Mulan Thesis

Now we will shift gears and look at the stereotypes and microaggressions that are in the Disney film Pocahontas. Son of the late Walt Disney, Roy Disney had the following to say regarding Pocahontas: “Pocahontas is a story that appealed to us because it was basically a story about people getting along together, which is particularly applicable to lots of places in the world today” (Amy, 55). Roy Disney’s comments are intriguing considering how offensive the film is to Native Americans, and how stereotypical and violent the film turned out to be. Allegedly the Disney production team intended to immerse themselves into the native World of Pocahontas’ and the culture for which she existed to get a better understanding of her lifestyle and to make the film as authentic as possible. They were said to have conducted historical research about Pocahontas and the time she lived (Amy, 53). Pocahontas is one of the few Disney films where the stereotypes are not hidden subtly in the storyline as microaggressions, but instead are set out front and center to grab the viewers’ attention, in a clear attempt to offend Native Americans.

Using the language of the moving image, which includes cinematography, editing, sound, music and mise-en-scene, this essay will investigate the ideology of Racism in film. OxfordDictionaries.com describes racism as “Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior.” When we, the audience think of racism in film, we traditionally think of movies for adults and often overlook the sinister aspect of racism in children’s films. I have chosen to contrast a recent R-rated film with a G-rated Disney movie from the 1990s. Disney films, even up until the 1990s have persistently reinforced the image of blacks or latino and asian races as being below whites. The

Pocahontas is a Walt Disney Pictures animation released in 1995 following the Disney Princess franchise. The movie is about Pocahontas, a native American lady whose home is invaded by Englishmen who wishes to exploit the land’s resources and to “civilize” the people living there. However, one of the Englishmen, John Smith, fell in love with Pocahontas. This essay studies the stereotypes of native American and them being essentialized in the media as being savages, sexism and also over romanticization, as represented in the movie.

Mulan, a tale of adventure and honor, is not only an engaging film to watch, but it also contains an amazing amount of historical accuracy concerning religions in China. The film Mulan is historically accurate in its portrayal of Daoist ideas, the expected behavior of women according to Confucianism, and Confucian relationships.

The legend of Mulan, the Chinese woman warrior, was first presented in an annonomous poem called “the Ballad of Mulan” which dated back the 6th sentury Tang Dynansty. The poem was written in five segments; each one represents Mulan’s origin, experience in the battlefield, and also sense of obedience to her family. The legend lives on as it is passed from one generation to other generation through diverse versions such as storytelling, poem, and movies. Ultimately, the ballad takes on a new form when it was adapted into a 1998 Disney animated feature. This is the first time Disney has drawn on an Asian

During the last several decades, the media has become a strong agent in directing and controlling social beliefs and behaviors. Children, by nature, can be particularly susceptible to the influencing powers of the media, opening an avenue where media created especially for children can indoctrinate entire generations. Disney movies, like all other media “are powerful vehicles for certain notions about our culture,” such as racism. (Giroux 32). Racist scenes in Disney movies are often identified as simply being “symbols of the time” when the films were produced. Furthermore, Disney racism is often passed over as simple humor, or as a simple guide to

Animated movies can be considered to be cultural objects that reproduce discourses within their stories which influence the identity building process of children. By representing social conventions and stereotypes, animated movies are producing social knowledge. This paper will therefore analyze the representation of Native Americans in the Disney movie Pocahontas by outlining the discourse surrounding the storyline and its effects on the production of social knowledge. The focus of the analysis will be put on two songs ‘Colors of the Wind’ and ‘Savages’ both performed within the

Lastly, heroes do not live their lives peacefully. In other words, once they become known, they become a target with a reward over their heads. In the excerpt from an autobiography by Malala Yousafzai, Malala talks about how she lives in fear, about how she never knows when her live is going to end. For example, in the excerpt, Malala states her thoughts on her way to the bus stop, “‘I’d imagine that a terrorist might jump out and shoot me on those steps’” (Yousafzai).

