Response to Pocahontus

Response to Pocahontas (1995)

John Smith is automatically portrayed as the ultra-masculine hero. As he walks on the ship at the beginning, other men talk about him like he was a well-known reputation. He also jumps in the ocean after one of his crew mates during a storm in the first scene.

                                      

The governor is portrayed as feminine from the beginning as well. He carries a small dog, walks on a carpet, wears purple and pink clothing. This supports the argument from the article “Transgendered Villains”.

Pocahontas looks like she is a model, and the movie focuses most on her looks instead of her talents and interests. This gives off the impression that the Pocahontas was only meant to sit, look pretty, and be married off. In this way, the movie similar to Aladdin because both are not progressive or feminist and portray women as simply people to marry off. This is furthered by the fact that no female characters have leadership roles. In fact the only two female characters the audience is introduced to are Pocahontas and Nakoma.

The Governor obviously is prejudice against the Native Americans. He views them as “savages” that need to be killed if necessary in order to make sure he gets gold. John Smith also seems to be prejudice against the Native Americans. Since he is a protagonist, he gives the audience the agency to also hold this view. This is a negative message to send to children watching this movie.

Pocahontas tries to show John Smith that the earth is not something you can own and that no one is barbarian. It is just a difference in perspective.

The Native Americans are also prejudice against the men from England. Kocum calls them “white demons”. Both sides think that the other side is there to kill them. This shows that prejudices can be found on both sides. However, I think the song “Savages, Savages” goes too far. It includes highly offensive statements like “They are savages”, “barely even human”, and “Their skin is hellish red”. These racist statements are unnecessary and could have a very negative impact on the moral development of children as well as the psychological well-being of Native American children who watch this movie. Racists and harmful language should not be included in a children’s movie.

The relationship between John Smith and Pocahontas reminds me of Romeo and Juliet. Both relationships are forbidden by their respective families and communities. They also share a similar ending in that neither of the couples end up together in the end.

At the beginning of the movie the focus was on the “savage” Indians. The movie attempts to show that there are two sides to the conflict and both needed to change their beliefs to be more accepting and less egocentric through the song “Colors of the Wind”. However, this positive message is lost and overpowered by the racist and egocentric conversations and songs. Although Pocahontas attempts to be less racist and ethnocentric than Aladdin, I believe it fails to do so.

Response to Aladdin

Blog Post for Aladdin (1992) Live Post

The movie starts with a song that says, “It’s barbaric, but hey its home!” This starts off the movie with on an egocentric tone. Just because the culture is different does not make it barbaric.

It seems like all the women in Aladdin are dressed as belly dancers. For a 1992 film, its portrayal of women is not very progressive. Only males are in positions of power and according to Jasmine’s father, Jasmine exists to be married off.

Normally villains do not have animal sidekicks. Iago is an exception. I think Iago adds humor and makes Jafar less scary.

The movie’s portrayal of Jafar, street vendors, and Aladdin extend its racist and egocentric tone. Aladdin does not have an accent and looks more European while Jafar and the street vendors have accents and have more stereotypically Arab qualities. In this way, the movie only furthers false stereotypes.

I wish I had a pet tiger. Everyone seems to have a pet side kick. Jasmine has Raga, Aladdin has Abu, and Jafar has Iago. It’s interesting that only Iago can speak.

Jasmine has a feminist and progressive attitude. She does not want to marry someone just to have someone to take care of her. Jasmine and Belle are very similar in that way. They both feel trapped by their respective communities and seem to want “much more than their provincial lives”.

Jasmine takes an apple from a cart and gives it to a hungry child. The street vender threatens to cut off her hand a punishment for stealing. This characterizes Arab society as unfair. It is interesting that Disney decided to include this negative aspect and not try to portray the Arab society in a positive light.

Genie wants to be free too! Freedom seems to be a reoccurring theme. Jasmine wants to be free to make her own decisions. Aladdin wants to be free from his life on the street. Genie want to be free from his lamp.

On the magic carpet ride, they go by the settings from Hercules and Mulan. Also, when the Genie is pulling things out of a bag, he pulls out the crab from the Little Mermaid. And the Genie’s face turns into Pinocchio at the beginning. It’s funny how Disney makes references to itself during movies.

The snake that Jafar turns into is so scary! Maybe that’s why I am so scared of snakes haha!

Aladdin uses his wit to outsmart a lot of people. He and Abu outsmart lots of venders on the street. Aladdin tricks the Genie into getting him and Abu out of the secret layer without using a wish. Lastly, Aladdin outsmarts Jafar and convinces him to wish to be a Genie.

In the end, Jasmine’s father changes the law to allow Jasmine to pick whoever she wants to marry. Jasmine and Aladdin seem to live happily ever after. The moral of the story is not to lie and that everyone should be free to make their own decisions.

Disability in Disney

Is Disney mocking people with disabilities? According to "Mental Illness In 'Moana' & 'Finding Dory': Are Disney Done Celebrating Difference?", Disney is taking a step back from portraying those with disabilities in a positive light. Unfortunately, this attitude can be seen in recent Disney movies such as Finding Dory and Moana.

Disney and Disability

In my Spanish class the other day, we were discussing how disabilities are portrayed in our culture. We concluded that generally there is a stigma about people with disabilities and many people with disabilities are discriminated against. Whether through obvious means, such as directly telling someone with disabilities that they cannot do something, or less obvious means, such as the structure of a building, those with disabilities are often treated as outsiders.

We looked at artwork by Frida Kahlo and examined the symbolism behind them and how they related to disability.

Since then, I have been wondering about other cultural products that discuss disability, like Disney movies. Some animated Disney characters with disabilities that came to my mind are Quasimodo and Nemo.

Quasimodo from the Hunchback of Notre Dame, has an obvious physical disability. Frollo, who almost kills Quasimodo as a baby, never allows him to leave the bell tower. If you were to watch only the first half of the movie, you could conclude that people with disabilities can never be socially accepted. Frollo is so cruel to Quasimodo and tells him that he is “ugly and a monster”.

   

At the end of the movie, Quasimodo is celebrated as the hero and finally accepted by the townspeople. This is a positive and socially progressive message to send to children. However, Quasimodo is still not good enough to have the traditional Disney ending. He does not end up with Esmeralda. Instead, the white, tall, blond hair, blue-eyed Phoebus and Esmeralda appear to have a happily ever after. This seems to send the message to children that although those with disabilities may be socially accepted, they will never find love. This is not only discriminatory but also just false.

Another Disney animated character with a disability is Nemo from Finding Nemo. Nemo has a “lucky fin” that is smaller than the other fin. His father, Marlin, believes that because of his smaller fin, Nemo can’t go to school at the normal time or swim very well. When Nemo was playing with his friends at the drop off, Marlin stopped him and said, "You think you can do these things but you just can't Nemo!".Although Nemo does not believe the fin affects his abilities, his father is skeptical and paranoid. This shows the effect family members can have on a person with a disability.

When Nemo gets taken by the divers, Marlin and Dory cross the ocean to find him. Through this journey, Marlin learns that in order for his son to succeed he had to believe in Nemo and let him do things on his own. This movie sends a positive message about those with disabilities. It says that those with disabilities like Nemo are capable of accomplishing their goals.

Although Finding Nemo and the Hunchback of Notre Dame have positive messages at the end of each film, I don’t believe they are progressive enough. I think Disney should make an animated film where the protagonist has a disability and also has the classic Disney happily ever after ending. A princess in a wheel chair or an animated animal that is different from the others would go a long way in promoting equality and acceptance.