Goals

So anyone who knows me is aware that ever since I was around ten or eleven, my dream job has been to work for Pixar. Well, with a bit of internet searching, I found a Buzzed article that shows various sights around the Pixar campus. Below I will post the link to see the pictures of the article, but here are a few of my thoughts.

1. The entrance to the campus looks very similar to Nike's HQ entrance in that it is very simple and minimalist. There isn't much that needs to be said in order to convey the exclusivity. However it is interesting to note how the style is reflective of their region: Pixar's HQ is located in California, Nike is in Oregon and both architecture styles are reflective of such attitudes.

(Nike) 

(Pixar)

2. Giant trees and sculptures are another commonality between Nike and Pixar's campus. 

 (Nike)

 (Pixar)

3. The attention to detail is one that I wish Duke's campus had more of. When you can notice something Pixar-related in everything from the floor to the bathroom doors, there's a huge sense of pride that comes from the experience. It strengthens the integrity of the brand in a way that associates it with high quality products and fun.

4. Just looking at a PICTURE of the Academy Awards case gave me goosebumps and made me sigh a longing, sad, breath. I imagine this is how teenage girls feel when they look at pictures of One Direction. 

5. Their eating areas look amazing............ly expensive.  I wonder if the employees get a food plan like Google. Because if so , I totally would not mind going to that cereal bar everyday. 

Pictures Of My Dream Life

Messages

The last post I composed got me thinking about the negative messages that Disney can portray:

Blame Disney?

I noticed this picture online, and surprisingly I'm not sure how I feel about it. Usually I totally support the idea of viewing Disney through a different light, and making note of the contradictory messages that it sometimes promotes. However, this time I feel as though this was more of a stretch, a reach to find controversial aspects that weren't originally controversial. It also bothers me that this image plays along the idea of a celebrity or a set of films drastically affecting how a child is raised. 

Response to Blackness, Bayous, and Gumbo

In this article, Sarah Turner argues that the Disney film the Princess and the Frog "represents a complex moment in a culture steeped in political correctness and an adherence to the politics of colorblindness." Her disapproval of the film stems from the idea that Tiana is merely a Disney Princess who "happens to be black", rather than a Disney Princess who's character and identity is affected by her race. I believe that Turner's argument is effective in describing how race was downplayed in the film; this article convinced me of such. However, I don't agree with the alleged implications of this decision.

The beginning of her article is the strongest. By explaining and deconstructing the process of encoding that takes place when producing media, she puts the reader in the shoes of the producers. She walks them through various strategic decisions: what characteristic of Tiana should be emphasized, how much attention is brought to her socioeconomic status, and even the mindset of the projected demographic. When the reader is brought into this point of view, they are able to see the options the producers had when creating this film and the thought process behind making a decision between them. A point that I hadn't even considered until I read this piece was how much the concept of handwork is shoved down the throats of viewers. The sad truth of the matter is that no matter how much hard work Tiana put into getting her own business, if this film were historically accurate, theres a good chance she wouldn't have reached her dream anyway primarily because of her race. This glass ceiling concept is one that I wish she had elaborated on for her audience because it plays a major role in the context of how race is undermined through this seemingly progressive film.

Some of her pieces of evidence didn't connect as well as they needed to in order to strengthen her argument. For example, while criticizing the location of the setting, she discusses the relationship between New Orleans and the theme of "starting over". This portion of her argument is strong and easy to follow until she brings up the film "Enchanted" as a piece of evidence as support. She states "Disney's 2007 Cinderella story Enchanted, with its white princess played by Amy Adams, takes place in 21st century New York City, the classic yet contemporary Cinderella story," implying that race played a factor in the setting of the film. However, Turner doesn't take time to make this connection clear to her readers and instead leaves the translation of her evidence their responsibility.

