The Disney Princess

As we all know princesses are a big part of the Disney film industry and they all have something in common, and that is that they are involved in a social problem of feminism. The conflict between the Disney Corporation and the feminist has been going on since the first Disney Princess film in 1937. The majority of the Disney film's audience are children. Disney films have expanded their arsenal to give young people a lesson about ourselves’ ever-changing morals, but they expose the wrong way of being a princess and also can be transmitted as the wrong idea to young people, which is not helping, because of the Disney Industrial’s size or the coverage of their media. For example, Disney has set forth a standard of how all of their princesses are supposed to look like. The portrait of women in Disney films is often the stereotypical version of them; the cultural beliefs of the 1940s are reflected in the roles of the women

Did anyone realize that all of the Disney princesses have a waistline that is smaller than the span of their eyes? Throughout all generations, Disney princesses have acted as major role models in young girl's lives. However, are these female characters negatively influencing how these young girls reflect on themselves? Ideals taught at young ages, often continue with them as they grow into adulthood. Therefore, Disney should replace passive princesses with strong and realistic female roles.

Watch the movie Tangled and you’ll find yourself hooked, desiring the knowledge of what’s next. While watching this movie, two main literary themes became apparent. Disney's Tangled is the story of a stolen girl trapped in a castle with her captor as a mother. Throughout the story, Rapunzel wants nothing more but to leave her . Tangled’s plot employs many gender stereotypes and shows a large socio-economic divide.

The effects of the portrayal of the princesses can be positive or negative. Young girls have become more imaginative by watching Disney films. According to Stephanie Hanes (n.p.), “’For 75 years, millions of little girls and their parents around the world have adored and embraced the diverse characters and rich stories featuring our Disney princesses.... [L]ittle girls experience the fantasy and imagination provided by these stories as a normal part of their childhood development’.” Also, children are encouraged to believe and hope. In most Disney movies, the characters convey the message that we can believe in true love (10 DISNEY MOMENTS THAT PROVE LOVE IS ALIVE AND WELL

Disney princesses are fun for all ages, but their target audience is young children and “as children grow and develop, they can be easily influenced by what they see and hear”. Therefore, what they see and hear in Disney movies leaves an impression on them. The first princess, Snow White, was created in a time where each gender and race had a specific role in society. Recently, many believe that Disney has come a long way in regards to gender and race since Snow White, as several multi-cultural protagonists have been introduced subsequently, and gender roles do not appear to be as stereotypical as they once were. However, many of the apparent innocent messages about race and gender in these movies, can be exposed as otherwise. Despite

Like all fairytales, Rapunzel has a history that extends far earlier than the 1800s when it first transcribed by brothers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. However, Rapunzel is a tale that continues to be re-written and re-interpreted even today. From the 1970s with the feminist revitalization of fairy tales to the early 2010s with Disney’s Tangled (2010), this timeless tale continues to engage its listeners. In 2015, Katie Kapurch of Texas State University revisited Rapunzel with an eye on its more recent modernizations. By starting with Anne Sexton’s poem “Rapunzel” from her 1971 collection Transformations, Kapurch analyzed the lesbian elements of the tale in order to examine the 21st century Tumblr culture that “ships” Tangled’s Rapunzel with Brave’s (2012) Merida.

Authors James Poniewozik and Peggy Orenstein are both concerned with the increase of princess culture among young girls. Poniewozik’s article “The Princess Paradox” and Orenstein's article “Cinderella and Princess Culture” discuss similar aspects of princess culture that could be potentially harmful to it’s audience. Both Poniewozik and Orenstein take on a feminist perspective in their articles. Specifically, both authors discuss feminist themes in princess culture but Orenstein focuses on toddler to pre-teen aged girls while Poniewozik is more concerned with specifically teenagers.

In my first essay, The Disney Princess, I discussed the validity of England’s article, Gender Role Portrayal and the Disney Princess. In her article, England provided evidence that displayed how the Disney princess had become more of a masculine character as time progressed (England et. al.). By analyzing her data, hypotheses, and conclusions, The Disney Princess points out England’s strong and weak arguments to display the articles validity (MacKenzie). However, if social class is taken into account, a reversal of England’s argument (and, therefore, my argument) may be observed.

“When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are Anything your heart desires will come to you…” In the older Disney movies like Cinderella, Snow White, and The Little Mermaid, princesses are portrayed according to female stereotypes: they are obsessed with love, waiting for a man, and always beautiful, and these portrayals are harmful to young girls. Disney is now starting to catch up with the reality of what women are like now, with Disney movies like Frozen, Princess and the Frog, and Brave these girls are portrayed as independent women in control of their destiny. Though Disney has historically portrayed princesses in stereotypical ways, the company has been creating more realistic female characters in recent years. At a

In our modern society parents want to know who the best role models are for their children; especially parents of young girls. Most girls are introduced to Disney Princesses at a young age, but what most parents don’t know is that not all Disney Princesses are positive role models of modern society. The princesses were amazing role models for their time but since then many opinions have changed on what is expected of women and what is not some; people in society today can argue weather certain qualities that the princesses posses are acceptable for today’s youth. The most famous princesses are the “Original Disney Princesses” :(in chronological order) Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Pocahontas, and Mulan.

Cassandra Stover explains in her Journal Damsels and Heroines: The Conundrum of the Post-Feminist Disney Princess, the dramatic shift with Disney princess at the peak of the late 1980s and early 1990s. She explains that the shift can derive from feminist movements and how the change can be directed to the third wave of feminism. She examines the original Disney princesses and decribes them to be more passively aggresive and unindependent, while the new princesses are more independent and brave. The author then explains if the shift from the old to new princesses are actually better, and not just different. Stover analysizes that Disney princesses evolve and are a part of the worlds change on feminism.

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.

What young girl does not dream of becoming a princess and living in a castle happily ever after? Virtually every young girl identifies with princesses and has watched at least one Disney Princess movie. From the first movies of Snow White and Cinderella, to the later movies of The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast, to the most current movie Moana, Disney Princess movies permeate not only the movie theaters, but also our culture. In fact, “becoming a princess is as easy as purchasing a tiara and hosting a princess-themed birthday party or buying a Halloween costume and playing pretend” (Garabedian, 2014, p. 23). Nonetheless, as declared by Princess Merida in the movie Brave, “there comes a day when I don’t have to be a princess. No rules, no expectations. A day where anything can happen. A day where I can change my fate” (Andrews & Chapman, 2012). In other words, does the life of a princess measure up to the expectations of little girls everywhere? The Disney Princess brand has grown incredibly popular, especially with young girls. In spite of this, the franchise has also become extremely controversial due to potential gender stereotypes in the films. “Gender is one of the most discussed topics in today’s society…[it] represents and also reproduces certain attributes, expectations and roles which are associated with male and female…influencing the views and opinions of future generations” (Maity, 2014, p. 31). Yet, is the Disney Princess brand harmful to young children due to gender stereotypes? Two essays that contemplate the Disney Princess brand and gender stereotypes with opposite viewpoints on this controversial issue are “Girls on Film: The Real Problem with the Disney Princess Brand” by writer Monika Bartyzel and “In Defense of Princess Culture” by writer and mother Crystal Liechty. However, Liechty’s essay “In Defense of Princess Culture,” is the most effective article in convincing the audience of her point of view due to the claim, support, warrant, language, and vocabulary employed.

According to various articles, although the Disney Princesses seem to be an innocent form of entertainment for young girls, their overall messages serve as a negative influence on how they develop into adults. This is where the unrealistic Disney Princess aspect can potentially become detrimental.