Disney's Perception Of Body Image And Stereotypes In Walt Disney

Introduction “Mickey Mouse, either by name or by image, is better known in more places on this mud-ball earth than any human being in all history. In their day neither Caesar nor Napoleon were half so widely known” (Wallace, 1949). The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney has created the iconic Mickey Mouse image that is known all over the globe, demonstrating Disney’s power in the media. The Walt Disney Company has been the world’s most dominant story telling company, making it highly responsible for constructing representations of childhood culture. Disney’s representations have, inadvertently or otherwise, shaped early childhood perceptions of codependency, body image and stereotypes.

Argument When children are young, they begin

Dr. Gail Dines, a Professor of sociology and women studies at Wheelock College in Boston, MA speaks about the minimal change of feminine characters, throughout the years in Disney movies. “[y]ou still have the same highly sexualized female body with big breasts, the tiny waist, the fluttering eyelashes, the coy expressions and the seductress” (Picker & Sun, 1991). Dissatisfaction of body image is common in women, coinciding with this, studies performed on peer and media influences of body image concerns and dieting awareness in younger girls, have shown a growing number of preadolescent girls are also dissatisfied with their body image. “Sixty two per cent of Canadians see girls being exposed to unrealistic, sexy images of women in advertising as one of the most major problems facing women and girls in Canada today” (Canadian Women’s Foundation, 2012). The typical body image that Disney portrays unrealistic and unattainable representations and causes children to have self-doubt about their current body image. “A study in BC found that 60% of girls who were actually too thin, thought they were too fat” (The McCreary Centre Society, 2003). Reinforcing these notions is the media that these young girls are faced with. In Disney films the protagonists are

Socialization of children allows them to learn stereotypes and attitudes towards races from external influences such as their parents, peers, media and the surrounding environment. With the exposure to common Disney films such as The Jungle Book, The Lion King, and Lady and the Tramp, examples of subtle racist references can shape a child’s view of stereotypical behaviour. With regularity, Disney draws comparisons between the African American minority and the voices of animals such as gorillas or hyenas. Examples of this include, in the film The Jungle Book, the gorillas in the film, portray the traits like jive dancing and sound similar to those of African American males, with slower deeper voices. In a scene from the movie, the gorillas sing “I want to be a man, man cub, and stroll right into town and be just like the other man – I’m tired of walking around. I want to be like you. I want to talk like you, walk like you” (Walt Disney’s The Jungle Book, 1967). The subtle reference between gorillas and African Americans can begin to shape the ideals of children from a young age. In the Disney film, The Lion King, the hyenas speak in street slang, that is reminiscent of the dialect of inner city minorities, particularly African Americans. Researcher Jacqueline Maloney at