Disney Movies and Its Influence on Gender Role

Disney Movies and Its Influence On Gender Role

Dongze Yu

CA 402

Professor Pan

12. 8. 2015

Introduction

When you think about children cartoon you immediately think of Disney movies. Disney movies have been viewed as a symbol of childhood; many children have grown up with the Disney characters. However, as Giroux (1995) pointed out, besides the role of children’s entertainment, Disney movies also “combine an ideology of enchantment and aura of innocence in narrating stories that help children understand who they are, what societies are about” (p.24). Children learn from the media about themselves and the world around them; while in given circumstances, they will imitate what they see in the media as well. As a major component of children’s media, Disney movies provide certain images, ideals and stereotypes in their portrayal of characters, which may exert negative impacts on children’s health and values. Exposure to stereotypical depictions of princesses in Disney films promotes gender role stereotypes in body image and the definition of masculinity and femininity. These expectations contribute to disordered eating and self-objectification in those viewers.

Disney Movies and their viewers

Disney Corporation is an innovation and a victory. In 2011, the Walt Disney Corporation made roughly $ 40.8 billion US dollars annual income (Garofalo, 2013), which made it the largest media corporation in terms of revenue. The Disney Company involves various forms of media, such as broadcast, cable, video, publishing and digital businesses (Disney, 2014). One of the most popular lines of Disney media is their featured-length animated film. Data in 1995 shows that approximately 200 million people watch a Disney movie per year (Giroux, 1995), which indicate Disney movies’ well respected and highly valued position in society. Disney animated classics are passed on over generations, exerting an important cultural implication on their viewers.

Among these viewers, young...