Venkatakrishnan 1 Akshayaa Venkatakrishnan Vaughn Intermediate Composition 28 February 2014 The Fairest of Them All: Disneys Influence on Gender

Roles Doe eyes, red lips, perfect tresses. Tiny waists in sparkling gowns, long legs capped with glittering shoes. Graceful, charming, and unquestionably beautiful. Born in 1937, the Disney Princess has been idolized by decades of children and championed by parents as a depiction of morality and values to which children should be exposed. Indeed, the group of seven characters that are considered the line of Disney Princesses each portray certain traits to an extreme extent, considered the epitome of the value that they are chosen to portray. But as social issues grew in the 1960s and 1970s outside the carefully crafted world of Disney, viewers began to wonder about the impact that these portrayals had on young children. The debate around Disney deals with issues such as enforcement of gender roles and stereotyping of various measures of identity. Despite the diversity that Disney has attempted to incorporate since the late 1980s, the basic outline of a characters personality and physique has varied only slightly from the set norm. Some writers pursue this topic of reconstructing Disney characters by revealing the impact that Disney Princesses have had on perceptions of gender and the concept of love, while others take the popular opinion and attempt to switch the lens through which it is viewed. Still others are able to reveal to the public what has not been widely acknowledged, or even reveal patterns that have always existed but have rarely been noticed. Facets of the writing or work, such as mode of publication, tone and artistic incorporations, can have a major impact on who views the article and who is able to interpret and understand the material. Different sources cater to different

Venkatakrishnan 2 audiences, and each respective genre fulfills its purpose of defining the limitations of the role of the Disney Princess, but approaches the topic in different ways to maximize the effect on the intended audience. In the mainstream, the debate largely favors a change in the portrayal of the Disney Princess. Articles published in multiple blogs and online magazines showcase the characteristics of both, and the general agreement is that roles of Disney princesses are absolutely genderconforming. This genre is available to anyone with an Internet connection, which makes it much more accessible, but also requires the viewer to be much more cognizant of information and opinions presented in a piece. This medium is beneficial in that readers can immediately voice their opinions by some sort of discussion medium, such as a forum or comments section. Disagreement allows for a lengthy debate on which characteristics are good for a child to learn at a young age, and which aspects of the portrayal of Disney princesses are unrealistic and are ultimately setting children up for disappointment. Lauren Martin, a writer for Elite Daily, takes on the issue of princesses and gender roles by using an unorthodox mode of comparison. She compares the relatively similar roles of Disney princesses to the variance found in the portrayal of female villains. While her article is thorough in comparing the ambitions of the hated villains to the utter lack thereof found within the princesses, the comments section of her article reveals the truly controversial nature of this subject. The opinions range from being in support of Martins perspective, to accusing her of focusing her attentions on the wrong source of negative role models. Blogs and websites like Elite Daily, subtitled as the The Voice of Generation-Y, allow for freedom in expression of varying opinions on topics such as gender role portrayal in Disney movies and allow it to not only be a topic of interest, but to also allow varying

Venkatakrishnan 3 viewpoints on the subject to be hotly contested, allowing for further expression and more accuracy in the field. In scholarly journals, the debate lies farther away from whether the premise of Disney princesses is good or not, but explores more of where these themes arose from, and what must be done in order to change this largely solidified aspect of Western culture. In her piece for the Journal of American Folklore, Kay Stone approached gender roles in Disney movies by first observing the underlying themes from the stories that inspired them. She makes astute points on the role of sexuality that is used as a weapon against women, as seen in Sleeping Beauty, and draws comparisons from the original story to the Disney version. This method of comparing the source to a modern interpretation allows the reader to gauge his or her own stance on the impact of the Disney version. While Stone does take care to give enough background about each subject, it is expected of the reader to have some understanding of the tradition of AngloAmerican folklore and Grimm fairytales and how these stories were used to convey virtues and morals. She offers information from several psychiatrists, including Eric Berne, whose research said that fairy tales offer not only dreams and hopes but actual programs of behavior (Stone 48). She continues to explore this point through interviewing women of different ages and comparing the effects of fairy tales to the effects of Disney fairy tales specifically. She allows the reader to interpret the interviews as they wish, but a verdict can be drawn on the passive role of the heroines. While the article does a good job in giving evidence to the reader, it would be a bit difficult to digest for someone who was not accustomed to the manner of writing or one who expected a more direct conclusion to be drawn. This is clear in the intent of Stones work: her writing is not used to convince her audience that Disney princesses could be detrimental to childrens expectations, but to make her readers aware of the original intent of the source content

Venkatakrishnan 4 and compare it to the effect that it currently holds in Disney interpretations, which might be difficult for someone who does not have prior experience reading scholarly work. Artistic media also allows for a different audience to be reached, especially when options are so readily available with the growth of technology. Websites like Facebook and Tumblr allow for easy sharing of new art or music, and those that carry messages with them can quickly become viral if they cater to a certain audience or address an important issue. A hook is generally required that makes the piece interesting and worth sharing, and if it catches the viewers eye it is much more likely to be shared and for the message to be circulated. Viewing this media also takes less effort than reading an article or scholarly work, which allows for artistic media like videos and infographics to have a wider appeal across age and educational ranges. Antonius and Vijay Nazareth convey various themes through short video musicals published on their YouTube channel, AVTube; their video, Frozen A Musical feat. Disney Princesses, reached 5.3 million views within two weeks of its publication; Martins piece received about 5,300 shares in three months following publication, which reveals the relative ease in which someone can share and view a video as opposed to a piece of writing. The video features the newest Disney princess, Elsa of Frozen, singing about how she can do whatever she wants to, and a cast of Disney princesses slowly realizing the same. The message of the video clearly caters to those in the pro-Disney reform camp, but the playful attitude allows it to be watched by anyone. Mediums of this nature, including artwork and other forms of music, allow the creator to create a piece that expresses a message that appeals to emotion, and addresses an important issue without being aggressive or forward. Tone also plays an important role in how a message is received within a genre. Writers for more popular sources of work hold a much different tone than of those found in scholarly