The Youtube Channel I Wish I Had Discovered Sooner

I came across a Youtube Channel that has several, Disney musical-styled songs that take on everything from Disney itself to other Fandoms with modern humor and pretty catchy musicality! Links to a couple different featured projects with several million views:

Disney Villain Musical - www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6em5XNkiIA

Hipster Disney Princesses Musical - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yPfmRoSfpA

Dr.Who Musical - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoSDbku7Cio

Star Wars - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRMFH71fDIE

Pokemon Musical - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlE6E4wY6WA

More People Accusing Disney of Worshipping the Devil

So I came across an article titled "Disney's Frozen Conspiracies" and decided to give it a look. I don't know what I was expecting from a piece posted by a website titled "illuminatiwatcher.com", but somehow I was still surprised by their findings. Although I'll post the link at the bottom of this post, I'm still going to do my best to summarize this groundbreaking discovery for you.

1. The author starts by saying "The woman who thinks Frozen is pushing a homosexual agenda is ridiculous and crazy," which originally gives me the impression that this piece was created by a rational individual. He effectively argues against her theory, pointing out the flaws in her argument and the absurdity of homophobia.

2. Then I get the feeling that I imagine occurring often in Scooby Doo films, the moment where everyone starts to piece together that the person they are talking to is actually the perpetrator all along. When he says, "All of Disney is about magic and the basis for this is occult in nature, take the upcoming Maleficent film," I get the sense that this isn't going to get better as I keep reading. He then goes on to explain how Maleficent is representative of the Devil .

3. The moment he lost all of my trust was at the sentence "There are several images of triangles, which are of great importance in Witchcraft and other occult practices. The triangle is a magic spell that I go into further detail in... ". From there he spends the rest of the paragraph posting pictures of triangles in Frozen and how represent a "salute" to demonic figures.

4. Another point made is the shape of the snowflakes in the film, which happen to be commonly hexagonal. The Seal of Solomon, a device used to summon supernatural spirits, is in the shape of a hexagon. Therefore any snowflake that has six points is proof that Elsa is a witch. A witch who performs a Freemason ritual and evil spell to give dead evil spirits life, (This is in regards to Olaf and the stone creatures).


Obviously this is a Satanic production. How did I not see this before?

http://illuminatiwatcher.com/disneys-frozen-conspiracy-theories/

Disney Movies that I Would Like to See Made into Musicals

It has recently been announced that Tangled is going to be produced into a musical.While it is starting through Disney Cruise Lines, it can be assumed that the goal is to move the show on land if it's successful. Typically I am a huge fan of musicals, and I'm fascinated with the progression of technology and creative innovation within the theatre industry as of recent years. If you were to go back a couple decades in time and tell people that a story about lions and other animals would be transformed into one of the most respected musicals of all time, they would assume you were crazy. However, the Lion King collected several awards and transformed the physical restrictions of theatre.

Cats was also a show that broke visual and artistic boundaries. Everything from the choreography, to the makeup and costumes, even the physical training of the actors played a role in manipulating the mind of the audience. Before I begin a lengthy, theatre-nerd, rant, the point I am trying to make is that anything is possible with stage magic. I would love to see the following somehow transformed into a show with a great story and an even better soundtrack!

5. Life-Size

So I'm aware that this movie didn't have the deepest storyline, and probably was one of the more forgettable Disney films, but it used to have a pretty strong cult following and has the potential for a pretty funny reboot. Legally-Blonde is a show that comes to mind to model the tone after: very pop-infused songs with culturally relevant jokes and charisma. 

4. Eloise

Unfortunately this product's fan-base also has a pretty small demographic, only much younger. Successful from the coattails of the books, this could prove to be a show similar to Annie, only for a more contemporary audience. Also, because French culture plays such a huge role in the story's design, there is an opportunity to introduce a newer style of music to theatre. 

3. The Emperor's New Groove

I sense a very Hakuna-Matata sense of playfulness to Kuzco that would appeal to anyone with a heart. Although I don't remember the soundtrack of this film, I do recall the silliness and spirit, an easily transferrable attribute to the stage. Is it bad that I automatically picture Helena Bonham Carter as Yzma? 

