Douglas 1 Shadari Douglas Professor Presnell English 1102 May 9, 2012

Part 3: Primary Research Findings and Analysis + Reflection

1. My observations began a while ago. About four years ago to this day I have been evaluating how Disney has changed. I remember watching Disney as I was growing up and I noticed how it changed when I began observing it with new eyes when I watched it with my niece. I have watched many movies from Disney between the years of 19902012. I have observed how the story lines changed and are keeping up with the other things of the time. Including their animated films. 2. I planned to discover things that I never seen before. For example a new meaning that I had never noticed as a child and even the bad meanings that Disney may be giving to children. I planned to observe to see if I noticed anything. 3. I first looked to Google and found a list of Disneys top 25 movies. I narrowed the search down to five that I was familiar with. I chose these because I had seen them previous times so I knew I would be able to make accurate observations so I chose: a. The Lion King i. Observation I: I noticed that it allows children to realize to take the blame for things and that being disobedient to your parents is wrong. It also shows that there are consequences to every action. ii. Observation II: It also gave the idea that no matter what your parents will always be there for you; and no matter what you do you can always return home. iii. Observation III: Trust yourself. Everyone is born with an instinct and even though in life you may struggle and fall down, it is okay to get back up and continue believing in you. b. The Parent Trap

Douglas 2

i. Observation I: This movie gives children different meanings like never judge a book by its cover but also it gives them an idea of how to be sneaky and conniving which is bad. ii. Observation II: Disney had reached a point where they tapped into the generation at hand. Divorce was not common and Walt Disney Pictures was able to capture this and help children cope with the idea. iii. Observation III: Friendships can come out of the worst situations. c. Beauty and The Beast i. Observation I: This movie allows children to notice what is inside of a person and that it is better to get to know them and not worry about looks. It is a contradiction because everything is beautiful but they want children to not worry about the outward appearance. ii. Observation II: It doesnt matter what others think of you, it only matters how you feel about you. iii. Observation III: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. True love is more than looks. Sometimes you find things like love where you least expect it. d. Mulan i. Observation I: This movie also allows for a deceiving theme as many of Disney movies do. It makes children think that it is okay to do something bad if it is for a good reason. ii. Observation II: Be you, be proud of who you are. Even when other people try and bring you down. iii. Observation III: Stand up for what you believe in.

Douglas 3

e. Peter Pan i. Observation I: This movie tells children that it is okay to be a child and not rush growing up; on the contrary it gives children hopes of fairies and imaginary people. Depending on how one looks at that is up to them. ii. Observation II: You need your parents. Even when you think you are better off without them. iii. Observation III: Have fun when you are young but you must grow up someday. I watched the films once and wrote down my observations. I will do this a total of 3 times. 4. As I watched the movies I noticed the things that many people were saying about Disney movies through my secondary research. I could see where children could receive misunderstandings. I believe that I will have opposing views with a lot of the research I have found only because I really love Disney and I believe that I am biased. Also I feel as if Disney is for children and when you are a child it is okay to have false hopes. I feel some of the life lessons Disney may put into some of its movies are bad but then again also it is not up to Disney to raise a child it is up to the parent. So if a parent sees something is wrong in a Disney movie it is up to the parent to say No, do not do this or that. 5. Citations Beauty and the Beast. Dir. Gary Trousdale, and Kirk Wise. Perf. Paige OHara, Robby Benson, and Richard White. Walt Disney Pictures, 1991. Videocassette. Mulan. Dir. Tony Bancroft, and Barry Cook. Perf. Ming-Na, Eddie Murphy, BD Wong. Walt Disney Pictures, 1998. Videocassette. Peter Pan. Dir. Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske, and Jack Kinney. Perf. Bobby Driscoll, Kathryn Beaumont, and Hans Conried. Walt Disney Pictures, 1953. Videocassette. The Lion King. Dir. Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff. Perf. Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, and James Earl Jones. Walt Disney Pictures, 1994. Videocassette.

Douglas 4

The Parent Trap. Dir. Nancy Walters. Perf. Lindsey Lohan, Dennis Quaid and Natasha Richardson. Walt Disney Pictures, 1998. Videocassette. 6. Reflection:
1. What was the hardest part of gathering your primary research and writing it? a. I think the hardest part was choosing the movies. Disney has made many great movies and I have seen and I am familiar with many of them. It was hard to choose just 5. 2. What do you like about your primary research? Will it be useful, or is it useful in a way you didnt expect? a. I like that I get to watch movies. Yes my own observations will be useful because I am a Disney baby and I believe that it will be useful in many ways I do not expect. It may help with my research and I may actually have to do more primary research in order to finish some of my research.