LGBTQD: Queer Depictions in Disney

Hi English 102 students!


In this paper I looked at how LGBTQ people are portrayed in Disney films and why. What I found was that while there are no out characters, many are “queer coded” characters, or  characters that given traits/elements stereotypically associated with LGBTQ people. A huge chunk of male Disney villains were queer coded, mostly through their physical appearance, costumes, and body movement. This technique of queer coding the effeminate, implicitly gay villain goes back to the beginning of Hollywood film, where homosexuality was banned from the screen. Queer coded Disney villains can be found in films such as The Little Mermaid, Pocahontas, Hercules, Aladdin, and even The Lion King.

As to why negative depictions of LGBTQ people are still used in Disney films has no clear answer, but researchers have cited homophobia and sexism as probable causes. I found that this is a multidimensional topic because along with the sexuality issue, gender expectations also play a huge role. 

Here's some advice:

• Procrastinate!! I'm just kidding, don't do it. You'll regret it.

• Don't be intimidated by this paper, it was surprisingly easy to write. It was time consuming but not stressful, if that makes sense.

• Start the search for sources early, it takes a while to find sources that are both academic and related to your topic.

• If you're having difficulty finding sources talk to Jenny for help!

Sources: 

Abel, Sam. "The Rabbit In Drag: Camp And Gender Construction In The American Animated

Cartoon." Journal Of Popular Culture 29.(1995): 183-202. Humanities Full Text (H.W.  Wilson). Web. 26 May 2015.

Allen, Samantha. "What Disney Movies Taught Me about Being Gay." The Daily Dot. 25 Sept.

2014. Web. 08 June 2015.

Brode, Douglas. Multiculturalism and the Mouse: Race and Sex in Disney Entertainment.

Austin: U of Texas, 2005. Print.

Li-Vollmer, Meredith. "Gender Transgression And Villainy In Animated Film." Popular

Communication 1.2 (2003): 89-109. Academic Search Complete. Web. 30

May 2015.

Morgan, Joe. “The 14 Disney characters you had no idea were gay.” Gay Star News. 5 Oct.

2013. Web. 26 May 2015.

Putnam, Amanda. “Mean Ladies: Transgendered Villains in Disney Films”. Diversity in Disney

Films. Ed. Johnson Cheu. Jefferson, NC, USA: McFarland & Company, 2013. 147-155.

Web.

Russo, Vito. The Celluloid Closet: Homosexuality in the Movies. New York: Harper & Row,

1987. Print.

Disney And Its Impact on Children

Dear Future English 102 Students,

          My topic was about Disney, and I wanted to know if whether Disney impacts children in a negative or positive manner. I wanted to know how Disney and its films and merchandise can affect a child. Gender portrayals definitely touch this topic, and was the biggest issue of all. I have come to learn a lot about this topic. If you grew up with Disney, I say you pick this research topic.
          One advice I have for you is to start early on this research paper. Go to the CSULA library website and explore its thousands of journal articles and books they have. Starting early can definitely help, since you will have time to search for some of the best things related to your topic, therefore your research paper will be strong and accurate. Another advice I have for you is no NEVER hesitate to ask questions you have. I know Professor Hicks is more than glad to help you. If you are having trouble with your topic, go to Professor Hicks!

I used these sources, and hope they will help you like they helped me with my research paper.

Auster, Carol J. and Mansbach, Claire S. “The Gender Marketing of Toys: An Analysis of Color and Type of Toy on the Disney Store Website.” Sex Roles 67.7-8 (2012): 375-388. PscINFO. Web. 24 May 2015

England, Dawn Elizabeth and Descartes, Lara and Collier-Meek, Melissa A. “Gender Role Portrayal and the Disney Princesses.” Sex Roles 64 (2011): 555-567. PscINFO. Web. 26 May 2015

