Random Misc. Post- STILL LOVE DISNEY

As I mentioned in my introduction blog post and a few of my other posts, I have a sick obsession with Disney, like its kind of a problem. I love all the movies and characters, especially all of the princesses. My favorite princess is Belle so when we watched the opening scene in class, it was a great day for me, except I wish I could have sang the song.. HAHA. As for my random blog post, I would just like to talk about my opinions on Disney movies in relation to some of the articles that we read in class.

I do think that there can be hidden messages in Disney movies. But some people do not pick up on them. Obviously little kids just want to watch the movies for fun and entertainment so they do not pay attention to the negative aspects or hidden messages in the movies. I myself, being one of Disney's biggest fans, also do not think about these negative aspects because I love the movies so much. If I never took this class and never completed the reading "Cinderella Ate My Daughter" by Peggy Orenstein, I still would not realize what I do now about the Disney movies. From reading Orenstein's article and from our class discussions, I do realize that girls in movies are portrayed as beautiful, yet weak. In most of your classic Disney movies, the white girls are portrayed as beautiful, but they are also portrayed as non-independent women. Every princess eventually gets her prince. However, not all women are portrayed as weak. Mulan, for example, took her dads place in the army so that he wouldn't struggle or die. She was not about feeling beautiful and although she felt like she was letting her family down, she knew that standing in as her father was the best thing for her to do and it was exactly what she wanted to do. Pocahontas is another great example. She was also a leader when she stood up for someone she loved, which was also someone of a different race. So Pocahontas does intertwine multiracial relationships.

I feel as though there can be hidden messages in any movie, not just Disney movies. Below I put a video of the same clip we watched in class that does portray some hidden messages in Disney's "Beauty and the Beast". I also put a clip from Mulan, basically showing that "she is not meant to play the part" of being beautiful. I will still to this day love all the Disney movies but now as I watch them, all the things I learned from this class and Peggy Orenstein's article will be in the back of my head.