The Princesses in Disney Movies

1045 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: how disney princesses affect children essay

The Princesses in Disney’s animated films have been known to have a great influence on young girls’ lives, portraying what a princess is all about. The Disney Princesses are consumed of Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Cinderella, Little Mermaid, Belle, Pocahontas, and now Brave. They are loved by millions, and are featured all over America, everything from cups to costumes. Combined with Disney’s already popular image, the princesses of his stories created the image for “princesses of all princesses”. However, the roles and functions of Walt Disney’s Princess (ex. Sleeping Beauty (1959) and Snow White (1937) have changed significantly compared to Team Disney’s Princess (ex. Little Mermaid (1989) and Pocahontas (1995). For one, their images have changed over the eras, as critics’ would say, they have become “sexualized and independent”.
Walt’s princesses are seen as peasant slaves that scrub floors and clean all day while they sing and daydream of a prince taking them and sweeping them of their feet. This is usually because an evil stepmother is behind it. Team Disney’s princesses take on a different role and possess no chores, run wild, and neglect their obligations.
A majority of Disney films take place in a patriarchal society; where a society is dominated by men. The definition of a princess is based mostly on birthright rather then a marital decision. What is noticed in the films is the absence of a mother figure and in return is replaced with an evil stepmother. However, the father figure places an important role in later day Disney. Walt’s princesses were depicted as helpless and relied on a man, or say a prince to rescue them from their troubles. In Team Disney’s Princess, she is quite independent and more revealing, and c...

... middle of paper ...

...eping Beauty and Little Mermaid, where the femme fatale uses the princess as a prime tool to wreak havoc in the Kingdom. The Kings of the daughters appear weak and cannot protect their daughters. What the femme fatale really wants is to rule the kingdom and take power over the King. In both films, the femme fatale uses her first true love against her in order to gain power.
Overall, the movies challenge and deal with many different gender and race issues in a fairly positive way. It acknowledges the challenges that come along with getting past race, but at the same time it touches the fact that these differences can be joined. It also empowers women by making them the hero of the film.

Works Cited

Rozario, R.-A. C. (2004). The Princess and the Magic Kingdoms: Beyond Nostalgia, the Function of the Disney Princess. Women's Studies in Communications, 35-40,62-68.

Show More
Related

  • Analysis Of Jack Heckel 'Are All Princesses Really Waiting For Princes To Come'

    1711 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the article “Are All Princesses Really Waiting for Princes to Come?” Jack Heckel discusses some of the most common Disney princesses and the stereotypes that come along with them, as well as some of the stereotypes that are seen in the Disney princes. He supports his article by providing a variety of sources not only from Disney movies, but also from various authors and blogs. The analysis of Disney princess stereotypes has been a very common topic for years, and this overall analysis has revealed that a lot of Disney princesses are not good role models. Heckel uses many techniques including using credible, non-Disney sources, discussing other fairytales besides Disney, displaying a timeline of Disney

    Read More

  • What's Wrong With Cinderella Analysis

    810 Words  | 2 Pages

    Orenstein receives her fill of princess ideology towards her three-year-old daughter while taking her to the dentist. After the well-meaning dentist tells Orenstein’s daughter to sit on the “princess throne” to get her teeth “sparkled”, Orenstein loses it. She decides to discuss with other experts the implications that that this Disney Princess juggernaut and gender typecasting is thrusting upon our young girls. After discovering how Disney was the true perpetrator in the societal drowning of pink princesses, Orenstein is

    Read More

  • Princess Culture in Disney Movies

    1219 Words  | 3 Pages

    Our girls are expected to conform to a beauty and behavior standard at a very young age. This is something that stays with these girls into adulthood. They will continue to conform to beauty standards and they will conform to what our male-dominated society wants. If/when women break these standards they are labeled as something else: free-thinker, weird, and even “lesbian”. This brings up another issue; Disney princesses are all heterosexual. So from the start, if girls want to be like a princess, then they better be straight. In this way, Disney movies are hetero-normative, and influence girls to believe that if they want to find their “one true love,” then they need to find a handsome man, not possibly a fellow princess. Evette Dionne writes that Disney princesses gave her warped expectations of love and romance in "Were You Ruined by Princess Culture?”.