2. Hercules

For the most part this film already has a fantastic soundtrack, there are a lot of ways a director could choose to play up the gospel sound of the most popular songs. I would love to be the costume design director for this show, just the thought of designing a nightmarish look for Hades gives me goosebumps of excitement. 

1. Lilo and Stitch

I already have the soundtrack of this movie memorized by heart. Hawaiian culture plays out beautifully on stage, not to mention the opportunity to transform a human into a dangerous, yet adorable, alien. 

25 Thoughts on Princess and the Frog

Live-Blog Time!

1. If this movie is supposed to make me dislike small, blonde, white, toddlers, it has done a fantastic job in the first ten minutes.

2.  I feel the kindness of small blonde princess's dad was unrealistic....

3. Come on Disney. Did you really just illustrate this girl to use Tabasco? If she were white would you have had her use Tabasco?

4. Of course the Dad dies, why else would the people she loves remain in her life to see her happy ending? I think I hate this movie. Nine minutes in.

5. Why is Tiana getting the money if the cook is the one who made the beignets?

6. The Prince has entered the movie! I asked my friend sitting next to me how she feels about his race.

"I feel like he's mixed, but that's just my prior history of New Orleans. The higher class was comprised of mixed people who were into classical musical, and that is where his excitement of jazz comes from."

(Me) "What is the definition of mixed?"

"Mixed means that someone is of african american descent, but it throws me off that he has this weird accent. He's French. Maybe he is just foreign. Wait. WHAT IS HE?! Hold up, stop America with this need to define people and put them into boxes."

7. For Tiana to say that she has two left feet, she makes a fantastic dancer.

8. Why is the assistant of the Prince white?

9. Comment from my friend "Why does the villain look like a crackhead?" A good note is the fact that he has a gap in his teeth, why can't it be the good people to have imperfections?

10. So if the Prince gets tricked into being cursed, then does that make him the damsel in distress?

11. It is interesting that so far three quarters of the way into this movie, none the characters with Southern accents are portrayed as intelligent. Every character with a drawl is depicted as obnoxious, exaggerated and foolish to some sense.

12. One thing I love about Tiana is the idea that she is taking on a role in this film that is traditionally represented by men. She's teaching skills and outsmarting enemies, surviving through strength and power. All while being adored by her partner. In most cases it is the female who is given the role of looking pretty and tagging along while the man initiates the action.

13. It is hilarious to me that Naveen is translating French with a Brazilian accent.

14. More Tabasco references. Why can't she recommend oregano or truffle oil?

15. Falling in love with the moon has to be simultaneously one of the saddest and most romantic things I've ever heard.

16. "Just because you wish for something doesn't make it true." Very different from, "When you wish upon a star..."

17. Ray is most certainly my favorite character of this film.

18. I feel as though the plot of this movie was more difficult to follow than traditional Disney movies.  I forgot how the Shadowman had debts to pay to the demons, maybe I was just confused.

19. Ray's death goes right up there with Doby dying. Hurt my heart to watch.

20. Detail I liked, when watching Ray die, TIana doesn't turn away or bury her face into her prince out of despair. She represents such strength in so many subtle aspects, it's hard not to appreciate.

21. I wish there was a happier ending for the alligator, he seemed deserving of such.

22. LOL at how racially ambiguous Prince Naveen's parents are, their skin tones were practically gray. However, all of his guards were white! #whereisNaveenFrom2k15

23. On second thought, I wish the alligator was turned into a human and then married formerly small blonde girl. That would have been nice.

24. No one questions the giant alligator playing the trumpet?

25. I must say I liked this film, but I'm definitely disappointed in it's production. Disney had all of the tools necessary for a major, major hit, but they made the production true to stay musically authentic to the era. This was a mistake because it narrowed the demographic of viewers that would stay loyal to the film and buy into the franchise. If they had produced a catchier, more widely appealing soundtrack such as in Beauty and the Beast or Frozen, they would have been able to sell Tiana to nearly every Disney-loving home in America, breaking barriers and grounds in terms of media diversity. However, this film was limited in developing a cult-classic-esque fan base, thus limiting the impact of a black disney princess and defeating the purpose of her existence.

