“I grew up with hand-me-downs and once-a-year trips to Walmart. I’d never really been presented with a princess dress. But thinking back, if I had been, I’m pretty sure I would’ve been stoked” (Liechty 471). In February 2013, Crystal Liechty, a mother from Utah, posted this comment on the blog The Unexceptional Mom. She argues that although some children are not exposed to the princess culture, it is important that the parents are not taking away their imagination. Parents should not discourage their children about the princess culture. These princess movies allow parents to talk about certain topics with their children as they grow up. Liechty states, “And these princess movies give me a great chance to talk to her about what kind of guy she …show more content…
should marry: namely someone who is courteous, gallant, willing to do anything for her; to protect her from the bad things in the world” (472). The princess culture teaches children about work ethic. Look at Cinderella for example, she had a good attitude when people were cruel to her and she was able to remain honest and sweet. The princess culture also teaches children about bad people and the cruel nature that some people possess. This culture allows children to learn values from the different princesses they aspire to be. Liechty in the article, “In Defense of Princess Culture” argues that parents should allow their children to learn about the princess culture.
Liechty supports her claim by explaining how she lets her children choose what they want to watch or play with and she uses that culture to teach her children the values she wants them to learn. The author’s purpose is to show that princess culture should not be frowned upon in order to persuade parents to not shield their children from the idea of finding love. The author writes in a humorous tone for parents who believe the princess culture is a symbol of being spoiled or superficial. I agree with Liechty because I believe that parents should allow their children to learn about the princess …show more content…
culture. Monika Bartyzel argues a different point to Liechty. Bartyzel is a freelance writer who created Girls on Film, a weekly feature on “femme-centric film news and concerns.” The article, “Girls on Film: The Real Problem with the Disney Princess Brand” was posted on May 2013. Bartyzel argues that Disney should not narrow the worldview of young girls. She gives the example of how a psychotherapist’s daughter had stopped doing certain actions because princesses were not doing those type of actions. Bartyzel states, “She had stopped running and jumping because princesses didn’t do those things. That was about the time I stopped waiting for the phase to pass―when she stopped running” (468). She claims that the princess culture is no longer about fairy tale magic, but it is a constant narrowing of what it means to be feminine. Almost every Disney princess has received a redesign that makes her look more like the others, such as narrower jaws or larger eyes. The redesigns of these princesses conflict with the films. For example, Mulan hated the matchmaking makeup put on her and Merida tugged at the oppressive fashions she had to wear. Bartyzel claims there are different types of princesses just as there are different types of women in the world, which means that a princess’ happiness doesn’t need to be reliant on finding a prince. The author’s purpose is to show the constant narrowing of what it means to be feminine in order to persuade the audience that different princesses have all kinds of happy endings. The author writes in a serious tone for those who believe in the princess culture. I go along with Bartyzel’s idea that Disney should not transform the princesses into a different personality than the movie. I agree with Bartyzel and Liechty on how they both consider that princesses doesn’t always have to have the same happy ending. The culture allows children to learn about different values from the different types of princesses that they see. Rachel Quenzer argues a similar point to Liechty and Bartyzel.
