Melandovich

Simona Melandovich
Eng 115
Vana Derohanessian
3 December 2014
Truth Behind the Castle Walls
When an exhausted mother comes home from work, barely able to stand on her own two
feet, the last thing she wants to worry about is having to entertain her restless children. In her
means of avoiding the chaos that is yet to come, she pops in a favorite classic Disney princess
film. She herself has seen it hundreds of times and is almost positive that nothing could possibly
come across a couple of hours of an innocent fairytale; but what may come as a surprise to the
mother is that such an innocent fairytale could help negatively shape her childrens view of the
world. Although pop culture is a valuable aspect in the modern world and continues to influence
the lives of newer generations, people remain unaware of the ways in which it influences
behaviors acted out by members of society. Movies like Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and The
Little Mermaid have been around for years and continue to be popular for younger children.
However, such fairytales might not contribute to a very happy ending after all. Disney movies
can negatively shape childrens opinions on body image and physical appearance as well as
stereotypical gender roles and even prejudice and discrimination.
The Little Mermaid, a classic Disney favorite, serves as a perfect example of a film that is
an acceptable means of entertainment for children ages two and older that indirectly distort their
view of reality versus fairytale expectation, especially when it involves body image and physical
appearance. To adults, the characters introduced in such films are more than obviously fictional;

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however to children who have not yet developed the ability to distinguish reality from fiction,
treat these characters as if they were real people, role models even, people they could look up to.
The idolization of such characters poses a threat to children who are nave and vulnerable to the
physical stereotypes presented in each one of these storybook tales. Each princess is presented as
flawless, beautiful, slim, and splendid. Ariel, as shown in Figure 1, is portrayed as having pure
white skin, immaculate facial features, and a waistline that just so happens to be in a proportion
that is merely impossible for any human being to naturally achieve. For example, researcher
Giroux in 1994 stated that in The Little Mermaid, Ariel, the female protagonist, is modeled after
a slightly anorexic Barbie doll (Ostrand 1). There is no way that a figure like that could serve
as a healthy role model four young girls, especially those under the age of 10. In each of these
movies, the male figure, or in this case Prince Charming, falls in love with the perceived
society standard of a gorgeous girl with a perfect body (Ostrand 4). The image of being stick
skinny and fatally beautiful is a flawed standard that society has set for girls based off of
fictional characters such as Ariel, and has imposed a negative association with anything out of
the lines of this so called social standard. This idea, when presented to girls, makes them
believe that their lives are in some way faulty because they do not fit this socially accepted
faade. Whilst Ariel stands to represent this new social norm, the horrendous, oversized,
monstrous octopus woman, known to the viewers as Ursula, represents malevolence and cruelty.
Ursula, as shown in Figure 2, is portrayed with an unsightly grin and an immensely overweight
body. These images teach children values such that Ursula is purely evil and malicious because
she is ugly and fat, while Ariel is a pristine princess simply because she is thin and unflawed.
These films cause young girls to fall victim to this new bodily standard and also cause
them to become judgmental, and in the end discriminate against those who look different from

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them. Standards such as these only teach children the value of physical appearance and makes
it clear that only physical appearance plays a role in determining what kind of person or
personality one embodies. The stereotypical anorexic Barbie doll remains a faulty view of
what society accepts as an attractive being, causing discrimination against those who are
different and causes society to be close-minded, ignorant, and utterly cruel to those who do not
fit the social norm.
The role that woman play in society, in addition to the expectations for them to be slim
and beautiful, is wrongly presented in Disneys films and gives young children, specifically
young girls, the wrong idea about what being a woman in the modern day truly means. Referring
back to Disney princesses mentioned before, each one awaited their Prince Charming to come
and save the day! In The Little Mermaid, Ariel waits for her human prince to save her from her
treacherous ocean life; in Snow White, Snow lays dead in her casket awaiting only to be brought
back to life by her real Prince Charming; and in Sleeping Beauty, the beautiful Princess Aurora
sleeps to her death and is only to be awoken by true loves kiss. These roles of a woman are
presented in each one of the classic Disney films. While a princess serves this purpose, the
characters that remain independent and strong willed are represented as the evil villain. Critics of
Disney films state the most prominent, active women in the movies are almost always villain
(Bruce 2). In addition, these villains are always ugly or fat just like Ursula in The Little
Mermaid. These films teach the young audience dangerously wrong messages about gender
roles and expectations such that females should be passive and pretty, never active and plain
(or worse, ugly) (Bruce 2).
Images such as these, teach children that woman should fulfill a passive role in society
and that they should live life not by action but by waiting for a man to give them the perfect

