Sociology in Mulan Mulan tells that the story of brave Mulan. Mulan did not want her elderly father to fight in the war, so she disguised as a man and joined in her father 's army. Finally, Mulan defeated the Huns and Shan Yu (leader of the Huns) with her partners in barracks. This Disney film portrays the conflict perspective, feminism, and symbolic interaction perspective. The conflict theory is the perspective that opposition and conflict define a given society and are necessary for social evolution. It emphasizes conflict in the social life and uses it to explain social change. Conflict is inevitable, so different groups which have competitive relation will have conflicts. There are many conflicts in the movie Mulan. For example, the Huns …show more content…
The symbolic interactionism is a theory concerned with the ability of humans to see themselves through the eyes of others and to enact social roles based on others’ expectations. In the film, Mulan’s abilities as a woman were not be accepted and recognized before she joined the army. For example, at that time, she was defined as a weak woman and helpless daughter. Although she worried about her old father, no one thought that she could help her father, and no one respected her thoughts. Her label made her only needs to obey and wait the results of war. However, when she came home after the war ends, her label also changed. This is because she met other’ expectations and played men’s role successfully. She mastered more capability like fighting a battle. Her label also became a hero and her family guardian. From the beginning to the end of the film, Mulan’s identity and label changed a lot because of her changing …show more content…
Socialization is the process by which individuals internalize elements of the social structure, making those elements part of their own personality. In the first half of the movie, we can find a lot of socialization 's phenomena. Before Mulan met matchmaker, she needed to have a bath and wear beautiful dresses. She also needed to dress up for the meeting. Her behavior and appearance is a manifestation of the gender socialization. Moreover, the film also appears three children. Two boys played with the toy sword. It reflects their future roles are the macho soldiers. Their behavior reflects their future ideal of defending the homeland. Compare with boys, the Girl played with dolls. It means that in her future her task is to run the family. Children 's behavior reflects the social expectations for their gender. In this movie, Mulan disguised as a man to go to war. Her behavior tells people, even if their biological sex cannot change, each person has the right to freely choose their own social gender
An example of conflict theory is gay marriage. Homosexual couples are struggling for the right to marry their significant others. However, they face opposition from heterosexual couples and traditionalists who want to keep marriage strictly between a man and a woman. Homosexual couples want to redefine the meaning of marriage while heterosexual couples desire to keep the traditional definition of marriage. I did not choose conflict theory because I dislike conflict. While I acknowledge that there will always be a power struggle between two parties, I do not see the world in a way which acknowledges a
Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, and many other Disney movies all have one thing in common, they feature a female lead who needs a male figure to save them. However, things started to change after the release of Mulan in 1988. Movies that were only representing female leads as weak and always needed to rely on someone, started to feature females who showed off their more masculine side. Mulan was one of the first animated films that had started to dive into that, not to mention it was based on a true story, making it even more powerful. In the article “Post-Princess Models of Gender: The New Man in Pixar/Disney”, authors Ken Gillam and Shannon R. Wooden explore Pixar movies show male characters who were not afraid to show their emotions
“Mulan” follows all of the steps of the hero’s journey, starting with the ordinary world. The ordinary world showcases the main character in a normal setting and the audience can see the situation or dilemma portrayed in the story. It shows how society is normally without the hero doing anything. She is completely out of place and everything around her is foreign.
Mulan goes through being rescued when she fights Shan-Yu on top of the roof of the Emperor’s palace and Mushu helps Mulan pin Shan-Yu down and blow him up with fireworks. Mulan‘s ego decreases when Mushu successfully tries to help her get rid of Shan-Yu. She considers herself a hero now and does not want Mushu to think she cannot fight her own battles. Mulan in the end disregards her ego in order for her to not die on the roof. Mulan crosses the final threshold when she returns to her home with the gifts from the Emperor hoping her family will forgive her for leaving the family to go fight in the war. Her father accepts Mulan’s new power and wisdom and told her that, “The greatest gift and honor is having you for a daughter.” Mulan’s return to the past is pleasant and safe knowing that nothing can change her family’s love and affection for her. In addition, Mulan enters into the final step in the hero’s journey: the freedom to live. Mulan shows her freedom to live when she invites her soul mate, Li-Shang for dinner. This event marks the end of Mulan dwelling on the past and makes her excited, but not concerned about what the future
...sh and adore. However, next time, do not let yourself be so easily grabbed by the catchy musical numbers and seemingly revolutionary story that is told. Yes, Mulan is an unorthodox heroine who changes all the rules, but she does so by conforming to a flawed system and affecting change from the inside, under the guise of a man. In lieu of doing it as a woman, it is not as girl power filled as many of us would like to believe. She, for the most part, affects all of this change as a man. Once she’s discovered, all her hard work in the training and the relationships she’s forged are all tossed to the wind and she’s quickly relegated back to her place as a lowly woman. However, despite its flawed execution in being a girl power story, it embodies a quintessential feel-good, be true to your heart film that will leave you wanting to affect change in the world around you.