Venkatakrishnan 5 journals; even the physical presentation of each source reveals much about the intended audience. Martins article is much more conversational and is scattered with gifs, provocative taglines, and scathing sarcasm. As a comedic writer, her audience expects a much more lighthearted take on the message, and the fresh perspective allows Martin an opportunity to make her reader think in a new way while not having to stick to guidelines already established in the field. Stones piece is worded in a much more erudite manner; she chooses her examples carefully and does not address the audience conversationally, which is generally expected in her genre. Artwork published online provides another good option for creative debate and can help expand an argument by giving visual evidence, and the tone can be controlled at the artists discretion. AVTubes video is much more similar to Martins style in that it addresses the topic in a manner that it is not usually approached, and attempts to educate the reader on the homogeneity of Disney princess portrayal by pointing out that love should not be the goal of every heroine. Most of the video features the Princesses singing about what they gave up and for what reasons they gave them up. The greatest benefit of this form is that the artist is free to go into any depth of detail on his or her own opinion, which makes parody and exaggeration common in the genre in order to emphasize a point. The Nazareth Brothers make it clear that nearly all Disney princesses hold a commonality of a single goal through a musical number, and though the theme of the video is summed up by the closing line of I dont need a man, it still presents an interesting way for the audience to pick out the similarities of the princesses. This sort of video caters to viewers who grew up on Disney, but does not pertain only to those of a certain educational background or age range, allowing a much larger target audience. All three writers address the portrayal of the Disney princess in a different way, but all of them incorporate the importance placed on gender in relation to the role of the character. While

Venkatakrishnan 6 Disney Princesses have largely lacked in diversity in physical characteristics and personality traits, their evil counterparts have displayed an astounding variety in their respective portrayals. Snow Whites Evil Queen cannot draw the slightest comparison to Ariels Ursula beyond the premise of being the antagonist. Martin takes up the argument that Disney villains portray more attainable and, in a way, more desirable role models; despite using their abilities for evil intents, they still hold qualities that should be encouraged, such as ambition and independence. Martin suggests that it would not hurt to move these sources of media influence in a direction where young girls and boys do not have to base their perceptions of perfection and love on the standards set by relatively homogenous characters. She is in the best position to do so, as her genre serves as a main source of influence on the next generation of thinkers. She compares the villains of the stories to the women of this generation, saying that they are the ones we grew up to become (Martin 2). This immediately makes the reader invested in her premise, as the characteristics described make the reader feel sympathetic to the villains. Her conversational writing would appeal to anyone considered a part of Generation Y, but would not hook the attention of those whose values did not align with the assumptions that Martin makes about her audience. The point is made very strongly but intended to have comedic value, but could still alienate those who do not relate to her humor or to the villains that she is trying to promote. This also applies to artistic media: when a point is made strongly within a genre, it often can offend those who do not agree with the stated message. The AVTube video could easily alienate an audience by addressing the stereotypes of Disney princesses, but the point of the video was not to offend but to educate. This is a distinction that is often difficult to discern without artistic publication, but plays a large role in how a genre is received.

Venkatakrishnan 7 Stones article takes a different approach to the same topic, by interviewing women of different ages and identities about how the role that these standards of beauty and expectations of passive action have affected their lives. By using research and the works of psychiatrists and other writers, she is able to present a much more logical argument that is backed up by fact. Stone makes comparisons to the original works that Disney movies are drawn from, and notes that the majority of the antagonists were not female, and rarely were the older, aggressive and ugly women portrayed in Disney movies (Stone 46). When approaching any topic, a reader must be aware of different aspects of the genre that the information is presented in and the factors that influence the discussion. Views of Disney movies and Disney princesses are heavily influenced by the role they played in childhood, but becoming more educated on the subject allows a reader to explore various mediums that can build a more complete picture, and thus, a more informed opinion. Change only occurs when enough people find the issue to be problematic and create more dialogue on forming new standards and ideals in media. Though Stone reveals that many women feel that fairytales and Disney movies created unrealistic standards for them, she also found something remarkable: at the time of publication, most of the girls under the age of fifteen agreed that they were not impressed with the role of the passive heroine (Stone 49). Martins article suggests a shift in characterizing importance, and shows acknowledgement in the mainstream that a prince is not the end-all, be-all of a womans existence. Videos and other sources of artistic expressions cater to an audience that online articles and scholarly journals would not ordinarily reach. Artists like Antonius and Vijay Nazareth and writers like Stone and Martin can use their perspectives to influence the realm of animation by understanding their respective audiences and allowing them to draw their own conclusions about a theme, ultimately allowing for different groups of people

Venkatakrishnan 8 with different interests and backgrounds to unite, instigate more well-rounded dialogue and create change.

Works Cited Martin, Lauren. "Why Disney Villains Are Way Better Role Models Than Disney Princesses For Women." Elite Daily. 14 Nov. 2013. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. Nazareth, Antonius and Vijay. Frozen A Musical feat. Disney Princesses. Online video clip. Youtube. Youtube, 11 Feb. 2014. Web. 25 Feb. 2014. Stone, Kay. "Things Walt Disney Never Told Us." JSTOR. Journal of American Folklore, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014.