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life (Bruce 2). Just as it is shown in Figure 3, Ariel relies solely on her human beau to stand
on her own two feet. Is this really what society wants to be teaching children of younger
generations? ; That they are only to focus and rely upon their own beauty and that girls must
live simply to find a man to handle all the rest. These movies are what spur sexist ideologies and
misconceptions. Unfortunately, these misconceptions squeeze their way into becoming a part of
the way people act and think on a daily basis.
Aside from the negative impact Disney movies have on childrens ideas of body image
and gender roles, they also greatly influence discrimination specifically against the black race.
None of the classic Disney films introduce African American characters directly. There was
never a black princess or even a black villain for that matter that is until the movie Tarzan was
released in 1999. This film is about a human boy who is left on an uncharted island only to be
raised by a family of apes. This film presents all human characters as white while the animals
and apes are represented with black narration. According to researchers, Disneys use of black
voices for primate characters in Tarzan cause students to associate human beings with apes
(Tavin 34). So Disney either does not present characters of black affiliation at all or if they do
they present them in non-human form, as if they are not accepted in the humane society. This
possibly correlates with the time period in which these movies were created in which racism was
a prominent issue. However, with children still watching these movies today, the very same
racist principles linger and are open for children to view and interpret. This sends a wrong
message to children about people of different race and teaches them to be discriminatory and
prejudiced against such people. Although in the modern day, ideas of racism seem to have been
put to rest, dangerous messages such as these can trigger social disorder and upheaval about
racism and continue problems between diverse races.

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While many parents and adults may think that Disney films are and always have been a
harmless display of childish fun, they fail to see the hidden messages and social propaganda
displayed throughout the films. According to some, Disney simply exemplifies Walt Disneys
credo of innocent childhood fun and pure entertainment which makes it safe for young
audiences and makes parental monitoring unnecessary (Hartmann 1). While it may be true that
Walt Disney had the intention to entertain young audiences and provide a means of pure fun and
enjoyment among children, the screens dont lie when it comes to the social representations of
the fairytale world and the misconceptions they are yielding to children about the real world.
Parents must either discontinue their childrens exposure to Disney, which is more than unlikely,
or become involved in their childs experience with such movies and explain to them the
difference between reality and the impractical make-believe world provided in the films.
While Disney films remain a grand part of modern pop culture, they still generate
negative behavior and opinion in children. While such movies may seem like a playful
adventure, they can cause an innocent little girl to have a distorted body image and to resort to
materialism, as well as developing a passive role in society and increasing immoral and unjust
beliefs about race. The only way our children will have a happy ever after, is if they are
explained the truth that lies behind false castles and princess ball gowns. And as long as Disney
expresses negative ideas about the world, parental guidance is necessary to help transform such
negative ideals into positive influences in shaping their childrens view of the world.

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Works Cited
Bruce, Alexander M. "The Role of the "Princess" in Walt Disney's Animated Films:
Reactions of College Students." Studies in Popular Culture 30.1 (2007): 1-25. JSTOR. Web. 26
Oct. 2014.
Mller-Hartmann, Andreas. "Is Disney Safe for Kids?Subtexts in Walt Disney's
Animated Films." Amerikastudien / American Studies 52.3, Teaching American Studies in the
Twenty-First Century (2007): 399-415. JSTOR. Web. 26 Oct. 2014.
Ostrand, Amy. "Correlation Between Children's Media And Body Dissatisfaction:
Analyzing Recently-Released Disney Movies." Conference Papers -- National Communication
Association (2009): 1. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 26 Oct. 2014.
Tavin, Kevin M. "Teaching (Popular) Visual Culture: Deconstructing Disney in the
Elementary Art Classroom." Art Education 56.3 (2003): n. pag. JSTOR. Web. 26 Oct. 2014.
The Little Mermaid. Dir. John Musker. Perf. Jody Benson, Pat Carroll, Christopher
Daniel Barnes. Walt Disney Pictures, 1989. DVD.
Sleeping Beauty. Dir. Clyde Geronimi. By Erdman Penner. Perf. Mary Costa, Bill
Shirley, Eleanor Audley. Walt Disney Productions, 1959. DVD.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Dir. William Cottrell, David Hand, Wilfred Jackson,
Larry Morey, Perce Pearce, and Ben Sharpsteen. Perf. Adriana Caselotti, Lucille La Verne,
Harry Stockwell. Walt Disney Productions, 1937. Videocassette.
Tarzan. Dir. Chris Buck and Kevin Lima. Perf. Tony Goldwyn, Minnie Driver, Brian
Blessed. Walt Disney Pictures, 1999. DVD.

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Figure 1

Figure 3

Figure 2