    Read More

  • Gender, Race and Disney Princesses

    1045 Words  | 3 Pages

    Disney princesses are fun for all ages, but their target audience is young children and “as children grow and develop, they can be easily influenced by what they see and hear”. Therefore, what they see and hear in Disney movies leaves an impression on them. The first princess, Snow White, was created in a time where each gender and race had a specific role in society. Recently, many believe that Disney has come a long way in regards to gender and race since Snow White, as several multi-cultural protagonists have been introduced subsequently, and gender roles do not appear to be as stereotypical as they once were. However, many of the apparent innocent messages about race and gender in these movies, can be exposed as otherwise. Despite their mask of progression, Disney princesses still have the potential to corrupt the minds of young children through sexism and racism.

    Read More

  • Gender Roles in Disney

    2315 Words  | 5 Pages

    Media is a powerful agent in entertaining children. It also influences and teaches the youth of society the suitable and appropriate gender roles that they inevitably try to make sense of. The power of media is very influential especially in the minds of the youth. Disney movies target the youth and plant certain ideas and concepts about social culture into the vulnerable minds of children. Media uses gender to its advantage, just like Disney productions. Humorous caricatures reveal some harsh realities about the portrayal of Disney Princesses in many movies made by the Walt Disney Company. Disney mixes innocence with the ultimate form of fantasy to capture an audience. Predominantly, Disney helps highlight the gender roles by showing the audience simply what they want to see. In the attempt to stick to the norm and portray stereotypical female characters, Disney created Princesses. Presented as damsels in distress and inferior beings to men, Disney Princesses give children an inaccurate portrayal of gender roles at a young age. Through Disney’s social success and intriguing films, such as The Little Mermaid, Snow White, Aladdin, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Beauty and the Beast, Disney Princess movies portray stereotypical representation of gender roles through the denigration of the female image, targeting and ruining the perception of youth today.

    Read More

  • Disney Argumentative Essay

    810 Words  | 2 Pages

    Disney promotes sexisim by forcing young girls to live in a patriarchal world. Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, The little mermaid, Aladdin, and Snow White are all examples of popular Disney movies that encourage young viewers that they need a man to save the day. Yes, it’s true that there are recent movies such as Moana and Frozen that prove otherwise, but how long will it take to completely get over the fact that women are mainly viewed as secondary citizens compared to the men? There are countless examples of how Disney movies influence this theme, and how much the female characters’ actions, ideas and thoughts are not included in a Disney movie.

    Read More

  • The Stereotypes Of Disney, Fashion, And Pop Culture

    883 Words  | 2 Pages

    Fashion and pop culture has transformed over the years greatly influenced by television and the media. Television has a huge impact on our childhood, what we watch on television shapes our adult life either positively or negatively. For anyone born in the 20th century television era, they must be familiar with the Disney world characters and how they have had a huge impact on our kids over generations and how it has transformed television, fashion, and pop culture over the years. Monika Bartyzel and Crystal Liechty, in the articles “Girls on Film: The Real problem with the Disney Princess Brand”, and “In Defense of Princess Culture” both respectively expose the Disney world to us in different viewpoints. The proceeding paragraphs analyze, how

    Read More

  • Gender Stereotypes In Cinderella's Cinderella

    1488 Words  | 3 Pages

    When the ball had already begun, the king told the duke that he expected his son, the prince, to fall in love with a suitable woman during the ball because he can no longer wait to have grandchildren. The king had no regards as to who the prince married, all he cared about was that whoever the prince married was able to bare children. Gender has played an important role in establishing the various characters in Cinderella. The main character in Cinderella are all played by females. Firstly, Cinderella herself, Cinderella's step- mother who treats her poorly and attempts to destroy her self- esteem, Cinderella's step- sisters, who are involved in sabotaging her, and the Fairy Godmother, who grants Cinderella her wishes. It can clearly be seen that women played an important role in Cinderella’s life. These are also three traits which children can easily relate to. This allows children to put themselves into the shoes of the leading characters, and associate the various people around them to these different characters. While the female gender takes over the main role in Cinderella, the female gender has also been portrayed negatively in the case of Cinderella's step- mother and step- sisters. They are portrayed as evil. While Cinderella was forced by her step- mother to clean

