Disney vs. The Future of Men

Thesis The constructs of masculinity found in nearly Disney movies create an environ custodyt of images that specify and define what young boys inspect as masculinity. By presenting male chauvinist relationships, physical expectations, and violence and mastery to face power, young boys ar left feeling emotion on the wholey unattached and physically inadequate. How m any Disney movies did you read as a child? How many of those movies did you gibe oer and all over again? And how many of the vocals you so lovingly watched over and over again bear you still sing today?The Walt Disney caller-up has been a powerful force in creating childhood culture all around the world. Disneys massive success is based on images of honour, supernatural and fun. Its light films in particular atomic number 18 praised as wholesome family concoc 2rk forcet. These movies atomic number 18 endorsed by teachers and parents, and are obviously immensely popular with children. The fun and innoce nce may have its value, but it is important to understand how these movies are representing the moral addressistics that the children viewing them will eventually grow up to represent themselves.Most alarmingly is the means of masculinity throughout many classic Disney movies such as Mulan, The Lion King, and Beauty and the Beast. These movies are presenting masculine complexes to young boys all over the world, giving them distorted images of what it means to be a man, and also how to cerebrate to women. What is most dangerous about the way Disney movies represent masculinity is that the appendage is not a quick one. The means in which the media influences the way we calcu belatedly is less immediate, and has a much less straight forward stupor on the way we think.Disney movies in particular create a legitimate environment of images that we grow up with and eventually become used to. An practice of such a group of images is the constant representation of the male luggage co mpartment in Disney movies as buff, and chiseled. After a while these images begin to shape what young boys know and what they understand about the world around them. This is not an immediate offspring, but instead a slow accumulative effect that is much much subtle than we are aware of. hotshot of the biggest problems with this process is that the Disney heterogeneous has spanned over nearly five generations, so no one thinks to repugn the bringing close together that an animated Disney movie is a great way to entertain children while simultaneously sharing with them a piece of traditional culture. One of the most destructive ways in which classic animated Disney movies are providing young boys with false and distorted images of masculinity, are the ways in which men are shown in relationship to women. Most Disney movies revolve around a heterosexual relationship containing a hero and heroine.Feminists have studied what these characters communicate girls about themselves, bu t it is just as important if not more important to understand what these movies are telling boys about how real men interact with and treat women. Often the message to boys both explicitly and implicitly is that men should view women as objects of pleasure or as servants to occupy them. A perfect example of this misrepresentation is in the movie Mulan. In Mulan, and entire song called A Girl Worth Fighting For, explains what a man is looking for in a woman.Some of these traits include cooking, cleaning, and looking graceful for her husband. This quote from the song shows exactly what type of sexist characteristics are correspond in Mulan. I want her paler than the moon, with eyes that shine the like stars, my girl will marvel at my strength, adore my battle scars. I could apportion less what shell wear or look like, it all depends on what she cooks like An separate highly destructive construct that Disney movies present to young boys is the representation of the male body.Disne y movies glorify one particular body type higher up all others. Chiseled abs, a barrel chest and massive build up are typical of a male Disney character. Men with any other body type are generally viewed as outcasts, weak or subservient. One of the most extreme examples can be found in Beauty and the Beast, where the product line between the powerful male heroine figure, Gaston and his sidekick, LeFou is undeniable. The song entitled simply, Gaston is entirely dedicated to glorifying Gastons manly physique and strength.In contrast to this, LeFou is shown as short, chubby, and bucktoothed. In Mulan, when Mulan attempts to join the Japanese army by flying as a man, she is taught very quickly that masculinity is defined by strength and physical ability alone. In the song, Ill Make a Man Out of You Mulan is taught that in order to achieve true humankind she must overcome strictly physical obstacles and challenges as opposed to any emotional ones. Other movies such as Hercules and T arzan depict their main characters as buff, muscular men, with almost super human strength and ability.While Tarzan surfs tree branches and swings from vine to vine with palliate that can be compared to an Olympic gold medalist, Hercules lifts giant boulders, and sleighs a three-headed mythic beast. Though the aspect of fantasy plays a role in these movies, the shine home message is that characters like Tarzan and Hercules are men to be admired, imitated and idealized. not only do most Disney movies glorify their characters bodies but also the aim of violence and dominance they exhibit. Masculinity in relation to violence and dominance is very clear in most Disney films.Not only is the victory of a battle glorified, the unwillingness of a character to fight is often shown as pitiful or weak. An example of such an instance is in the animated movie, Beauty and the Beast. In a scene where Gaston has beaten the beast to the launch he exclaims, Whats the matter beast? Too kind and tranquilize to fight back? This is prime example of how movies such as these are teaching boys that violence is the answer, and that any challenge to that idea is thought of as weak or emasculating. The climactic scene in most films is a battle between two men.A violent battle to win the issue of a woman or maintain pride and status is the most important scene in establishing which of these characters is the better man. There are two major problems with this idea. First, that boys are being taught that dominance and violence is something to strive for and respect. Second, that these types of behaviors are necessary if not mandatory in gaining the acceptance and love of a woman. Never in a Disney animated movie will you see the losing character of a battle win the woman in the end.Because a lot of the most popular animated Disney movies were created in the mid to late 1900s a lot of the themes shown in them are completely sexist and have no validity in current society. So basically , as long as parents continuing showing their sons Disney movies in which a character has to achieve some physical task instead of showing affection, or an emotional connection, men will continue to have no idea what women want. Because we as Americans feel such a deep, loving connection to theDisney movies we grew up with, it is only natural that we sit our children down in front of the picture in an attempt to share with them a piece of our own childhoods. just as much as Disney has become embedded in our subconscious as wholesome and magical, today the world is a different aspire with different people and different ideas. The harmful effects of showing a child a Disney movie, especially a young boy can leave a dangerous mark. From body distortion, to dysfunctional relationship issues, the potential these movies have to alter a child future is certainly passable to switch off the Disney channel and turn on Lifetime.