The story of Mulan 2 is a hero’s journey, based off of Joseph Campbell’s Monomyth. First, according to the Hero’s Journey article by Joseph Campbell, all heroes remain in their ordinary world, just to set off on an adventure to a strange one. As reported by the article, “Often heroes are considered odd by those in the ordinary world and possess some ability of characteristic that makes them feel out-of-place.” Evidently, Fa Mulan, who resided in China, is considered quite abnormal by her peer group, for she is the heroine of China, and even received special recognition from the Emperor, for her deeds. This shows that Mulan 2 follows the hero’s journey, because step 1, status quo, aligns with the first part of Mulan 2. Next, the monomyth claims
Mulan in “Mulan” is more heroic than Beowulf in “Beowulf and the Fight with Grendel”. Mulan and Beowulf are both loyal heroes. Before Beowulf’s battle with Grendel, he gives his word to Hrothgar that he will defeat Grendel. When Hrothgar's offer to withdraw from the fight tests his allegiance, he rejects it. Mulan also goes through tests that reveal her loyalty to China when Chi-Fu exposes her true identity and banishes her from the army. Regardless of her desertion, Mulan pursues Shang to warn him about Shan-Yu’s survival and to assist the army in the fight against him. While Mulan and Beowulf are both loyal heroes, Mulan has a stronger sense of loyalty. The shame, dishonor, and isolation that result from her abandonment test Mulan’s
In sociology we have learned about the three major sociological perspectives which are; symbolic interactionism, functionalism, or conflict theory. Conflict theory is my favorite topic that I learned about this year. Conflict theory was founded by Karl Marx that claims society is in a state of perpetual conflict due to competition for limited resources. Conflict theory holds that social order is maintained by domination and power, rather than consensus and conformity. The main elements in social conflict are that society is created in ways to benefit the higher class, and factors such as race, sex, class, and age are likely to experience social inequality. To a social conflict theorist, it is all about dominant group vs. minority group relations. Karl Marx is considered the 'father ' of social conflict theory. The movie “The Hunger Games” shows many examples of social conflict throughout the whole movie.
Conflict Theory is a theoretical orientation emphasizing the opposition among individuals, groups, or social structures. In the movie, the conflict theory was the black community verses the white community. For example, in the movie, Vernon Johns decided to enter a restaurant that was labeled whites only. As a black man by law he was not allowed to enter. At his own risk, he went inside anyways. As he entered, the white people inside suddenly stopped what they were doing. They all stared him down with an unwelcoming look. They shouted racial slurs at him as he sat down at the counter. There was a conflict between the two communities all because of the color of their skin
William Shakespeare once said, “[My] honor is my life; both grow in one; take honor from me, and my life is done.” The idea is touched upon in both the book Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston as well as Disney’s Mulan were family honor is more important than anything else. Mulan was directed by Tony Bancroft and Barry Cook, and produced by Walt Disney Pictures. The film Mulan retold the story of a woman warrior who took her father’s place in battle and became a savior of China.The movie uses many elements from the original story told in the chapter “White Tigers,” but adds many modern twists in order to make the story more appealing for a newer generation. In both stories of Fa Mu Lan the elements of sacrifice, silence and voice, cultural practices of ancestor worship and filial piety, and Chinese stereotypes are present.
The story follows Mulan, a female warrior who disguises herself as a man to defend her country against Rourans. As a variation on the commonly known fairytale, this script puts almost all of the its main powerful characters as females. Rather than making all the powerful leaders male and
Overall, the Disney movie, Mulan, demonstrates gender roles, socialization of gender roles, and consequences of breaking the gender roles. By Mulan going to war for her father, in China, many things were at risk, life, honor, and the country of China, itself. Displaying the characteristics a man had was the only way for Mulan to survive, granted, she was not great at displaying woman characteristics in the first place. Being caught in war, as a woman, meant death, but Mulan was lucky for her bravery when saving Captain Li Shang, for he spared her life, which allowed Mulan to help save China and the emperor in the end. Even though China had very strict gender roles, Mulan broke them to save her father’s life and became the person she was meant to be.
... argues that Disney movies have a good influence on children by teaching them good life morals. However, one of her examples, Mulan, is not an example of achievement through hard work like Zia explains, but rather a change made through magic, and example of the horrible historical inaccuracies made in Disney movies and the lack of parental respect that they teach children. Mulan is a great story of overcoming the odds and becoming who you truly are, if only the real messages where as honorable.
In the Disney film Mulan, the character for Mulan plays an important part to support the example of a woman not satisfied with her state of being and subordinated position in society and therefore, takes action to show others her true capabilities and qualities. This prototype is scarcely depicted in today’s cartoons and films so that children rarely identify with this image. “Mulan” helps to promote this role model of an intelligent woman and could be the first step in breaking gender constraints. In addition, it might teach children that they have to find their own state of happiness rather than trying desperately to fulfill society’s expectations.
Mulan pushes gender inequality by reinforcing masculine and feminine stereotypes through the songs that it presents throughout the movie. The roles of what it means to be a man is simply laid out within the influential song, “I’ll Make a Man Out of You.” This song occurred when the fresh new soldiers appeared to be very weak and unfit, so Captain Shang sang of how they must become strong like real men should be. Captain Shang asks the question, “did they send me daughters, when I asked for sons?” (Mulan), implying that women are unfit for the conditions of