Towbin, Mia Adessa and Haddock, Shelley A. and Zimmerman, Toni Schindler and Lund, Lori K. and Tanner, Litsa Renee.  “Images of Gender, Race, Age, and Sexual Orientation in Disney Feature-Length Animated Films.” Journal of Feminist Family Therapy (2011): 555-567. PscINFO. Web. 29 May 2015

Ostrand, Amy. “Correlation Between Children’s Media And Body Dissatisfaction: Analyzing Recently-Released Disney Movies.” Conference Papers – National Communication Association (2009): 1. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 1 June 2015

Orenstein, Peggy. “Cinderella Ate My Daughter.” New York: Harper, 2011. 11-32. Print

Asawarachan, Tanawan. “The Disney Influence on Kindergarten Girls’ Body Image.” Denton, Texas. UNT Digital Library. Web. 2 June 2015

Why don't I have a perfect body like a Disney Princess?

Hello future 102 Students,
Our research was based off of Disney Princesses and the impact that Disney gives to young girls on being beautiful.
Abstract
Everyone around us wants to be beautiful they all look up to role models of beauty like the Disney princesses. Although having beauty does not make us any more happy, we wanted to know the true meaning of why everyone gets so hiked up about beauty and Disney. In search for an answer we discovered that Disney might be taking a different direction in characters to be more strong and brave however Disney keeps changing a princess image to make her look more beautiful. Disney has indicated that physical beauty, the way one looks is the most important factor in today’s society. Disney combines racial features into one character like Pocahontas how does this change how a young girl will be influenced thinking that a girl could be perfect like her. Giving characters a more princess look only demonstrates how important it is to Disney to have the perfect image. We all  know that the perfect image is not possible and no female is perfect unless cosmetic surgeries are done.

Advice
1. Do not procrastinate. Choose a topic that you enjoy because you will have to do a lot of research on that topic. Start to do your research early and ask for help if you find yourself to be confused/lost. Be ready to share your research with the rest of your classmates. Find useful and credible sources.
2. The research essay is way easier then it sounds. Do not make it a big deal by leaving everything till the last minute. If you get the opportunity to find a partner researching the same topic collaborate with them. It makes things much more simpler, because you cannot let each other down and will most likely meet the deadline on time. It also makes researching much easier, because the work is separated and the writing process does not become as stressful.

 

Feel free to use any of these sources hope they guide you in the right direction

Bispo, A. (n.d) Fairytale Dreams: Disney Princesses’ Effects on Young Girls’ Self -Images

Cochrane, K. (2006)“The Dangerous World Of The Princess.” New Statesman 135.4799 : 22-23.

    Academic Search Complete.

Edwards, H. L. (1999). “The United Colors of Pocahontas”: Synthetic Miscegenation and

    Disney’s Multiculturalism. Vol. 7. No. 2 147-168

Orenstein, P. (2011) Cinderella Ate My Daughter. New York, NY: Harper Paperback.

Osborne, L. (2013) Parents’ anger as Disney turns Brave girl into curvy princess.Daily Mail.

Whelan, B. (n.d) Power to the Princess: Disney and the Creation of the 20th Century Princess

    Narrative. Children’s Media

Tillotson, K. (1995).Cartoons and Indians. Minneapolis Star and  Tribune C8.
 

Accidently a Villain- Demetria Seawood

Accidently a Villain

Abstract

             I went into this research with one question and ended up answering a few. Hyper-masculinity and gender-stereotypes are very common in our world. Boys are only considered men if they follow a certain set of rules. Superheroes, such has Captain America tend to display these attributes with ease, and go above and beyond this call of manhood. The problem is young boys have a hard time separating fiction and reality. The over-the-top actions of a boy’s favorite superhero can be confused with the everyday actions of an ordinary man. Captain America was purposely over masculine because he was created to persuade the American people to join the Army, back during WWII when people thought Hitler was going to take over the world. In 2011, when his film was released Captain America was again used as a “Go Army” commercial while American men and women were fighting in Iraq. Captain America also exposes the pressure put on the male body. However, he does not try to change the mindset of his peers, instead he conforms to societies expectations.