Quenzer is a mother and also a blogger for The Everyday Mom Life. On August 2016, she posted an article called “Be The Princess If That’s What You Want to Be.” She argues that parents should not steer their children away from what feels normal to them. She explains that most people associate princesses and pink with girl activities and applaud those who love blue and orange. The girls who love princesses and pink should not be ignored. She states, “If I don’t believe she can [be kind, generous, and polite] while being a princess and liking the color pink, then I am part of the problem. If I don’t believe that she can enjoy things that are still traditionally stereotyped as girl things and still be strong, brave, and fearless, then what am I teaching her” (Quenzer). Quenzer claims that she should not depict what her daughter can be, but she wants her daughter to find her own passion. Quenzer adds to Liechty’s argument because she adds that even though the princess culture can teach a child values, it can also allow children to discover who they are. Quenzer also furthers Bartyzel’s claim because she argues that parents should not narrow what it means to be feminine. The author’s purpose is to inform parents that they should not limit their children in order to persuade the audience to let their child find their passions. The author writes in a suggestive tone for parents. I agree with this claim because I believe
that parents should not restrain their children from finding what they want to be when they grow older. Liechty, Bartyzel, and Quenzer have similar arguments that parents should not discourage their children about the princess culture. Parents and media should not narrow the worldview of young girls. I agree with these claims, because children should not be held back in what they want to watch, especially if the princess culture can teach these children values in life. “I have another daughter. She’s just learning how to be alive right now… If she’s into pirates or animals or ninja spies, I will totally support her in that… But in the meantime, I ain’t hating on the princesses and I don’t think you should either” (Liechty 472). Works Cited Bartyzel, Monika. “Girls on Film: The Real Problem with the Disney Princess Brand.” Winchell and Rottenberg, pp. 467-70. Liechty, Crystal. “In Defense of Princess Culture” Winchell and Rottenberg, pp. 471-72. Rottenberg, Annette, and Donna Haisty Winchell, Eds. Elements of Argument: A Text and Reader. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2015. Quenzer, Rachel. “Be The Princess If That’s What You Want To Be.” Huffpost News, 16 Aug. 2016, www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/be-the-princess-if-thats-what-you-want-to-be_us_5 7b202eae4b0e7935e058a5b
Young children are typically raised around specific sex-types objects and activities. This includes the toys that that are given, activities that they are encouraged to participate in, and the gender-based roles that they are subjected to from a young age. Parents are more likely to introduce their daughters into the world of femininity through an abundance of pink colored clothes and objects, Barbie dolls, and domestic chores such as cooking and doing laundry (Witt par. 9). Contrarily, boys are typically exposed to the male world through action figures, sports, the color blue, and maintenance-based chores such as mowing the lawn and repairing various things around the house (Witt par. 9). As a result, young children begin to link different occupations with a certain gender thus narrowing their decisions relating to their career goals in the future. This separation of options also creates a suppresses the child from doing something that is viewed as ‘different’ from what they were exposed to. Gender socialization stemming from early childhood shapes the child and progressively shoves them into a small box of opportunities and choices relating to how they should live their
Lynn Peril writes a fascinating study of pink color and its historical connection to ideas and beliefs about femininity. Peril translates and defines Pink Think as a collection of specific ideas, beliefs, and approaches to how and when feminine behavior is considered proper. Throughout her book, Peril points out various fundamental approaches and attitudes that are considered to be crucial for women's achievements and accomplishments. Peril's Pink Think also advocates how greatest concern of femininity is related to women's physical appearance (fashion and beauty) and their marriage (motherhood and housekeeping). Furthermore, Peril is demonstrating an evolution of femininity, and the constant and intense impact of its norms and rules on women's lives.
Finucane’s daughter had seemingly been robbed of her creative imagination after trying to live up to the expectations of a Disney princess. Her daughter “seemed less imaginative, less spunky, and less interested in the world” (Hanes 1) after being introduced to the Disney princess line, willing herself to be just like the princesses. Young children know no better and are very susceptible to the world around them, and are very likely to imitate what they are shown or what intrigues them. Hanes was outraged at how Disney had stripped the child of believing in other imaginative creatures and activities, and was stuck on behaving as a princess. Hanes provides research in the article that supports that Finucane’s daughter is not the only one to catch the Disney princess symptoms. There is a whole book about this “diseases” as well as much research conducted on educators that seemingly all agrees that “[teachers] are unable to control the growing onslaught of social messages shaping their…students” (Hanes 1). Through her research Hanes discovered that the Disney Princess empire is a $4 billion dollar industry that leads to “self-objectification, cyber bullying, and unhealthy body image…” (1) causing problems for young girls. These “ideals” will stay with them throughout the remainder of their life, based on decisions that were made for them, to introduce such “ideals” into their minds. Hanes’ readers are most likely to be parents or adults who will likely become parents in the near future, and this article is a great introduction to the long road of making decisions that will impact the way their children think
As a child, I did not often watch princess movies so a strong female stereotypical image was never introduced to me. I found out who I was by myself and by the people who surrounded me in everyday life. I was allowed to chose who I wanted to be, free of the idea of who I should be. These movies and the people around me didn’t pressure me to be sexy so often enough my outfits consisted of mud covered jeans, stained tennis shoes, a t-shirt, and a wild ponytail. If parents chose to “opt.” out of showing their kids movies and other media that influences female stereotypes, the children of ours and future generations have a higher chance of having the freedom to choose for themselves who they want to
Your sparkling eyes gazed at the television, reading the word “Cinderella” by Disney. You had all your Cinderella toys lined up, ready to grab whenever necessary. Your Cinderella pajamas on, and your tea set is all prepared.Your mom adored your love for princesses. Didn’t we all love to sing along to the Disney movies about princesses and true love? Peggy Orenstein sure didn’t. Peggy Orenstein, the author of Cinderella Ate My Daughter has a sharp opinion about how a “pretty and pink” culture is influencing girls in a negative way. The author proves this argument by discussing gender colorization, dolls, and princesses.
