Difference between revisions of "329--Week 2 Questions/Comments"
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Consider the source! Lets take a look at the Disney corporation. I had an English class Freshman year, (Brian will hopefully remember our time debunking Disney well)that effectively revealed the biases of Disney characters and stroylines, while also providing a context and rationale for the ideology that drove Walt and his successors. Walt Diney had a Conservative or at least traditionalist world view which led him to create masterpieces that featured a male- dominated, Anglo- Saxon based folklore. A folklore that seems to now be inextricably linked with the American identity. To add to what Taylor has said I would actually say that Disney has not improved their record of chauvanism and moralistic storytelling, only that they have improved how effectively they convey it. Ariel from ''The Little Mermaid'' is one of the saddest and most blatant portrayals of female subservience. As it pertains to Pocahontas, the fact that the story told on the screen exists outside the realm of basic historical facts allows Disney to rewrite American History. At the end of the film everything is tied up in a little bow. Powhatan says to Smith "you are always welcome in our village", and Pocahontas cries and chases after the ship as it leaves because she will miss her love. This movie ends on such a high note that I wouldn't be surprised if many people thought that was the end of Euro/ native hostilities. Disney did not leave room for sequels which could be entitled Genocide, Trail of Tears, or Reservation. The last ten minutes of this movie imply that because the two sides made peace, the English gained control of this continent thanks to the benevolence of the Native Americans. - Jason Ward | Consider the source! Lets take a look at the Disney corporation. I had an English class Freshman year, (Brian will hopefully remember our time debunking Disney well)that effectively revealed the biases of Disney characters and stroylines, while also providing a context and rationale for the ideology that drove Walt and his successors. Walt Diney had a Conservative or at least traditionalist world view which led him to create masterpieces that featured a male- dominated, Anglo- Saxon based folklore. A folklore that seems to now be inextricably linked with the American identity. To add to what Taylor has said I would actually say that Disney has not improved their record of chauvanism and moralistic storytelling, only that they have improved how effectively they convey it. Ariel from ''The Little Mermaid'' is one of the saddest and most blatant portrayals of female subservience. As it pertains to Pocahontas, the fact that the story told on the screen exists outside the realm of basic historical facts allows Disney to rewrite American History. At the end of the film everything is tied up in a little bow. Powhatan says to Smith "you are always welcome in our village", and Pocahontas cries and chases after the ship as it leaves because she will miss her love. This movie ends on such a high note that I wouldn't be surprised if many people thought that was the end of Euro/ native hostilities. Disney did not leave room for sequels which could be entitled Genocide, Trail of Tears, or Reservation. The last ten minutes of this movie imply that because the two sides made peace, the English gained control of this continent thanks to the benevolence of the Native Americans. - Jason Ward | ||
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| + | I do agree that ''The Little Mermaid'' was a giant let down in portraying women. In fact, I watched it more recently because I couldn't remember much about it. I kept waiting for Ariel to whip Ursula, but instead I got Prince Eric impaling her with a ship and saving his honey! But I still think Disney has done a better job in the 90s of showing its female characters to be strong and independent, like Belle, Megara, Mulan, and so on. -- Taylor Brann | ||
One of the biggest problems with this movie is there is no real sense of development over time. The events all happily immediately after another instead of progressing over time. From the reading it is easy to tell that the relationships with the Indians developed slowly over time and there was a lot of negotiation involved. I also find it ironic that Kokoam Pocahontas's actual husband was killed during the movie. - Jonathan Bell | One of the biggest problems with this movie is there is no real sense of development over time. The events all happily immediately after another instead of progressing over time. From the reading it is easy to tell that the relationships with the Indians developed slowly over time and there was a lot of negotiation involved. I also find it ironic that Kokoam Pocahontas's actual husband was killed during the movie. - Jonathan Bell | ||
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It is hard to say what Disney's intentions were when making this film, but at least, the film does bring history to the forefront of children's minds, as Disney presents a romanticized version of John Smith's adventures and affairs with Pocahontas. David brings up a good point, we have to keep in mind that this movie was made for children and is bound to have tendencies to portray inaccurate events and exaggerate certain aspects of history (Although Roy Disney claims the movie was “responsible, accurate, and respectful”-Visual Communication by Paul Martin Lester). Children would rather see a happy conclusion than a disappointing one (which is how the story really ends, as Pocahontas was in captivity for some while). On a side note, I was also surprised that there was no mentioning of John Rolfe, the man who saved Pocahontas from captivity as well as the man who played a somewhat significant role in Pocahontas’ life. Would the movie have been better if it replaced John Smith with John Rolfe? Would it be more historically sound if it presented both men?-James Drury | It is hard to say what Disney's intentions were when making this film, but at least, the film does bring history to the forefront of children's minds, as Disney presents a romanticized version of John Smith's adventures and affairs with Pocahontas. David brings up a good point, we have to keep in mind that this movie was made for children and is bound to have tendencies to portray inaccurate events and exaggerate certain aspects of history (Although Roy Disney claims the movie was “responsible, accurate, and respectful”-Visual Communication by Paul Martin Lester). Children would rather see a happy conclusion than a disappointing one (which is how the story really ends, as Pocahontas was in captivity for some while). On a side note, I was also surprised that there was no mentioning of John Rolfe, the man who saved Pocahontas from captivity as well as the man who played a somewhat significant role in Pocahontas’ life. Would the movie have been better if it replaced John Smith with John Rolfe? Would it be more historically sound if it presented both men?-James Drury | ||
| + | Disney actually came out with Pocahontas 2, which includes John Rolfe. Of course, she has a romance with him. I can't say how accurate the movie is, as I haven't seen it in a while. But we all know what straight to video/DVD Disney sequels are like... --Taylor Brann | ||
I did a little research on the reception of Pocahontas. It seems to be one of the more popular and financially successful Disney movies released in the 1990s, but it’s also one of the most critiqued. It did pretty well at the Academy Awards too, winning for Best Original Song (Colors of the Wind) and Original Score. On another note, I found an [http://lass.calumet.purdue.edu/cca/gmj/OldSiteBackup/SubmittedDocuments/archivedpapers/fall2002/Artz.htm essay] that examines Pocahontas and several other Disney movies. It raised an interesting point about the formulaic Native American stereotypes in the movie, in the form of the “noble” Powhatan, the “savage” Kocoum, and the “Indian Princess” Pocahontas. --Taylor Brann | I did a little research on the reception of Pocahontas. It seems to be one of the more popular and financially successful Disney movies released in the 1990s, but it’s also one of the most critiqued. It did pretty well at the Academy Awards too, winning for Best Original Song (Colors of the Wind) and Original Score. On another note, I found an [http://lass.calumet.purdue.edu/cca/gmj/OldSiteBackup/SubmittedDocuments/archivedpapers/fall2002/Artz.htm essay] that examines Pocahontas and several other Disney movies. It raised an interesting point about the formulaic Native American stereotypes in the movie, in the form of the “noble” Powhatan, the “savage” Kocoum, and the “Indian Princess” Pocahontas. --Taylor Brann | ||