Advice

1.Do not panic! This paper is not as hard as it sounds. Once you choose a topic that you like the research will be interesting rather than stressful. Start early and find a source or two a day, and before you know it the research portion is done and you have way more than 5 to 6 sources for your paper.

2. You will have the option to work with a partner, only do this if you are absolutely positive and can really cut time out of your schedule to work together. I was originally working with a partner, and before we finalized topics in class I decided I wanted to do the paper alone. In class you are supposed to "marry" the topic and it was really awkward because I wanted to break up with my partner. Eventually our research paper looked like two papers jammed together and we broke the group up and turned in separate papers. However, this could have all been avoided if I really sat and thought about whether or not I really wanted to work with a partner.

 

Please feel free to steal my sources.

 

Works Cited

Baker, Kaysee, and Arthur A. Raney. “Equally Super?: Gender-Role Stereotyping of Superheroes in Children’s Animated Programs. “Mass Communication and Society, 10.0 (2007): 25-41

Berger, Maurice, Wallis, Brian, and Watson, Simon. Constructing Masculinity. New York: Routledge, 1995. Print.

Captain America: The First Avenger. Dir. Joe Johnston. Perf. Chris Evans, Hayley Atwell. Paramount Pictures, 2011. DVD.

Colombo, Gary, Cullen, Robert, and Lisle, Bonnie. Rereading America: Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing. Boston: Bedford/ St. Martin’s, 2010. Print

Johnson, Gary V. Man Up: Perspectives of Male Masculinity Through Superhero Identification. n.p.: ProQuest, UMI Dissertations Publishing, 2013.

Stabile, Carol. “Sweetheart, This Ain’t Gender Studies”: Sexism and Superheroes.” Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies, 6.1 (2009): 86-92

ThinkProgess.org. Center for American Progress Action Fund. 17 March 2006. Web. 28 May 2015.

The Hundred Acre Woods: Yay or Nay?

Hello future English 102 students,

My topic was psychology and Disney; with a specific focus on a show you might be familiar with, Winnie the Pooh. I wanted to know how fairy tales and children’s literature were similar, what kind of an impact they have on a child’s life, and people’s perspectives on the furry animals of The Hundred Acre Woods.

            My number one advice to you on this research paper that many people may have already addressed would have to be, DO NOT PROCRASTINATE on this paper!! Your lives would be much easier if you simply started researching when Professor Hicks tells you it is time. I am not kidding you will come across MANY articles that aren’t necessarily related or useful to your topic. Personally I found it much more helpful to begin looking for books first rather than looking for articles. I also recommend that you look through these blogs to see if anyone has a topic related to yours and see what kind of sources they used. One last thing, if you are having difficulty with this research paper DO NOT hesitate on asking Professor Hicks for help she can definitely help you and may even guide you to some helpful resources!

I hope some of my useful sources will be able to guide you in the right direction!

Adams, Jennifer R. "Using Winnie The Pooh Characters To Illustrate The Transactional Analysis                        Ego States." Journal Of Creativity In Mental Health 4.3 (2009): 237-248. Academic                            Search Complete. Web. 26 May 2015.

Bettelheim, Bruno. “’Cinderella’: A Story of Sibling Rivalry and Oedipal Conflicts.” The Uses of                        Enchantment. N.p.: n.p., 1976. Rpt. in Writing and Reading across the Curriculum.                              Eds. Laurence Behrens and Leonard J. Rosens. 11^th ed. Boston: Longman-Pearson, 2011.                   651 -57. Print.

Heuscher, Julius E. A Psychiatric Study of Fairytales: Their Origin, Meaning, and Usefulness.                   Springfield, Ill.: Thomas, 1963. Print.

Mallet, Carl. Fairy Tales and Children: The Psychology of Children Revealed through Four of                  Grimm’s Fairy Tales. New York: Shocken, 1984. Print.