    Read More

  • Disney Princesses Research Paper

    587 Words  | 2 Pages

    Stephanie Hanes says that Disney Princesses are creating unhealthy body issues and sexualizing little girls. Over the years younger and younger girls become sexual or want to be sexy.

    Read More

  • Gender Stereotypes in Fairy Tales

    1317 Words  | 3 Pages

    "Disney Princesses: Classic Fairy Tales Or Gender Stereotypes?" Hartford Courant, 27 Aug. 2012. Web. 09 Dec. 2013.

    Read More

  • Disney and Traditional Stereotypes

    1067 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...aves Princess Jasmine multiple times and falling in love at first sight. They also live happily ever-after together, just as every other Disney prince and princess in every other Disney movie. Parents should be aware of the subliminal messages that their children view in the Disney movies they are watching, and grow up to believe that is how life goes. The children that are growing up watching Disney movies with such strong gender stereotypes are learning things they may factor into their own futures, and think that acting the way of the Disney roles is the only way for them to live their life in a happy manner. The way Disney animated films assign gender roles to their characters effect young children’s views of right and wrong in society. It is wrong, and they should not be exposed to such material growing up because it is harmful to their future expectations.

    Read More

  • An Analysis of “Disney’s Politically Correct Pocahontas”

    1207 Words  | 3 Pages

    Since Disney’s Snow White appeared in 1937, Disney princesses have been a present in pop culture. With the release of new movies frequent and re-release of decades old movies inevitable, a continuous stream keeps Disney princesses in the foreground of adolescent society. It is with the value of entertainment they have been created and as entertainment they should be viewed.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On Disney Princesse

    1063 Words  | 3 Pages

    Each Disney princess has different positive attributes that make her unique, the most recent Disney princesses are especially fitting in today’s society. In Jena Stephens’ analysis of the three most recent princesses, excluding Anna and Elsa, she describes Rapunzel by saying, “Her forward thinking, desire to prove she is just as capable as a man, and realistic dreaming make her a great role model for young girls”. Whether it is to become a princess and marry her true love like Cinderella or open a restaurant like Princess Tiana, all of the Disney princesses have aspirations. Jena Stephens says, “The words that Tiana sings about the necessary hard work it will take for her to reach her dream stand out as a message to young viewersone that does not covey that love is the only thing that will make girls happy”. Not only do Disney princesses have dreams but they make their dreams come true with hard work. As Liz Gumbinner described her trip to Disney World with her daughters, “The princess luncheon led to a great discussion later in our hotel room, in which we told our girls that it is okay to be strong, smart, hardworking and still dream of marrying a prince”. Disney princesses carry themselves in a humble and confident manner. The princesses are beautiful but they are not conceited. Lastly, they are never stuck up but rather loving and independent which makes their character so

    Read More

  • Disney Princesses' Influence on Young Children

    1103 Words  | 3 Pages

    England, D. E., Descartes, L., & Collier-meek, M. (2011). Proquest. “Gender role portrayal and the disney princesses”. Sex Roles, 64(7-8), 555-567.

    Read More

  • Cinderella Character Analysis

    1002 Words  | 3 Pages

    Disney and old fairytales threaten gender politics and ideal women roles by giving certain stereotypes for domestic and personality traits. Fairytales that have turned into Disney productions have sculpted domestic roles for women that consist of cooking, cleaning and caring for the children. Disney has also created these princesses with personalities that are shy, passive, and vulnerable. The cause of these stereotypes are making individuals obliterate their own identities and becoming clones from the mold that was prepared for

    Read More

More about The Princesses in Disney Movies

Open Document