HUGE GIANT AMAZING NEWS

I HAVE VERY VERY VERY IMPORTANT NEWS TO SHARE WITH THE WORLD.

DISNEY STUDIOS HAS ANNOUNCED THE PRODUCTION OF


A LIVE ACTION VERSION



OF


THE DISNEY CLASSIC, (and my personal favorite Disney Princess film),

MULAN

Let me explain why Mulan is my favorite Disney Princess of all time:

1. She was one of the sole princesses to represent the awkward, less than graceful girls in the Disney franchise. Unlike the others she wasn't romantically inclined, not an elegant dancer, and didn't wake up with fantastic hair and a song for the birds outside her window. Although she represented these shortcomings it presented a lot of strengths that the other female characters didn't have. Unlike the other princesses, she made real friends with those around her, (Rather than the sidekicks/ entourage's of Cinderella, Belle, Snow White). Additionally, she proved to be strong. Both mentally and physically. Rather than wailing about her problems and throwing herself onto an object with a dramatic sob, she chose strength and fought (literally) for success.

To this day, Mulan will be one of my favorite Disney characters because I relate to her on so many levels. We both have extremely close relationships with our Dad's, the type in which we strangely want to prove them wrong, yet please and make them proud simultaneously. And coming from the background of being a military kid, the idea of wanting to fill in your Dad's combat boots one day for him hits extremely close to home. I remember tears streaming down my face when I watched the movie for the first time, and her dad painfully accepts his orders to serve. Whether your orders are sending you off to fight the Huns in ancient China, or terrorists in present-day Iraq, this was a moment that all military families felt in a dark and cold place.

There is also the aspect that Mulan represented one of the very few Princesses to be "one of the guys", but still regarded with respect and admiration. Somehow Disney was able to portray a character that strongly defied typical Asian- Female- Submissive stereotypes in a way that didn't have to sacrifice her kindness and beauty.


Needless to say, the level of excitement that I feel for this movie is extremely high. Arguably higher than when I received my acceptance letter for college. I know, I know, dishonor on me, dishonor on my family, dishonor on my cow...

Artistic Inspiration- Disney Princess Style

So, I stumbled upon an article about reimagined Disney Princesses that I absolutely fell in love with.  An artist reimagined classic Disney Princesses as different races than their original design, which may sound like a tired version of "race-bending" but actually came across as eye-opening and intriguing. Although I couldn't find the name of the artist in the article, there was a comment of why he felt compelled to draw these images. In his statement he says,  "no political agenda in mind for these edits (except maybe the desire to see a little more diversity), I just love working with character design.” Which makes me love his product even more. He was driven by artistic inspiration, not a board of producers telling him to include more brown people in his work. The whole purpose of diversity is defeated when it is forced and artificially synthesized. It should be automatic to look at a scene full of racially homogenous characters and feel as though it isn't an accurate representation of reality. However, I shall stop my ranting and show the beautiful work of this artist below. The link to the original article will be at the end. 

1. Snow White

                                        

2. The Little Mermaid

3. Cinderella

4. Beauty and the Beast

5. Hercules

6. Sleeping Beauty 

7. Princess and the Frog

8. Pocahontas 

9. Aladdin

http://static.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/race-bent-disney-princesses-ethnicity-lettherebedoodles-14.jpg

"Fat and the Land"