...aves Princess Jasmine multiple times and falling in love at first sight. They also live happily ever-after together, just as every other Disney prince and princess in every other Disney movie. Parents should be aware of the subliminal messages that their children view in the Disney movies they are watching, and grow up to believe that is how life goes. The children that are growing up watching Disney movies with such strong gender stereotypes are learning things they may factor into their own futures, and think that acting the way of the Disney roles is the only way for them to live their life in a happy manner. The way Disney animated films assign gender roles to their characters effect young children’s views of right and wrong in society. It is wrong, and they should not be exposed to such material growing up because it is harmful to their future expectations.
For a long time pink has been associated with femininity, which gives us the underlying assumption that girls are sweet, gentle, and delicate because that is what pink has come to represent in our society. Yet, the colours used in the toys meant for boys are black and blue which are seen as tough and aggressive. Coincidently, sweet, gentle and delicate is how society sees girls and how they believe they should act when they become women. Furthermore, tough and aggressive is how we want the men to be in our society. Critical sociology looks to gender as a competition where one gender is
Media is a powerful agent in entertaining children. It also influences and teaches the youth of society the suitable and appropriate gender roles that they inevitably try to make sense of. The power of media is very influential especially in the minds of the youth. Disney movies target the youth and plant certain ideas and concepts about social culture into the vulnerable minds of children. Media uses gender to its advantage, just like Disney productions. Humorous caricatures reveal some harsh realities about the portrayal of Disney Princesses in many movies made by the Walt Disney Company. Disney mixes innocence with the ultimate form of fantasy to capture an audience. Predominantly, Disney helps highlight the gender roles by showing the audience simply what they want to see. In the attempt to stick to the norm and portray stereotypical female characters, Disney created Princesses. Presented as damsels in distress and inferior beings to men, Disney Princesses give children an inaccurate portrayal of gender roles at a young age. Through Disney’s social success and intriguing films, such as The Little Mermaid, Snow White, Aladdin, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Beauty and the Beast, Disney Princess movies portray stereotypical representation of gender roles through the denigration of the female image, targeting and ruining the perception of youth today.
