Racial Stereotypes in Disney Films

Racial Stereotypes in Disney FilmsHenry Giroux, in his essay invigorate Youth The Disnification Of Childrens Culture, refers to Disney films as iodin of the primary institutions constructing babyhood elaboration in the United States. But by the nineties, crimson the urban Indian child had access to the aura of innocence and wholesome adventure that Disney animated features supposedly exhibited. Fairytale interpretations much(prenominal)(prenominal) as Sleeping Beauty and Snow lily-white and The S til now Dwarfs(1937), became immensely touristed and as the 22 Billion vaulting horse Disney enterprise fur on that pointd its ventures, Disney films became synonymous with well loved Childrens movies, both abroad and at home.The objective of Disney films was to transport its viewers to a magical realm of turn and endless possibility. Disney offered a supposed alternate paradigm in which there was the promise of a Happily Ever After. It aimed at appealing to audiences new and ou t of date and hoped to find a universal market.Walt Disney once stated that Of alone of our inventions for mass communication, translates still speak the most univers entirelyy understood langu come on. And although it did adjoin audiences utmost and wide, for a young Indian girl watching The 1937 Disney adaptation of Snow snow-clad and The Seven Dwarfs, it gave her in truth little to identify with or relate to.Snow White, the jump on-screen Disney Princess was rendered With lips as red as rubies and scrape as fair as snow. Blatantly epitomising westward roots of femininity and beauty, films similar Snow White alienated the Non-western viewer. It was a fantasy that was centred on furbish up archetypes of beauty and desirability which catered to the white, western population and had no room for anybody else.Eventually, the sedulousness was criticised for its focus on a singular ethos and racial presentation.Thus, the last decennary of the 20th century saw Walt Disney Pic tures release films that were now aimed at broaden its heathenish spectrum.Alladin, de hardlyed as Disneys first assay to explore a diverse ethnic terrain. Released in 1992, it was by and by followed by other culture special(prenominal) films ilk Mulan and Pocahontas which receptive in cinemas in 1998 and 1995 respectively.Although this new brand of films hoped to set up a sense of cultural inclusivity by venturing beyond the Hesperian World, what became all the way evident in the process, was a heavy dependence on disdain an app atomic number 18nt enliven in spreading the issueledge of distant cultures, these films draw excessively on racial stereotypes and produced a largely distorted idea of the cultures they depicted.Elena Di Giovanni, in her essay Disney Films Reflections of the Other and the Self, notes that Disneys selection of certain cultures which it chose to portray, was not a choice that was arbitrary and unplanned.According to Di Giovanni, the reasons f or selecting these cultures can be ascribed to precise cultural and ideological strategies. The cultures depicted in these films atomic number 18 either formulaicly considered to be somehow inferior if juxtaposed with modern Western Civilisations and to the narrating American culture in particular, as suggested by the Saudi Arabian-born scholar Ziauddin Sardar. Otherwise,they refer to former stages of social and cultural development in comparison to the contemporary American standards.These films rely almost exclusively on conventional cultural metonymies to show the representations of the Other.In historical terms, the impost of representing otherness through a filtered inspect finds its roots in Western colonialism. With consolidated efforts made by thecolonizers to trim top their own cultural, linguistic parameters on the subjugatedpopulations of the so-called eastern hemisphere, moulding the theatrical role of the Other according to theirown needs was a means to hono r their own identity and victory. Thedissemination of biased representations of non-Western cultures flourished evenbeyond the decades of colonial expansion, manifesting itself in various several(predicate) forms, ranging from pop culture to international relations. 1 of the first scholars to give a stabbing account of these biased cultural encounters was Edward Said in Orientalisrn(1978). Even though primarily concerned with hint the history of the Orientalist attitude by the West in literature, Said does not fail to consider the importance of new technologies and the media in the proliferation of this unjust tradition One aspect of the electronic, post-modern world is that there has been a reinforcement of the stereotypes by which the Orient is viewed. Television, films, and all the medias resources have forced information into to a greater extent and more standardized moulds.More recently, Ziauddin Sardar has echoed similar ideas in his 1999 publication of Orientalism, a pho nograph record he writes, as assort of tribute to Saids workplace, therefore titling it the same. The master(prenominal) interest of Sardars book, whose approach is even harsher than Saids, lies in his detailed reflections upon the new, modern ways by which the Orientalist attitude manifests itself and is still spreading nowadays. By way of introduction to his work, Sardar declares that even though the project of Orientalism has way passed its sell by date, it is colonizing new territories, such new territories organism related to the new geographies which are shaped and controlled by contemporary means of mass cornmunication like the cinema. A whole chapter of Sardars work is devoted to Orientalism in films, where the author sets out to explore the treatment and usance of other cultures within the discourse of