Femininity in Mulan This paper wants to discuss the difference between female and femininity and how to apply the last one to the Disney character Mulan. Mulan is a film released in 1998, directed by Barry Cook and Tony Brancroft and produced by Pam Coats. Set in the Han Dynasty, it tells the story of Fa Mulan, a girl who enlists herself in the army instead of her elderly father and saves China from the invasion of the Huns. Being female does not implies being feminine. “Femaleness” has to do with genre. If you posses female attributes, you are female. But femininity is the set of attributes, physical appearance, behavior and roles culturally associated with women. Those attributes and behaviours are defined by the surrounding culture, and thus, they can change from place to place and during the years. For example, in nowadays western culture, pink colour is associated with girls and blue with boys, but before the 1900s, it was the other way around. Knowing that, the first question we should ask is the following: is Mulan female? Of course she is. She has a female body, female characteristics and female attributes. At first …show more content…
She proves that women should not be only valued by their capacity to be feminine, but by the things they can
She fought for gender equality during the 20th century. Her argument was straight to the point and convincing through the use of the logical mode of persuasion in her essay “ Now We Can Begin”, to stand up for what she believed was right. It was an attempt to change the way women were seen at that time and end the oppression put upon them by men. Although the problems of this world are inevitable and their solutions may seem unattainable,
For example Margaret who was known as the ore outspoken woman stated that “at first thought she thought the staff women’s lack of assertiveness meant that they were ineffectual. Over time, she came to believe that the staff’s feminine demeanor, and their contributions, were both valuable and unrecognized by others.” (pg. 101) This quote to me is significant because this not only takes place in this book. This is something us as woman face on a regular.
She strives to create realistic and relatable characters who face challenges and overcome them with courage and
Not with violence, not with words, but with actions. She showed the world what women could do when given the chance. Even today, many people act like they are superior to others because of how they were born, when in reality no one is greater than anyone else for reasons beyond their control. So what would she say to today’s problems?
She appealed to the women who believe in equality, and people who want to make a change to better the lives of women. She believes if we treat each other equally, ideally we will live in a better world. The argument was definitely a worldwide and relatable topic. And the logical, emotional, and credibility used in this speech, strengthened many hearts of the American
Many women still don 't understand the hidden power that they have. “As we learn more and more to cherish our feelings, and to respect those hidden sources of power, true knowledge and lasting action follow” (Lorde, 1982, pg. 281). Beyoncé is a great example of how she was able to use her voice and really promote feminism.
Rosemary Okumu PSYC 1113 – Section 11/18 /2016 Gender Gender is the state of being male or female. Male are thought to be adventurous, aggressive, strong whereas females are to be affectionate, attractive, shy and sexy. While I highly identify with my feminine gender characteristics, at times l possess masculine characteristics like confidence, ambition, and sometimes aggression.
The movie that I had chosen was Disney movie, Mulan. In this movie, Fa Mulan, as the only daughter in her family, she took the place of her father to participate in the war as a man without telling her family. In the barrack she show her ability of leadership and the soldiers had confidence towards her, hence, to follower her ideas. The definition of leadership is the capacity of an organization’s administration to set and accomplish goals, make immediate and conclusive move, perform better than competitors, as well as motivating others to perform better. (Anon., 2010)
She is a mother based on the birth of her children, but she does not possess the nurturing qualities of a mother. However, she exemplifies a masculine role through ruling by fear and dominance and not
Rhetorical Analysis Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and many other Disney movies all have one thing in common, they feature a female lead who need a male figure to save them. However, things started to change after the release of Mulan 1988. It changed from only having those female leads who always needed to rely on someone, to females who were able to show off their more masculine side. In the article “Post-Princess Models of Gender: The New Man in Pixar/Disney,” Ken Gillam and Shannon R. Wooden explored the idea that Pixar movies were starting to show male characters who weren 't afraid to show their emotions and feminine attributes, to promote the “New Man” model.
They confide in her for the strength they need to stand up to the male leaders. This shows a big change in gender roles because previously women were too fearful to stand up to
Gender is something that is brought to the attention of people well before people are even brought into the world. Take for instance, when a woman finds out that she is pregnant and is about to have a child. The first question that that women is asked is “What are you having?” In doing this we are automatically emphasizing the importance of being able to identify whether or not to buy “boy” things or “girl” things. As a society we deem it important for each sex to practice a set of “norms” of how to behave via that sex.
Before she is able to meet with the Matchmaker, she must dress up and apply makeup on herself to make herself look beautiful and strong-willed. Critic, Nandini Maity, states in her article, Damsels in Distress: A Textual Analysis of Gender roles in Disney Princess Films, that Disney uses the princesses or heroines in each princess movie to demonstrate how women should act, dignified and beautiful. By doing so, it portrays how Disney has a set purpose to make society understand that women should always act this way in society, that they should be helped out by men. While Mulan is being washed and dressed, the women helping her “sing to Mulan a song called Honour us all, a song that imposes the traditional roles onto Mulan. They say that women should have tiny waists, be calm, and obedient.
2.2.1. Crossdressing As argued above, the legendary Mulan, a paradigm of Chinese femininity, was reinvented in the cartoon as a tomboy and nonconformist. Although, the emotional impact of Mulan embracing an outfit of a male soldier and clearly going against the wishes of her whole family is moving, it has lesser effect on the audience than the original legend, in which Mulan also had an older sister and younger brother. The gesture of a younger daughter making a sacrifice for her father is the indication of her upbringing and priorities. In the ballad, Mulan takes her father 's armour, but buys the horse herself.
She describes as a strong and beautiful woman. Also, a woman in the male-dominant world seen as a weak and vulnerable