1

Aracely Zavala

Dr. Haslam

ENG 1010

11/13/2020

Sample Rhetorical Analysis on ¨Why Do Cartoon Villains Speak in Foreign Accents? ¨

By Isabel Fattal

Link to Article:

https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2018/01/why-do-cartoon-villains-speak-in-

foreign-accents/549527/

When Isabel Fattal wrote her article ¨Why Do Cartoon Villains Speak in Foreign

Accents? ¨, which was published by The Atlantic on January 4, 2018, it brought attention to how

children's shows often use foreign accents to voice “evil” characters. Therefore, since kids’

television plays a big role in their perceptions and interpretations, the association between the

two can send concerning messages for the way children are learning how to engage with

diversity. The event that prompted the author to write the article was Calvin Gidney, a professor

at Tufts University who specializes in sociolinguistics, and Julie Dobrow, a senior lecturer at

Tufts University who specializes in the issue of children and media. They teamed up to start a

study about language patterns in animated kids’ entertainment. In many of the cases they studied,

villains were given foreign accents, while the “good” characters had standard American English.

Fattal believes there should be a change in the industry and suggests parents do collaborative TV

watching with their kids, the goal being to teach children to become media-literate viewers.
 2

Fattal starts by talking about Calvin Gidney and how his study with Julie Dobrow began.

Gidney was shocked to see the difference between Mufasa and Scar in The Lion King. Not in the

characters themselves, but how they spoke. Mufasa was this heroic leader and Scar was a power-

hungry character eager to become King no matter the cost. What Gidney noticed, however, was

that Mufasa has an American accent, while Scar speaks a foreign language giving him an accent.

He also noticed the hyenas; Scar’s minions would speak in English but with either an African

American or Spanish accent. It then inspired him to start a new study, along with Dobrow, to see

if children's shows associate “bad” characters with speaking in foreign languages or accents.

Fattal wrote, “For their initial study in 1998, Gidney and Dobrow had a team of coders analyze

323 animated TV characters using measures such as ethnic and gender identification, physical

appearance, hero/villain status, and linguistic markers.” These studies showed that many kids

shows/movies marked traits in a character based on the language they speak. Take for example

the most wicked foreign accent, as stated by their study, was Jafar from Aladdin. A British

English accent was used, which is considered the most common accent for villain voices in kids

shows. However, none of the villains in the shows Gidney and Dobrow studied spoke American

English.

Fattal states TV is one of the main sources’ kids use to learn about their own and other

ethnic groups. So, when children see a correlation between evil and foreignness, this can bring

bad perceptions of how they see themselves and other groups of people. She then hopes by

encouraging parents to do collaborative TV watching with their children this can become a

learning experience for the kids, teaching them how to analyze different types of media and the

messages they are trying to convey. Isabel Fattal was effective in bringing attention to the issue

that many children’s shows are culturally biased through associating “bad” characters with
 3

speaking a foreign language or having an accent. Fattal’s argument was structured effectively

throughout, helping her article flow nicely and lead her readers from one point to another. Fattal

establishes logos early on and throughout the whole article referencing the studies of Gidney and

Dobrow. Her word choice and explaining how this issue can be dangerous for kids grabbed the

attention of readers, appealing to pathos. Lastly, her use of ethos and ability to follow her

statements with results from the study, and/or reliable sources to support her claims, builds her

credibility in the eyes of her audience.

Fattal structured her article effectively throughout, helping her article run smoothly and

lead her readers from one point to the next. She starts her article by discussing the problem and

follows by introducing Gidney and Dobrow. She then goes on to explain their study and

findings, discusses why these findings are important, and lastly closes off by discussing why

there should be a change in the TV industry and what parents should do with the knowledge that

many kids’ TV shows are culturally biased. Fattal’s text organization presents the reader with a

thorough understanding of the topic as it moves from one point to another. Throughout her

article, Fattal also uses transition words to help connect each idea with the previous. She uses

transition such as next, in other words, following, yet, meanwhile, and many more. Using these

transitions helps her text and article run smoothly as she connects each paragraph, ensuring each

idea is connected. Fattal’s structure/organization of the text not only helps readers understand her

main points, but also helps her article flow nicely.