cinema, across different genres, including cartoons, and where he makes wide reference to the American hegemonic control of the cinematic medium. Sardar states that oth ernessis generally toughened as a pattern book from which strands can be taken to drawup cultural representations which serve the purpose of entertaining audiences eyepatch reinforcing, by contrast, the superiority of the narrating culture. Thus, the the commodification of culture takes place whereby visual and oral elements belong to a distant world are taken and made fit for smooth reception within more powerful socio-cultural settings.Aladdin, which was based on the ArabfolktaleofAladdin and the magic lampfrom One Thousand and One Nights, became the most flourishing film of 1992, grossing over $502 million worldwide. However, almost instantly, it was met with criticism from the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee. The movie kinda literally translated into an Orientalist fantasy. With glaringly derogatory depictions of Arab culture, and a few pointedly disgustful remarks, the movie has gone down in history as one of the most controversial films.The film portrays all Arab men as channel thugs, pickpockets, emasculated palace guards, beggars, sultans, or sorcerers. A young-begetting(prenominal) character primal in the film even declares to his master upon stealing a jewel,I had to slit a few throats, but I got it.The men are short and stocky with thick lips, missing teeth, heavy, menacing brows, and hooked noses, patch the hero Aladdin and heroine Jasmine look like suburban, white, U.S. teenagers.Jasmine, though sporting dark period hair and with darker skin than her counterpart princesses in earlier films, still retains unforgiving eyes. Though Jasmine must represent the Arabian heritage, the films producers seem to find it unavoidable to leave at least a vestige of tangibility that Western audiences can relate to. In the same vein, the character of Alladin, seems to disinherit his Arabian roots, as hes cleverly christened Al, and exhibits distinctly American mannerisms throughout the film.What one is go forth to ponder is whether these characters would have appealed to western audiences, had they not been endowed with these attributes? And if so, why?Arabs are shown as gratuitously cruel, with characters making several references to beheading. One Arab merchant even tries to cut off Jasmines top when she doesnt have money to pay for an apple she gave to a hungry boy.Most noteworthy, however is the opening sequence of the film, which was later on revised due to harsh criticism and protests.Aladdinopens with the expository song Arabian Nights which includes the lyricsPEDDLER Oh I come from a landFrom a far-off placeWhere the caravan camels roamWhere they cut off your earIf they dont like your faceIts barbaric, but hey, its homeThe blatantly offensive final run along had to be eliminated from the home video version of the film as a consequence of the numerous protests the Disney Company received after international release. However, all the other subtle and indirect hints at the American cultures position of su premacy over the narrated Other, which is deliberately kept ambiguous and undefined in historical-geographical terms, stick around untouched, and continue to carefully shape the viewers perception.One of these subtle instances in the movie can be seen in the same opening sequence. The first words which are uttered by the peddler contain an unmistakable, conventional reference to the culture portrayed PEDDLER Ah, Salaam and good evening to you worthy friends.The worldwide-known Arabic greeting is, however, immediately followed bygood evening, as if to compensate even for the faintest sense of estrangementthe viewer might palpate upon hearing salaam.Orientalist preconceptions find their way into the Disney adaptation of the Chinese legend of humming Mulan. Walt Disney Pictures released Mulan in June, 1998 and it was the thirty sixth animated feature in the Walt Disney gay Classics.Mulan, which was once again infused with orientalist imagining of culture, uses a host of long-estab lished, worldwide-known stereotypes on the visual as well asverbal levels. As Elina Di Giovanni points out, cultural metonymies are very often related to specific domains such as food, which provides universally classifiable socio-cultural references and determines easy, if strongly stereotyped identification of different nations and peoples. In the case of verbal stereotypes, references to other cultures clichd words and expressions tend to draw from common categories such as greetings, exclamations and titles. Greetings and exclamations, though not necessarily connected to the stereotyping of cultures, can notwith stand be frequently used to support cultural representations as they ensure simple and immediate identification.In the opening sequence of Mulan, the 1998 film which portrays the Chinese culture at the time of the invasions by the Huns, the visual and verbal cultural stereotypes employed do not contain any derogatory reference, but they are equally highly conventiona l. An instance of this can be seen in the portrayal and dialogue of the emperor of China who, incidentally, is always shown with the image of a golden dragon at his back to address his army generals in a situation of emergency. He is shown to exhibit a typical trait which is oftenassociated with the Chinese culture, using words of wisdom to describe the sentenceof his country EMPEROR single grain of sift can circus tent the scale Moreover,one can note that the reference to the most popular element of the Chineseculinary tradition does not appear by coincidence in the emperors line. The shotwhich immediately follows features a large scroll of rice in the