The amount to which I did not like this article was  extensive, largely in part because I did not understand half of it. The major frustration I had with her argument was the overall lack of development in her thoughts and ideas. I feel as though she tried so hard to come across as deep and philosophical, she ended up losing her reader along the way. I had an unusually difficult time pinpointing the thesis of her claim.
From my understanding, what she begins by describing Pixar's relationship with producing "fat" characters, and importantly, how they label and describe the body size. Her thesis follows as "Up’s strategic ambiguity is supported by the film’s visual iconography, particularly as it pertains to the landscape, because that iconography constructs both intriguing departures from, and adherence to, size stereotypes.", which would imply that she is going to discuss the film's strategy in keeping the ambiguiguity around Russell's weight. However, rather than being able to follow her argument along the lines of landscape-associated iconography and size stereotypes, she consistently goes on tangents about Carl representing a patriarchy and America's national identity. 
Although there were several opportunities for the author, Kate Flynn, to attempt to tie these irrelevant ideas into the repercussions of obesity portrayal, she instead tries to recreate additional arguments built onto these claims that she's making. For example, when trying to relate Russell's size with his inability to "associate with the land", rather than explaining how Pixar capitalizes on the incongruity of a non-physically fit individual being thrown into rugged terrain, she instead decides to discuss Puritans. 
....Puritans? 
Apparently, the "slender" and "lean" shape of Ellie is supposed to represent a natural relationship that Puritans had with the natural land around them. Because Russell isn't shaped like a Puritan, his connection to a frontier is contrived and therefore a contrast to Carl as well. 
Somehow, this is supposed to be a trail of thought that the audience is expected to follow. 
Overall, I don't have a strong aversion to Kate Flynn's argument. I believe that there is a lot to be said about how body image is represented in Disney films, and the idea of examining their portrayal strategy was a refreshingly original idea.  However, rather than making her argument clear and easy to comprehend, I believe that Flynn's desire to emphasize the metaphysical aspect of her position ended up alienating her readers.  

 

Countdown, future Disney ideas

Buzzfeed usually is my source of hard-hitting journalism, never-disputed journalism, but today was the day to end that honorary legacy. I found an article titled "10 Disney Characters Who Should Definitely Get Their Own Live-Action Film", and could not agree less with the choices that were made. (This post disregards sequels/ spinoff television series ) In this post, I'll list characters that deserve the limelight for once or films that I believe should be remade into live-action films.

10. Mushu, Mulan
Do I need to explain anything else? Arguably one of Disney's most beloved characters of all time, I'm sure even older Disney fans would love to watch a film featuring this guy's humor and personality. Rather than starting at the beginning and explaining childhood, it would be great to see Mushu readjust to life after helping the Girl who saved China.

9. Genie, Aladdin
For a character so attuned to the desires and intracacies of human interaction, the audience knows nothing about Genie and his past. Being cooped up in a lamp for a couple of centuries is bound to produce at least one good story.

8. Russell, UP

Usually I dislike sequels, but this may prove to be an exception. Lets look at Russell as an adult, has he maintained the love of adventure and life that he achieved with Carl? Or has he succumbed to the bitter and cynical nature of adulthood? Imagining a situation in which he is unexpectedly brought back to the house, maybe Carl left Russell the house in his will and passes away, seems to be the expected direction of a follow-up film.

7.  Pinocchio

I see a live-action version of this film taking one of two routes: either a comedy that emphasizes the the idea of "being careful of what you wish for", or a darker Tim Burton-esque film that dramatizes the end of a childhood and the dangers of growing up too fast.

6. Boo, Monsters Inc.

Similar to the idea with Russell, I also think the integral concept of family plays a huge role in the love behind this movie. On the other hand, if they simply wanted to flip the plot upside down, the movie could revolve around the idea of the monsters getting stuck in the human world. Needing to find Boo (who is now an adult), they could go on an adventure through the streets of Ohio to find the only person who can help get them home.

5. Kristoff, Frozen

Why was this poor boy left in the woods with some talking rocks and a reindeer?! How come there are at least one hundred guys cutting ice at the beginning of the film, but there ends up only being one person to sell any in the whole town?! How did he turn out so normal despite being raised by rocks? Does he have magic powers too?! Is that how he talks to his reindeer?! Give me some answers here Disney!! Plus this would be an easy and reliable way to open up the Frozen franchise to a larger demographic of consumers, boys in particular.

