Female Ass-Kickers Article: Disney is against female empowerment

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posted by Bella_Swan3

Please note that this is merely my perception on this. You can have your opinion, I'll have mine.

We all know the modern Disney stars are completely whacked and are SO not role models. But what about the old school Disney?

The Little Mermaid. Ariel clearly states that she's sixteen in the first film. The second movie claims to be ten years later, the perfect age for Melody, her daughter. Is Disney promoting teenage pregnancy? Promoting underage marriage? And the supposed "love" she felt was only worship lust, hardly the basis for a healthy relationship. What message does this send to young girls, who will become teenagers with unrealistic expectations?

Disney princesses: They're two dimensional, non realistic, poorly developed characters who demean women. This is the twenty first century, and women are being given more rights than ever before, and yet little girls are being raised to believe that men are superior and will save them. I can tell you this is far from the truth. In many cultures today there are still gender inequality issues, where women are given few rights.

Little girls are being told to be perfect and stereotyping is at an all time high. Girls are following the crowd because of being raised to conform to the expectations set of them.

Women as a general rule are cast in a lower light. Their primary purposes are to cook and clean and look pretty. Take that Mary Sue of a character, Snow White.

So why do parents think Disney is such a good thing with "positive" role models?

raygun, chonny and 11 others like this

Mermaid-Tail I agree Disney has some stars who are bad role models, but they also have some great role models, like Mulan. I think she's one of the best role models from a movie aimed at young girls I've seen. She's shown to be physically, mentally and emotionally strong. She's brave enough to go to war to protect her family, risks her life both against the enemy and her own side, who'll kill her if they find out she's a woman, manages to single handedly convince the entire army women can be just as (or more) powerful and valuable than men and saves her entire country. Dont get more heroic than that. She fights well, she is intelligent and she is brave and caring. A truly great Disney role model. Also, Pocahontas. She's shown to be wise, and in the end of her movie chooses to give up romance to stay and be a good leader, how many kids films end with the heroine choosing leadership over a man? And Belle, who while not shown as physically strong sends the message that beauty is on the inside (by rejecting the handsome man in favor of the Beast whose personality she loves) and reads a lot, which is good to show young girls since not many heroines aimed at young girls seem to give the 'reading is good' message. I never watch Disney sequels, so I can't say about the little mermaid 2. I think you have to remember that when they do the sequels it's all about money so they put far less thought into the characters. Doing the original movies they care about making the characters good, but in the sequels all they care about is $$$ which is why I never watch disney sequels any more. Taken as a whole I think the Disney franchise has a fairly healthy mix. They have some characters who are poor role models, some who are neither good nor bad, and some (like the ones I talked about) who are great. But hey, that's just my opinion on Disney, and I've always been a fan (sorry for getting int a ramble) you're entitled to yours too :)

Bella_Swan3 Thanx Marmaid-Tail! I agree, Mulan is the best thing Disney ever created.

SwarlsBarkley I agree with Mermaid-Tail about Belle, Pocahontas, and Mulan. Jasmine was a bit of spitfire too, running off suitors and all. Also, the females in the Pixar releases are pretty feisty too - Collette from Ratatouille, the ladies from the Incredibles. But I do agree with you on Snow White and think you could probably add Cinderella and Aurora to that category as well. That being said.... No offense but I find it ironic that a Twilight fan would be posting about Mary-Sues, teen pregnancy, 'worship lust', and unrealistic expectations.

fanfly I'm glad to see you posted this here! Welcome to the spot and I hope to see you around. :)

Bella_Swan3 Yes. It is kind of ironic, but I'm one of those people who was a die-hard Twilight fan. Now I still like it a little, but I also like looking at it critically and I can't actually change my username.

fanfly Are you a fan of the [url=http://www.fanpop.com/spots/critical-analysis-of-twilight]Critical Analysis of Twilight Spot[/url] by any chance? :)

Bella_Swan3 Wow that exists? Thanx I am now.

Sappp The point is, Disney did not create The Little Mermaid, Snow White, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. Those where loved and cherished fairy-tales that they made into a movie. And keep in mind, Snow White is from the 1930's, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty are from the 1950's. Feminism wasn't so hot then. Leaving aside the Little Mermaid 2, The Little Mermaid (1989) had a good message: Ariel made her own happiness. She saw the man of her dreams and went for him. She did not wait untill he swept her of her feet (haha) but made sure he noticed her. And then you have ofcourse Jasmine, Pocahontas, Mulan, Belle, Esmeralda, Meg, Nala and other kick-ass girls who all can certainly take care of themselves. BUt why bitch about those 'unfeministic' movies? If you are really so concerned with feminism and women's rights, bitch about things that really matter. Like the fact that Lubna Hussein was just fined for wearing pants, something that is considered a crime for women in Sudan. Or that in large parts of the world girls can not go to school. Or that girls get killed by their own family because they 'hurt' the family's honour. Or that in some countries women cannot get a divorse, no matter what the circumstances. I'm for equal opportunities and rights for men and women. I call myself a feminist. But I have nothing against Disney: there are a lot more things to worry about then harmless entertainment for little children.

fanfly Whoa, there, Sapp. I understand your point, there are larger concerns than children's films going on in the world. However, Bella_Swan3 has every right to bitch about whatever she wants to bitch about. Also, female role models are important in a society that still denigrates women and because so many parents use the tv and movies to "raise" their children these days, the effect these movies have on young girls is important. Why don't you write an article about what you would bitch about, concerning feminism in the world today? I'm sure we'd all like to hear your opinion.

Cinders This was a fascinating discussion, folks! Anything I could have added has already been said, and it was a great read. Also, a big warm welcome to you, Bella_Swan3, and thanks for sharing your opinions with us and sparking this interesting discussion. Sappp-- You know I am as big a fan of human rights as you'll probably find on this website. And I wrote that ridiculously long essay on modern feminism advocating for women's rights the world over. But this spot IS about fictional characters, with an indirect relation to women's rights. While we do talk about feminism and human rights, it's only in relation to the characters in fiction that relate to them. Therefore, this is the perfect spot for anyone to complain about their problems with fictional characters in relation to good female role models. If she'd posted this in the human rights spot, then of course your comment would be very applicable. But as she didn't, it's just a tad off base. I'm not saying it's not a valid point-- just a smidge off topic.

MyronPwnsBella Even though I'm not all that into Disney Princess, Mulan would probably have to be my favorite. And Snow White is probably my least favorite.