminine women” as normal” (Brym, 2014). Many have this preconceived notion of women being feminine, soft, emotional, sweet and submissive, while men are perceived to be masculine, aggressive, tough, daring and

Screenwriters and filmmakers should refrain from using stereotypes based on gender, race, sexuality, religion, social class, and mental or physical disability even if it is for a comedy.

For years Disney has been making films that have captured the hearts of thousands. These films display the “ideal” and “perfect” love story, filled with all things little girls dream of. However, these films are injected with underlying cliché ideologies that a women is nothing until she can find a man to be a part of her life. Popular films such as Beauty and the Beast, Snow White, and The Little Mermaid are perfect examples showing this “hopeless without a man” theme broadcasted. Disney's films have been so successful and popular all across the world. However, if there is one thing we know about children, it is that they are like sponges. Children absorb and take in everything they see. If the themes and morals displayed in these movies are

Children tend to think that their whole life revolves around who they are in high school or middle school, as if there is no life outside of it. To learn ways to fit into their environment, they look over to the easiest and most relatable source they have, which are movies and television shows. During their journey to find themselves they often stumble upon stereotypes that they don’t live up to, which can lower their self-esteem gradually. Disney has been the main source of children entertainment for decades now but the classic Disney are so beloved that not that many people talk about the gender stereotypes in them. We can see these is movies like, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" where the men are shown as incompetent creatures who don’t

The purpose for my infographic is to categorize each Princess into their generation. The reason being that the princesses would demonstrate different gender roles because of the years the films were created. By classifying the princess and then breaking down the characteristics reveals that Disney has evolved the princesses. Additionally, the breakdown also reveals that many gender roles are still being portrayed. For my title, I decided to use a white simple font hoping that it would pop. Then I used a cursive pink font for “Disney Princesses” just because pink and the font is mostly associated with a feminine look that can be connected to the princesses. The castle is meant to draw the eye of the audience. A castle is a connection to the princesses. If the reader was to glance at the infographic he/she can get an idea that it is connected to princesses or a fairytale.