My research paper focuses on how the 1989 Disney film, The Little Mermaid, objectifies the female characters' value and bodies within the film's music, rhetoric, and imagery. I analyze direct examples in which the male characters, King Triton and Prince Eric, impose misogynistic and sexist attitudes towards the female characters, Ariel and Ursula, which may ultimately idealize women as weak, submissive, and objects of sex. This is a problematic theme to perpetuate within classic films viewed by all ages simply because these ideas are vital in sustaining women’s social maltreatment and demonization within society. Because the audience of this paper includes my fellow colleagues and highly skilled and trained professor, I present it in an academic

The animated classical Disney movie Aladdin has became one of the most successful movies since it was released in 1992. This movie may seem to be fairy-tale based and entertaining for children since they are the main target audience of Disney, but with a deeper look into its details this is not the reality of it. The ideas that children are exposed to from watching this movie help create and structure their mindsets as well as reinforcing unrealistic images of the Arabian world. In addition, Aladdin is a great illustrative tool in reflecting the concept of Orientalism, a term coined by Edward Said, which emphasizes on representing the Orient with certain clichés and characteristics that are misleading about the true nature of reality (Said, 1978). With that been said, this review paper will be focusing on the main characters and the way they are

The world of Disney it is not necessarily magic for everyone. In Western popular culture there is an endless buffet serving stereotypical ideologies for racially marked women. The media often relies on representation of articulation of ethnic women as animalistic, inferior and outside the natural. Films tend to utilize signifiers that express race, class and gender to develop characters. For this assignment, I have chosen to critically analyze Disney’s (1992) Aladdin; this movie exemplifies the racialization of female bodies through visual illustrations that reinforce ideas of stereotypical roles of Middle Eastern that have been over-looked through the eyes of children. Aladdin; is considered a modern example of Edward Said’s concept of orientalism from a Western perspective. In this paper I will examine how Disney’s Aladdin perpetuates ideas of ‘othering’ through orientalism, over-sexualized characters and reinforces islamophobia.

The Disney film Pocahontas can be viewed as a false portrayal of American history. Although it may have been made for entertainment purposes, Pocahontas is regarded to be a coming of age film for children due to its didacticism. The life lessons that one could possibly take away from the film are considerably positive, but the depiction of Native American and European cultures is deceitful. Most Disney films involve “epic romances,” in the case of Pocahontas one is not necessarily needed to convey the message of the film. Even though historical films cannot always be accurate to actual events, this film manages to stray away from the actual historical story of Pocahontas entirely. Due to this, children are presented with false information

I will use box office sales and other prominent statistics associated with the Disney company to help demonstrate the influence Disney has on the public. Pedagogy scholars Kevin M. Tavin and David Anderson’s journal article, “Teaching (Popular) Visual Culture: Deconstructing Disney in the Elementary Art Classroom” informs readers of the power of the Disney company in all medias to create “individual and collective identities” (23). In journal article, “Tackling Māori Masculinity: A Colonial Genealogy of Savagery and Sport”, Māori scholar Brendan Hokowhitu will build off this source by not only referencing cultural stereotypes formed by others, due to the media, but also identities formed about one’s own native culture and heritage. He uses a direct example of Māori men stereotypes. I plan to synthesize many of my sources like this: with one showing a various perspective (i.e. pedagogical or colonial) on the Disney company and another highlighting the point of view from a Polynesian.

In brief, this study discusses about the representation of orientalism idea which is portrayed in the film Avatar. The film tells about the conflict between human and native people in Planet Pandora, where human exploits the land and oppresses the native. This study explores in what way the idea of orientalism is represented and how both narrative and non-narrative aspects of the film helped in delivering that representation.

Mulan is a Disney animated film that takes place in ancient China during Han Dynasty War. Mulan is a young girl in China, the only child of her honored family who struggles to find her identity and meaning in society. While Mulan is a lovable, spirited girl who doesn’t fit in with Chinese tradition because she speaks her mind and follow her heart. Being a girl who experience culture, gender role, and self-image demonstrated what a non- tradition person will do to bring honor to her love one’s and the family.