Another effective rhetorical strategy that Fattal used is logos. Throughout her article, she

references Calvin Gidney and Julie Dobrow’s studies on language patterns in kids’ shows. She

uses the results of these studies to support her argument and make it stronger. For example, she

states out of the 323 shows analyzed and studied “most of the heroic characters in their research
 4

sample were American-sounding; only two heroes had foreign accents.” By referencing Gidney’s

and Dobrow’s studies, she supports her claims with results that have been tested and analyzed.

Following, she also quotes Rosina Lippi-Green, a linguist who’s written on how Disney movies

use language, who states that children TV executives don't use foreign accents for “evil”

characters because it’s a good idea, but because it’s a conventional idea. Meaning TV executives

make decisions based on what was successful in previous shows, years before them. Fattal uses

specific research and studies she’s found to support her argument. She’s put them together and

cites them throughout her article to make her argument stronger.

Fattal also appeals to pathos through her word choice and way of connecting with her

intended audience by explaining the effects this issue can cause to children. Through various

statements in her article of “sending dangerous messages to kids'' and “concerning implications”

stands out to parents and readers, capturing the audience's attention. She wants parents to become

aware of how this can become a problem. Fattal states, “Research has shown that kids use TV as

a key source of information about other ethnic groups, as well as about their own ethnic and

racial identities.” She explains the role TV can have on children's lives. She also goes on to say

that linguists have found that oftentimes people make judgments about their peers based on

language characteristics (with those who speak their standard language as superior). Taking this

into account, Fattal explains how this can become a problem and how kids can correlate evil with

foreignness, affecting how they see themselves and others. Her word choice and her appeal to

her target audience, being parents, illustrating the dangers it can have on children, their

perception of themselves, and other ethnic groups make her use of pathos effective towards her

audience.
 5

Fattal furthers her point through her use of ethos by following her statements with

research results from the study, and/or reliable sources to support her claims, building her

credibility in the eyes of the audience. Throughout her article, she discusses mainly what Gidney

and Dobrow’s research was, how they expanded it, and the results from the studies. However,

Fattal does give her opinion at times throughout her article, but she automatically follows that

statement with some type of research she conducted, what was found in the study, or has

someone reliable support her point. For example, she states “Kids are easily mesmerized by TV

and willing to watch the same show over and over.” This is her statement and following this

sentence, she states, “Rosina Lippi-Green, a linguist, states that kids learn through repetition.

“You show them a pattern, you keep showing them that pattern… of course they’re going to

assimilate that,” she said.” When giving an opinion, Fattal makes sure to follow her statement

with a reliable source to support and back up her argument, building her credibility.

Through Fattal’s word choice, a clear message is presented. She effectively makes her

point by explaining how children’s shows associating “evil” characters with foreign accents can

be concerning, sending kids dangerous messages about diversity. She supports her argument with

studies conducted by both Calvin Gidney and Julie Dobrow, stating what their study was about,

how it’s expanding, and the results of these studies. Fattal shines a light on a subject many

people don’t know is a problem. Fattal’s argument was structured effectively to connect with her

intended audience. It helped her article flow nicely and lead her readers from one point to the

next. Fattal’s rhetorical strategy to use logos throughout her article, referencing the study of

Gidney and Dobrow, made her argument stronger. She also appealed to pathos through her

strong word choice and explaining the effects this issue can have on children, grabbing her

audience's attention. Lastly, her use of ethos by following her statements with research results
 6

from the study, and/or reliable sources to support her claims, built her credibility in the eyes of

her audience. Overall, Fattal made a strong argument to show how this is a problem, why it

needs to change, and what parents can do with the knowledge that many kid shows are culturally

biased.

Word Count: 1556

 7

Works Cited

Fattal, Isabel. “Why Do Cartoon Villains Speak in Foreign Accents?” The Atlantic,

Atlantic Media Company, 4 Jan. 2018, www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2018/01/why-do-

cartoon-villains-speak-in-foreign-accents/549527/.