Societal Stereotypes In The Film 'Mulan'

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 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 character of Kong, according to the race reading, independently acts as a semiotic representation of the white man’s perception of black men. The film’s narrative takes us to Africa, asks the audience to embark on an adventure to a land so lost to the modern world that its inhabitants exist side by side with dinosaurs, which Brian McKay argues to be the most “obvious symbol for the perceived primitive nature of Africa and Blacks” (McKay, 2005) The gorilla that they bring back from that island may now be an icon of popular culture in himself, but before King Kong was released there was another image of popular social consciousness that he was associated with, which were the disturbingly dehumanizing cartoons of black people as monkeys popularized

Men, Women, or transgender we are all human. Each human can act in whichever way they please. However, does this break a traditional gender norm? A traditional gender norm is the types of behaviors which generally considered acceptable, appropriate or desirable for people based on their actual perceived sex or sexuality. Gender norms can be seen in various television shows, movies, and music. However, how do we know if these gender norms are okay to be seen in these forms of entertainment? In the movie Mulan directed by Tony Bancroft and Barry Cook they illustrate how traditional gender norms can be broken by showing that Women can prove themselves as worthy as men, and there is nothing wrong with that.

     Asian Americans only make up a small percent of the American population. Even more significant is that this percentage live mostly on the west and east coasts of mainland United States and Hawaii; leaving the rest of the American population to most likely get their exposures to Asians through television and movies. However the exposure they have receive throughout the history of cinematography has been hardly flattering. Throughout the course of history Asians in film have been portrayed as evil or the "yellow peril" as described by others. If Asians are not being classified as evil in this picture then they are most likely the comic relief, with their lack of coordination or grasp of the English

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.

At the beginning of the film the main protagonist Fa Mulan, is portrayed as a misfit tomboy.

Mulan, a children’s movie that reaches deep seeded problems in society, scratching the surface of gender roles and expected statuses that cannot be obtained. Mulan is expected to become the perfect wife and do everything she can to find a husband to take care of but on the other hand, she realizes that she is not good at being a wife and she cannot complete her expected tasks accordingly. After all of the drama that occurs in her own life, her family life becomes disturbed by her father being drafted back into the military even though he is hurt and unable to complete his duties. Mulan takes it upon herself to ease some of the stress on her family and run away to join the military in her father’s place. In Mulan’s mind, she has not only corrected her situation of disappointing her mother by not being a perfect wife, she is also helping out her father by ensuring his safety of not going back into the military. Mulan represents not only conflict theory, but addresses the feminist and the critical theory. Cultures, sub cultures and counter cultures also

Within Disney’s Mulan, gender roles, linguistic differences, and racial concepts play a substantial role in telling the story of a young girl saving China from the Huns. At first glance, while the film may utilize an innocent plotline typically geared for young children, stereotypes and racist themes abound, prompting the question of how much of the movie is authentic, and how much of the film is the American perspective on Chinese culture. After an anthropological analysis of the film, it is seen that the gender stereotypes, use of accents, and racial differences not only assist the characterization of what is “Chinese”, but also provide the audience identification and relatability to the protagonist.

Young children watching the Mulan movie may be inspired to construct their gender identity with bravery and personal ambition rather than social norms. Mulan is a wonderful role model for young girls and for one’s own female gender identity.

n Mulan, china is attacked and all the men of china have to fight in the war. Disguised as a man, Mulan runs away to fight in the war to save her ill father who is unable to.There on the battle, mulan becomes a hero. I believe that disney did a good representing the following chinese cultural aspects in the movie mulan, ancestor worship, roles of men, and roles of women.

Culture has defined countries in several forms throughout history. One of its prominent features has regarded gender expectations. These have dominated the concept of individuality and forced citizens to abide by regulation and conformity. The imposition of these norms has been detrimental in several instances, placing social constraint on female empowerment. The Disney film Mulan explored this inequality through the story of a young Chinese woman on the path of understanding her self-identity.

According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary stereotype is a, “a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing”. Society puts out a certain set of standards and roles of men and women and the way in which they should act, known as gender roles. According to these behaviour stereotypes, the ideal man is intelligent, physically strong, heroic, in charge and is ultimately there to provide for his family. In comparison, the typical women is portrayed as beautiful, delicate, inferior to men and are viewed as the housekeeper; taking care of the children and putting food on the table while the men goes to work. These gender roles start to be enforced at a very young age as a result of society and the media. A prime example of this is Disney and the movies they create for young children. Almost all Disney movies are based

In the Disney movie, "Mulan," the role of feminism reflects what kind of women the present society has. No more Mom stays home and keeps house when Dad puts on his suit and heads to the office. 21st century women can surpass what men can do. One need to get her own identity because identity is the key of all human beings. Thus, "working women  now step outside of the home to contribute and play a role to society. That's what Mulan did. She tries to imitate males' characteristics, although society raises eyebrow, she never fails to prove that she can be one of the men and be able to bring honor not only to her family but to China. Men have more strength and will. Yet they are emotionally weak. This might be difficult for some to understand,