4. Esmerelda, The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Very little is explained about Esmerelda in her film. The only thing the audience knows is that she enjoys dancing, her only source  of family is a pet goat, and that she is a Gypsy. What is it about Quasimodo that draws her to help him? After all, he is of the white ethnicity that is consistently killing her people, and by saving him she loses the only source of income she has. She comes across as far too cynical to believe in the "But I love him Daddy!" mindset that Ariel and Pocahontas succumb to.

3. James and the Giant Peach

I loved this movie as a child, less because of the plot and story and more because of how incredibly captivating every character was. Every time I watch it, I find something new and extraordinary about the design. If the same amount of detail conscientiousness is put into the costuming, set, and makeup of a live-action version, it would be very very hard to turn down.

2. Ursula, The Little Mermaid

Her character is seemingly one dimensional, but definitely has enough personality and intrigue to hold a film on her own. Much like Maleficicent, it would be really entertaining to see her interactions with Ariel from her perspective. What is she really after? Why does she have octopus legs instead of a mermaid tail? The underwater setting of the original may prove to be difficult to recreate in a live-action format, but it could make for a visually stunning product with the help of CGI.

1. Megara, Hercules

It may have been a little while since I've watched this movie, but I'm pretty sure that her story is limited to the men in her life who have done her wrong in some way. Whether it was Hades for imprisoning her, or the love she sacrificed her life for, or even Hercules who is seemingly the point of her entire existence. There is something very relatable to the conflict between the spunk and sass of her personality and the hopeless romantic tendencies that get her into trouble. In Mindy-Kaling/ Mean Girls fashion, Disney would have the opportunity to derive a film for older audiences with already well known characters.

Response to 17 Reasons We Need a South Asian Princess

This is a response to an article from Buzzfeed discussing the reasons why Disney needs to make a film starring a South Asian heroine, and I'm not sure how I feel about it.

The problem isn't that I don't want there to be more racial diversity within the Disney Princess collection or that I dislike the idea of having a South Asian princess. The problem is that I am concerned  about the how easy it would be for writers and producers to turn this project into a well packaged bundle of stereotypes and cliche archetypes.

Pocahontas, Aladdin and the Hunchback of Notre Dame all featured minority female heroines and the majority of the backlash surrounding these characters was that they became defined by their race as opposed to their story and individuality. In my opinion, although they have made significant improvement, Disney has yet to produce a film in which a minority heroine is portrayed in a way that is widely relatable and accessible to many.

 I know you may argue that Tiana from Princess and the Frog was a prime example of a minority female defying stereotypes, but I disagree that it was a successful product. Yes, it was a powerful move by producers to support, and I can appreciate the historical context of the piece. However, the fact that it made very little merchandise sales in comparison with other characters, and how the majority of the demographic purchasing the merchandise is African American households concerns me.

Why is it that millions of little girls can relate to a half-human/half-fish, but not an African American princess?  Girls of all races aspire and look up to Ariel, you can see this in the amount of halloween sales and dress up sales the mermaid is racking in to this day. However, this was not the case for Tiana, as the majority of the girls buying her products are just the girls that physically look like her.

I support the push for a South Asian Princess 100%! What I don't support, is a movie that blends a character's ethnicity with her identity. By taking away the appeal of being an "everyday girl like you and me", we would only isolate her from the brand and contribute to reasons why diversity in the media is struggling.

Our Movie

I have a very special place in my heart for the movie Up. I usually live blog most movie reactions, but   this time I would rather construct this personal response while I watch for the 100th time. 

Everyone meet Brent:

We met my freshman year of high school while I lived in Florida, while he was wearing a pair of glasses in class one day, I told him that he looked like Carl Fredricksen, the main character in Up. According to Instagram, the picture below was taken 149 weeks ago.

