The Magical World Of Disney Princesses

Fairy Tales have been around for hundreds of years, but up until recently have never been profited on as they are in today’s modern world. It is impossible to hide from anything Mr. Walt Disney has created, and that is exactly the company’s intentions. One huge area Disney has been excelling is in “Princess Culture” most specifically the focus on pretty pink dresses. For example, in Peggy Orenstein’s article “What’s Wrong with Cinderella?” the author addresses the many different consequences of Disney’s lucrative marketing strategy. The heavy influence of everything princess down to the choice of clothing can have a negative or positive impact on young girl’s minds, while stimulating innocence and purity can also encourage body image issues

Orenstein begins by using her daughter as an example of a typical girl who is fond of princesses, categorizing her with the many girls influenced by the “princess craze”. Then she continues to analyze how industries use the fixation and further promote it to secure large amounts of money for their company. Subsequently, she returns the argument to her real life experiences, describing a time when her daughter goes to dress up like a princess, saying, “I’m convinced she does largely to torture me — I worry about what playing Little Mermaid is teaching her.” Not only does this statement show how her opinions as a feminist are displayed in her opinion of her daughter, but also introduces her argument of the negative impacts this craze promotes from a parental point of view. The author’s ability to balance her opinions with valid evidence and her relatable worry as a parent, allows her to state her strong opinions openly.

Many parents/caregivers today may ask themselves if their little girls may be growing up too fast? Are they becoming little women too soon? Stephanie Hanes wrote an interesting and valid article “Little Girls or Little Women? The Disney Princess Effect, “ which argue that many young ladies today in age may be impacted by Disney Princess regarding their life expectations. The author talks about the issues of young girls feeling the necessity to mature sooner rather than at a timely matter.

“Little Girls or Little Women? The Disney Princess Effect” is an article by Stephanie Hanes which touches on the princess phenomenon many young girls are obsessed with. Stephanie Hanes concludes that the Disney Princess craze is linked to self-objectification and the growing sexualization of young girls. Although she provided numerous facts the argument was unsuccessful because it was weak and confusing. Her own personal opinion on why she blamed the Disney Empire for sexualization amongst young girls was rarely voiced. Lastly the main idea of the article gets masked by controversial expert claims that are not linked to the topic.

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

Disney makes over $3 billion on their Disney Princess products every year and now have over 25,000 items in their princess collection (Orenstein 2). Disney has played a big role in shaping not only societal viewpoints on what young girls should like, but also what little girls believe they should enjoy as well. Gender stereotypes have been around for a long time, but now with technology advancements, such as media in western society is able to play a bigger than ever role in influencing people’s perspectives. Not only do we see gender roles and stereotypes in television shows, but also in advertisements and in children’s toys. Although many readers of Peggy Orenstein’s “What’s wrong with Cinderella” have argued that the princess culture is corrupting today’s young girls and making them more dependent on men, a closer examination shows that many girls grow out of the princess phase with no negative repercussions and choose whatever passions they want.

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.

This article is divided into three different sections- Finucane’s Theory, the Hottie Mystique and the media onslaught. The Finucane Theory comes about because of a mother that was worried about her daughter and the influence they were having on her. Her theory states “Many Parents and commentators defend Happily Ever After against what some critics call a rising “feminist attack,” and credit the comely ladies with teaching values such as kindness, reading, love of animals, and perseverance. When questioned, Disney never really responded to the allegations but stated the same standard statement, “For 75 years, millions of little girls and their

For decades Disney princess films have been among the multiple stories that most all-young girls have at some point been exposed to. Many girls watch these seemingly harmless films and are in awe at the beauty and poise these princesses present. For example, the film Beauty and the Beast (1991) features a young village girl, Belle, who constantly turns down the affection from a hunky prince, Gaston. She longs to find the man of her dreams until circumstances turn her unexpectedly to the arms of a cursed Beast who must learn to love again. After seeing the happily-ever-after that Belle experiences while walking off into the sunset with her prince charming, who wouldn’t want to be a princess? This is exactly where the problem comes in. Eventually children come to see these characters as their idol, and soon they want to live like them, look and dress as they do, and

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.

Each and every child grows up viewing Disney movies, wearing princess gowns, and buzz lightyear suits. The parents of these children are the individuals purchasing these Disney costumes, toys, candy, and other related items for their children. Our society today accepts Disney and their culture of entertainment as a part of a child’s childhood experience without second thought. Elements of the fairytale of Cinderella has adapted over time to please the culture in which it is told; yet in today’s culture, adaptation to these elements is taken to where it has never been. In “The Princess Paradox,” James Poniewozik says, “You can have the girly dream of glass slippers and true love, these films say, as well as the womanly ideal of self-determination and independence and any contradictions between them are no match for the movies’ magic” (Poniewozik 324). Peggy Orenstein compliments Poniewozik’s article because she states, “The first Princess items, released with no marketing plan, no focus groups, no advertising, sold as if blessed by a fairy godmother” (Orenstein 327). Poniewozik is trying to argue that films have altered the story of Cinderella in the 21st century cinema realm due to the addition of the concept of feminism, women 's separation from men, and the traditional magic implemented within them. Orenstein marries these articles together indirectly by pointing out that Disney legitimately had no marketing plan, yet they continue to rake in money. The reason Disney

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.

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.

Ever since the Disney Princesses were created, they have all had the same body shape: tremendously skinny. With the Disney Princesses becoming the largest girls franchise in the world, there is no denying the impact it can have on such young girls. These girls long for recognition and beauty, and expect nothing less than their favorite Disney Princess to reassure them of the perfect lifestyle they need in order to achieve their perfect lives. In our society today, girls are becoming over sexualized at a much younger age than normal. One’s physical appearance plays a significantly larger role today than it ever has before. With this in mind, I have decided to conduct research on how the Disney Princesses have impacted an individual’s outward appearance and body image. The Disney Princesses have always been a form of innocence for young girls. However, while it’s clear that the majority of people adore the Disney Princesses, still, most can see the impact it can produce on young girls that will follow them into adulthood.