Everyone knows and loves the enchanting childhood fairytales of magic, princes, and princesses, but very seldom are privy to the detrimental impacts of “happily ever after” on the developing youth. Fairy tales are widely studied and criticized by parents and scholars alike for their underlying tone and message to children. Peggy Orenstein, feminist author, mother, and fairy tale critic, has made it her personal mission to bring these hidden messages to the surface. In the article, “What’s Wrong with Cinderella?” Orenstein dissects the seemingly innocent tale of love and magic, and the princess many know and love, and points out its flaws and dangers. Fairy tales, Cinderella in particular, are not suitable for children because upon deeper evaluation,
Society cements certain roles for children based on gender, and these roles, recognized during infancy with the assistance of consumerism, rarely allow for openness of definition. A study conducted by Witt (1997) observed that parents often expect certain behaviors based on gender as soon as twenty-four hours after the birth of a child. The gender socialization of infants appears most noticeably by the age of eighteen months, when children display sex-stereotyped toy preferences (Caldera, Huston, & O’Brian 1989). This socialization proves extremely influential on later notions and conceptions of gender. Children understand gender in very simple ways, one way being the notion of gender permanence—if one is born a girl or a boy, they will stay that way for life (Kohlberg 1966). “According to theories of gender constancy, until they’re about 6 or 7, children don’t realize that the sex they were born with is immutable” (Orenstein 2006). The Walt Disney Corporation creates childhood for children worldwide. “Because Disney are such a large media corporation and their products are so ubiquitous and wide spread globally, Disney’s stories, the stories that Disney tell, will be the stories that will form and help form a child’s imaginary world, all over the world, and that’s an incredible amount of power, enormous amount of power” (Sun). Because of the portrayal of women in Disney films, specifically the Disney Princess films, associations of homemaker, innocence, and dependence are emphasized as feminine qualities for young children. Thus, children begin to consider such qualities normal and proceed to form conceptions of gender identity based off of the movies that portray the very specific and limiting views of women (...
In the article Construction of the Female Self: Feminist Readings Of the Disney Heroine, Jill Birmie Henke, Diane Zimmerman Umble, and Nancy J. Smith are looking at the female self and how it was developed based on two theories: Standpoint by Parker Follet and the psychological development of girls by Gilligam. That by examines gender identity especially girls and how media exposure affects them through analyzing five of Disney movies: Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, The little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Pocahontas. They segmented the article into three titles: The Oxymoron of Power and the Perfect Girl where they introduced the two theories in which they built their critic on, Construction of the Female Self where they talk about the evolution in the female character from Cinderella to Pocahontas, and Construction of Self in Relation to Others where they talk about the evolution of the self in relation to others from power-over to power-with until power-to. Finally they concluded that even if the female character in Disney’s movies was changing to become more
Princess films are centered around a female character who meets the love of her life and, like in other fairy tales, ends with their wedding (Ross 4). Initially, the Disney princesses’ have portrayed a typical female role in the film, showing the expected gender roles in American society (England Descartes Collier-Meek 563). These gender-based stereotypes are influenced by the time period they were made in, but also originating from old fairytales made centuries ago. “Society’s increasing reliance on the use of television and videos to occupy children warrants continued investigation of how exposure to media may affect children. Given that media portrayals like those in the animated movies of Walt Disney often reinforce societal stereotypes related to gender, ethnicity, and culture, parents may consider a more thoughtful approach to the use of television and videos” (Disney Movies 1).
"Disney Princesses: Classic Fairy Tales Or Gender Stereotypes?" Hartford Courant, 27 Aug. 2012. Web. 09 Dec. 2013.
Gender-neutral parenting is a method for raising children, used by parents who have a passion to teach non-sexism and social justice to their children (Dumas 2014). It is rooted in a desire to maintain a child’s individuality and offer more outlets for self-exploration. For example, parents do not restrict their child, regardless of a boy or girl, to wear pink or blue, play with Barbie dolls or fire engines. Parents allow their child to freely explore what they are passionate about without attaching any labels. The concept of raising children with gender-neutral identities is considered feminist and extremely radical. Butler (1990) argues that gender is performative, arguing that the naturalness of gender is something that we do rather than something we are. Parents have the most influence on the gendering of children during infancy, foremost in handling expectations for behavior. They are also responsible for their own behavior as it related to the treatment of
Disney and old fairytales threaten gender politics and ideal women roles by giving certain stereotypes for domestic and personality traits. Fairytales that have turned into Disney productions have sculpted domestic roles for women that consist of cooking, cleaning and caring for the children. Disney has also created these princesses with personalities that are shy, passive, and vulnerable. The cause of these stereotypes are making individuals obliterate their own identities and becoming clones from the mold that was prepared for