Lessons of Equality, Understanding, and Tolerance in Disney’s Pocahontas
Introduction
[1] The children’s movie Pocahontas is an attempt by Disney to promote racial tolerance, equality, and understanding. Most of this movie is not historically accurate, yet an important message can still be learned using the characters from long ago. The first contact scene between Pocahontas and John Smith (0:28.34) demonstrates the importance of racial tolerance by showing strengths and weaknesses in both characters. By making neither character the sole initiator in this scene, there is no favoritism towards one culture or the other. Disney also uses symbolism in the surrounding environment and music to help support this point.
The Exchange of Roles
[2] Pocahontas and John Smith exchange the task of being the initiator in the first contact scene. After viewing this portion many times, it is clear that Disney wanted to create a first contact that demonstrates equality among the two cultures. Pocahontas and John Smith both show weaknesses and strengths, which deems neither character to be the superior race. Also, by exchanging the roles, each character is given a chance to show understanding and the desire to create a peaceful contact situation. An important message to children is that understanding is an essential element in creating a peaceful and communicative relationship between cultures and within cultures.
[3] The scene begins with Pocahontas in the forest looking down at Smith drinking water at the waterfall. She shows interest in the different looking man and wants a better view. She begins a tiger-like creep towards a new lookout spot at which he catches her reflection in the water. Smith quickly hides and loads his gun so that he can be ready when the Native appears. This situation demonstrates curiosity in both characters as they seemingly “hunt” each other out. She is portrayed as an animal-like figure, trying to blend in with the surroundings. Disney is trying to show the strong relationship between Native Americans and the environment. Pocahontas’s creep also deems her as being the initial predator and Smith the prey.
[4] The next exchanging of roles occurs when Smith jumps out from behind the waterfall to protect himself from any threatening forces. He is perceived as being very aggressive until he sees Pocahontas through the parting fog.
As a young child many of us are raised to be familiar with the Pocahontas and John Smith story. Whether it was in a Disney movie or at a school play that one first learned of Jamestown, students want to believe that this romantic relationship really did occur. As one ages, one becomes aware of the dichotomy between fact and fiction. This is brilliantly explained in David A. Price's, Love and Hate in Jamestown. Price describes a more robust account of events that really did take place in the poorly run, miserable, yet evolving settlement of Jamestown, Virginia; and engulfs and edifies the story marketed by Disney and others for young audiences. Price reveals countless facts from original documents about the history of Jamestown and other fledgling colonies, John Smith, and Smith's relationship with Pocahontas. He develops a more compelling read than does the typical high school text book and writes intriguingly which propels the reader, to continue on to the successive chapters in the early history of Virginia.
To conclude with “The General History of Virginia” and Disney’s version of Pocahontas, the two stories had two different opinions and views. Although, Disney’s portrayal of Pocahontas was perceived as an offense to the Native Americans, no one really knows the actual events that took place during that time. People will continue to think that John Smith’s version was a bit hysterical, while the Native Americans will take the Disney movie Pocahontas to an offense. John Smith and Disney both gave their own versions of their story. Others will continue to do the same.
The General History of Virginia, New England, and the Summer Isles by John Smith, portrays the enormous troubles the settlers were faced with by the Native Americans. He explains how he was captured by Indians and also saved by a young Native American girl, Pocahontas. He vividly describes the ceremonies and rituals of the Natives performed before his execution. However, the execution never occurred due to the tremendous mercy showed by the king’s daughter who blanketed John Smith’s body her own. Pocahontas went on to persuade the Native Americans to help the settlers by giving them food and other necessities. Despite her efforts to reach peaceful grounds, her people were still bitter and planned an attacks on the colony. Nevertheless, Pocahontas saved them once again by warning the settlers of attacks. Pocahontas went on to marry an Englishman and traveled to England. She resembled the prosperity and good that was to be found in an untamed land.
Pocahontas was a vital mediator who maintained a flimsy peace between two opposing forces. When the English settlers came to Jamestown in 1607 Pocahontas was a young girl of only 11, and she was fascinated by the settlers. The English settlers thought of Pocahontas as a harmless child who, because of her standing as the Powhatan chief 's daughter put her in the perfect position to make and maintain a peace between the settlers and the Natives.
In the movie The New World, British explores land in Virginia in 1607. Captain John Smith is captured by natives of the land but his life is spared thanks to the tribe’s chief’s daughter, Pocahontas. Later on in the video Pocahontas falls madly in love with John Smith. To Pocahontas’s dismay John Smith was sent back to England to recover from a burn after a gunpowder explosion and also to face accusations of misconduct. Later in life Pocahontas meets John Rolfe and marries him along with have his child. John Rolfe brings Pocahontas back to England with him so she may meet the royalties. Once they arrive Pocahontas come to a cruel reality that John Smith is actually alive. This caused a complication between which man she wanted to be in her and her son’s life. While reading this essay you will learn about Pocahontas’s early life as a child, her life while married to John Rolfe, and her voyage to England.
out the figures of Pocahontas and John Smith. The young Indian princess was only twelve
Pocahontas is Disney’s 33rd animated movie, which takes place in early 17th century Virginia. The movie is based around Pocahontas, a Native American who is the daughter of Chief Powhatan of the Powhatan Tribe located in the New World. When British settlers of the Virginia Company, including Governor Ratcliffe and John Smith, make landfall in the New World looking for gold, they encounter the Powhatan Tribe when they start building Jamestown and excavating for the precious metal. While the rest of the crew builds Jamestown at the order of Governor Ratcliffe, John Smith starts exploring the wilderness, where he meets Pocahontas. The two of them bond and quickly fall in love with each other, even though Chief Powhatan gave his daughter strict orders to stay away from the Englishmen after a few tribesman, including Kocoum, the Native American warrior Pocahontas is set to marry, gets in a fight with a group of settlers. Word gets around to Kocoum that Pocahontas is spending time with John Smith, and goes to confro...
Many people have heard of the renowned story of Pocahontas and John Smith; a girl who saves a guy’s life and they may or may not have fallen in love. But did Pocahontas really save John Smith? In John Smith’s books, Powhatan (Pocahontas’s father) turns from friendly to suddenly hostile. Furthermore, John Smith only even mentioned Pocahontas in his second book, after she had passed away. He also took credit for many of Pocahontas’s achievements. This scenario is a heavily debated subject, and from the evidence I was presented, Pocahontas did not save John Smith.
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