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this video lays out various images of how masculinity is portrayed in media, particularly in disney films. it's nothing terribly new to me, but interesting nonetheless and wanted to see what you all thought, especially since some of you are parents and might have young children who are in the process of growing up with these films.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=8CWMCt35oFY

would love your opinions and feedback. let's get a discussion going!

edit; i can't seem to get the embedded player to work, so i've just linked it.

Surprised at what you saw?

As a male...I'm kinda disgusted at those images...always have been. As much as I make fun of the femininity of movies like Bambi...showing kindness, playfulness and camaraderie, Disney has walked away from that and chooses to stay in the stone age where masculinity is number one.

I don't know... Disney to me seems more reflective of the current morays than influencing kids to be a certain way. Just look at how much has changed since the Snow White and Sleeping Beauty films compared to the more current Tangled and the Princess and the Frog (for example).

Gaston from Beauty and the Beast is featured quite a bit in the YouTube clips but the film ridicules him for being the stereotypical macho man. He's a joke and shown to be stupid and cruel - and not the desire of the heroine at all.

Mulan may be shown to be strong but I disagree that it's necessarily "just like a man." She's a girl who is strong but also who ultimately wins the day through her wits and intelligence. Earlier in the movie it mocks the traditional female role - Mulan is shown to be bad at the makeup and gowns, etc. while at the same time it's showing how silly being forced into such a role is.

To be honest I'm far more disgusted when I'm at the grocery store and all the magazines show pictures of celebrities with captions like "read how so and so stole someone's man." It's either about how catty women are with each other or it's all about how much weight they need to lose or gain.

Or how about those TV commercials that show men being incompetent at cooking or watching their own kids. Or that show them being ridiculed for not being manly enough. Do you remember that hummer commercial where when the poor guy bought tofu at a store he had to make up for it by buying a hummer to restore his masculinity? Or those really awful Miller Lite commercials that are running now where the men are scolded for doing "unmanly" things.

Miller Lite "Man Up"

Hummer ad

Yes, I definitely think it is reflective. Disney wants to sell movies, right? So they make whatever they think people will like and spend money on, and make it in a way that will also be the most comercially viable. So they use images and stereotypes that people understand and are comfortable with.

But I think every time Disney (or anyone/anything else, for that matter) reflects one of these stereotypes, it also reinforces it.



Yes, he's made to be the object of our ridicule, and the villain, but I think the main point the video was making is that for all his ridiculous body and hair and muscles, is that he's masculine especially compared to non-masculine characters such as his lackey and Belle's father, both of whom are essentially shaped like tennis balls. I think that's really interesting. You see the same thing in Aladdin, with the Sultan. (Short, round, bumbling, and not very masculine)



I love Mulan. But the point is, that to pass for a man, she has to be tough and strong. Not exhibit another trait that men can have, such as being kind or caring. You'll see the same thing in other movies/shows where a female character dresses as a male and has to pass. She'll comically lower her voice, but also start behaving like a caveman, to convince the other guys that she's one of them. (I'm thinking of a particular episode of Clone High)



I wholeheartedly agree; those are so so awful.

Hooray, a discussion! whee

Yes I do think images like those are damaging to young boys that, and no offense to them, don't realize that brains and a genuinely kind personality are far better then brawn. Most young girls (sorry) are missing out on the more kindred spirited young male that are more sensitive to a girl's feelings and individual ideals; and rather go for the class clown, the one showing off how many material possessions their parents buy them or the boy who is so insensitive as to put down the outsider boy just to feel better about himself.

In my opinion, parents, commercial society and Hollywood who turn a blind eye or encourage that type of brutish behavior are to blame. If there were a way to give them a moral cleansing, I would be one of the first to jump on that boat.

I agree with this completely! Being masculine is not a bad thing in and of itself - but being told that in order to be a man you have to act and look a certain way and only like certain things... both men and women are so much more varied than the stereotypes would have people believe. And that shouldn't lessen their value as men and women - and as people.

I think my original problem with targeting Disney is that, while it's true that they show some narrow views of men's and woman's roles, there are much better targets to go after! Disney Animated movies are clearly fantasy. Kids (for the most part) enjoy pretend while at the same time are learning an important distinction between what is real and what is make believe.

But on TV, in magazines, and other media, kids see real people being portrayed in terrible ways. When my daughter was at the check out counter and saw a picture of a woman in a bikini with the headline "lose 10 by the end of the month" she turned to me and asked if she was fat? I won't even list some of the awful reality shows. Even if you don't let your kids watch them they are part of the current pop culture. When kids see actual people - not just cartoons in these positions, it's so much harder to dismiss it.