How The Characters Depicted In Walt Disney's The Little Mermaid

Alike other little girls, I grow up with Disney. The image of the soft Mickey toy which my parents bought me when I was three still vividly embeds in my membrane. Undeniably, Disney has a great impact on people born in the late 90s and the millennials in Vietnam. Additionally, Disney has a big influence on mass media, and mass media contributes in the development of children’s mindset; therefore, to an extent, Disney still has its dark sides that might leave negative effects on children.

he dwarves could also be interpreted as Walt Disney 's employees and the prince as Disney (Bell et. al 38). In reference to the present, critics often scrutinized Snow White as one of the common Disney movies that demonstrated the need for women to constantly wait or their prince to make everything better and take no action on their own (Bell et. al 36). This idea was further analyzed by M. Thomas Inge, Professor of Humanities at Randolph-Macon College, who mentioned that when Snow White sang the song “Someday My Prince Will Come” which encouraged girls to wait for their prince patiently and filled their brains with unrealistic romantic expectations (Bernard qtd in Inge).

Fairy tales, in reality, implant unrealistic expectations and stereotypes into children’s minds. Let’s first take a look at the general Disney fairy tale movie storyline. In almost every movie, the men have full control over the women’s lives, resulting in the objectification of female characters. For example, Prince Charming is the one to “help” Cinderella get everything she ever wanted. In Sleeping Beauty, Princess Aurora “needs” the prince to wake her up from her sleep.

The Disney princess movies had a great deal of influence on many young girls watching princesses represent what royalty looked like. The princesses are always beautiful, polite and seeking the love of their Prince Charming. This plays a strong role in perpetuating the idea that being a princess means seeking only love from a man, and a man who contains all the stereotypical masculine qualities; handsome, powerful and rich. For example, in The Little Mermaid, Ariel had to give up who she was in order to win over the affection of her prince charming. She traded in her voice in order to have real legs and near Prince Eric.

As a young girl, I always and still do admire Belle for her intelligence, love for books and bravery in speaking her mind and most importantly, the decision of not changing herself for the world because world often changes. Unlike some of other Disney heroines, Belle’s defining characteristics made the Disney animated movie Beauty and the Beast as a tale old as time. This also leads to many studies on Disney Beauty and the Beast. In this section, I would be providing critical critiques on some of the studies. (Beauty and the Belles Discourses of Feminism and Femininity in Disneyland, Allison, 2002) critically analyzed Belle in a more general and brief historiography of the fairy tale.

Thus, interest in children 's books was growing and fairytales turned into children tales which were carrying moral concern. Along with the 20th century, Walt Disney has changed the concepts of its tales. They were no longer carrying any social message and it put children in a total dream world. At first sight, many Disney tales look innocent but they fundamentally have strong images hidden. For example, Disney draws a female figure that is dependent, which unknowingly cause gender stereotype in society.

Gender roles have been noticeable in Disney films especially the Disney Princess series. Women are typically portrayed as a princess, homemaker, or queen while men are portrayed as strong, dominant and authority characters. The portrayal of the prince or knights in the movies usually highlighted with the strong and powerful characteristic, whereas the Disney princesses are weak, vulnerable and being protected. According to Tiffany, gender stereotypes and behaviours illustrations are very common in Disney culture and their depictions have become sophisticated over the years especially those of female characters.

From the bright colorful outfits to the amazing characters, it’s no surprise that western culture loves Disney movies. Children adore them, and parents love it because of the “innocence” of what these movies hold. However, behind the ruffled dresses and the songs that have become iconic in today’s day and age, lies a darker secret. The movies that Disney has produced, were once stories that originated from around the world, some countries include, France, Denmark, Italy, and some parts of Asia. These stories can be far from the innocent cartoon versions that audiences are used to, most stories have sinister origins, being based on legends and historical events that are, to gruesome and go into detail about unforgivable acts.

Disney has been known for their theme parks and in producing movies and shows. They became famous starting from their first cartoon character, Mickey Mouse, and their lists of cartoons started to expand from then on. Disney started to have their own princesses which are looked up to by many young audiences and they somehow became the role model of little girls. This paper will discuss how far Disney Princesses have come in terms of gender politics and female empowerment, from princesses who are ‘damsels in distress’ to princesses who are capable of defending their selves. Renzetti said that, “Media content mirrors the behaviors and relationships, and values and norms most prevalent or dominant in a society” (1992, p. 107).

QUESTION 3 3.1 Disneyland is a “strong culture” organisation. The organisation – and the employees themselves – produce and reproduce the culture. Discuss five examples of how culture forms at Disneyworld and how the organisation maintains it. (10) According to the Disney Institute (2015) the processes of “employee selection, training, care, and communication are crucial to creating and nurturing a culture of excellence”.