foreground with apair of chopsticks lazily choice at the rice. This image is used in the film tointroduce the protagonist herself, who will be very slowly revealed to the audiencestarting from her hand holding the chopsticks.But even more noteworthy, is that fact that the bowl of rice which alluded to in the beginning by the Emperor, and used in the introducing of the protagonist, Mulan is then later appropriated to serve American cultural interests by replacing the contents of the bowl(rice), with porridge and rashers of bacon and hot up eggs, which make up Mulans breakfast. The bowl which contained rice in the opening shooter has been deprived of its typical, if also highly conventional, Chinese content to be replaced by what looks more familiar to the American viewers, although totally remote from the eating habits of Chinese soldiers.Moving from visual to verbal examples, the use of language is an obvious fomite for further consolidating the presence of American culture. It is worth pointingout that all the main characters in the films, although belonging to distant andexotic worlds, speak with perfect American accents. Moreover, they are veryoften characterized by the use of non-standard, colloquial or regional varieties ofAmerican position.This is the case of the dragon Mushu in Mulan, whose di alogue is munificently punctuated with contemporary, informal American expressions. Similarly, in Aladdin, the most striking, informal and modem use of Ameriean English is to be found in the lines uttered by the genie of the lamp, coming into court in different guises and often mimicking famous American personalities. His lines are fill up with colloquial expressions as well as references to the contemporary American world.Pocahontas, which opened in cinemas in the year 1995, presented a thoroughly revised picture of a historical figure, appropriated suitably to appeal to western audiences.Modelled on the historical Native American figure ,Matoaka, who is more popularly known by the nickname Pocahontas, the film revamps and restructures the story of Pocahontas and showcases it as a tale where a culture under siege by British Colonialism, ends up being rescued by the White Messiah. The film clearly distorts historical facts and produces a tale that is made palatable to western audi ences, with the White Settler rescuing the natural tribe from a terrible fate, which, interestingly enough, would have been executed by his fellow men.The movie Pocahontas deviates from the true historical story in some ways. The most significant difference is Pocahontas age and the nature of her relationship with prat smith. In the movie, Pocahontas is portrayed as a twenty year old woman who falls in love with John smith, and he with her. From what we know of the historical record, she Pocahontas was a child when they met, probably between 12 and 14, and metalworker was about 27, states Thomasina Jordan, the head of the Virginia Council on Indians, and herself a Wampanoag Native-American.However, it is not just her age that has been altered in the film version. Even her physical appearance is rendered far from factual. The on-screen Pocahontas is designed to be a tall, attractive figure, with dark, flowing hair and sharp features.This depiction in the film has been clearly d esigned to cater to the male fantasy of the young, exotic woman. Moulded from the Orientalist perspective, she is seen as the enigmatic princess, who captivates the young John metalworker with her gentle spirit and exotic beauty.Moreover, the relationship between John Smith and Pocahontas, was that of a young girl and an older man. The relationship that the two grant in the movie is entirely fictitious and completely inaccurate. Another deviation is John Smiths attitude towards the Native Americans. In the movie, Smith defends the Native-Americans, and dons the mantle of the White Messiah. Abandoning his fellow men, Smith aids the legitimate right of the natives to possess their own land. He states that the British are the intruders and have no authority to colonise and appropriate the land of the natives. This heroism, is however absent in factual accounts of the story.In reality, Smith believed that the English had a right to the land and he was not an advocate for the Native-A mericans. Disney also distorts the facts about Governor James Ratcliffe. In the movie they portray him as a villainous character. At the end of the movie he tries to shoot Chief Powatan, but shoots John Smith instead. After he does this, his own men make him a prisoner and send him back to England. However, this is not confirmed in the historical account.Thus, it is evident, that even through Disneys attempt to create a more panoramic view of Society and the world, by retelling tales rooted in different socio-cultutal contexts, it is unable to rid itself of omniscient Western ideals which dictate the ways in which Non-western cultures are received. The non-western cultures can only be understood when either juxtaposed with western traditions or appropriated to appeal to a western audience.The appeal of a non-white prince must be countered with distinctly Americanised mannerisms. Tales from the East seem only to be tangible if they propagate long standing stereotypes and reinforce Or ientalist preconceptions.While Disney tonalitys portraits of cultural landscapes and attempts to traverse into the world of The Other, the question cadaver as to whether it is possible for the West to tell tales of a Non-White civilisation, without all the caparison of stereotypes and exoticism. Can a Media Giant like Disney truly showcase different cultures, without insinuating Western Supremacy over them all?Can they truly paint with all the colours of The Wind?Zoya ParvinRoll No. 19 trine A