After we started talking, we found that we both loved that movie, I loved the storyline and the poignancy of the film, and he liked the talking dogs. Regardless, we both loved the film and would talk about it often. 

Flash forward two years, to our junior year. I let him know that my dad got orders for us to move to Honolulu, Hawaii and that I wouldn't be completing my senior year at our school. We were both sad, but decided to make the most of the time we had left. 

Flash forward a couple of months and after a successful homecoming, he handed me a packet of notecards that said "Clues" on the front with the very explicit instructions of "DO NOT OPEN UNTIL I TELL YOU TO".

Flash forward about three and a half weeks and I receive a very mysterious text to asking if I still knew where these cards were, and if I did, to open and read them.

On the other side of each one was a question about the movie Up, hangman-style with certain letters of the answers circled. Once I was done with all of the clues, the circled letters spelled out "COME TO THE GAZEBO". (There was a park with a Gazebo about five minutes away from my house.)

I walk out to the spot he told me to go to and see this.

Brent bought 80 balloons from the nearest grocery store and an industrial ladder, climbed to the top of the gazebo and tied them to the top to make it look as much like the house from our favorite movie as possible. He handed me a giant bear (thats my head sticking out from behind it) and flowers and asked me to our Junior prom. Of course, I said yes and we had an awesome time. 

Although we go to different schools now, (he is at UCLA), we both still love the movie. And to this day, hundreds of times after watching it, I still cry at the opening scene and he still looks forward to yelling "SQUIRREL!"

The End. 

Don't Be a Drag, just be Queen

          As far as Putnam’s argument goes, I am conflicted with whether or not I agree with her. On one hand, she makes a great point about how Disney tends to assign more masculine features to their female villains. However, on the other hand, I don’t believe that this was an effort to support certain ideas about transgendered individuals or that the characters were even intended to represent transgendered individuals.

          Disney princesses in particular tend to follow very narrow and limited ideas about beauty. For the most part, they are styled to have very Western features, and arguably Old-Hollywood ideals when it comes to beauty: long hair, big eyes, and lean hourglass figures. By following this standard, Disney is in fact promoting a standard that most applies to specific ideas about sexuality. Putnam supports this idea in her recent article “Mean Ladies: “Transgendered Villains in Disney Films” “In making each heroine’s outfit form-fitting, especially around her breasts, waists, and hips, Disney accentuates the ideal heterosexual female figure to viewers: curvy breasts and hips, an unrealistically small waist- and tight apparel to show it off”. To further this position, Putnam illustrates how this applies to the male characters in these installments as well with “Taller than each respective princess, broad-shouldered, square-jawed, and muscular, their attributes become standardized heterosexual male physical characteristics”.  This is a point that hadn’t before registered in my mind when I consumed Disney media. The male counterparts of the Disney characters never wear pink, speak about maintaining their appearance, or display any overtly artistic appreciation, (i.e. speaking about a love of dance or song, having a job in the arts). 

The characters that don’t fit into this constricted scope of appearance and personality are either the sidekick characters intended to provide comic relief (ex., a weak Mushu in Mulan, or an emotionally sensitive Flounder in the Little Mermaid) or they are the villains that are out to harm Disney’s beloved protagonists. Putnam makes a point in stating that when these ideas about gender normativity are enforced consistently, society can reflect by therefore being less accepting of individuals who don’t fit into this constricted scope of “normality”. This is where my opinion with Putnam becomes one that is less clear in terms of agreement and disagreement. In an attempt to further her argument, she ends up giving credibility to the opposing views that she’s trying to discredit, “While there are no Disney characters that actively announce their homosexuality or transgenderism, there is considerable evidence that Disney’s gender-bending characters are flourishing,” in this sentence alone, Putnam commits the crime that she’s denouncing. She’s assuming that all characters that display unconventional characteristics are transgendered, which seems a lot like the stereotyping to me. None of the characters that were used as examples in her piece were noted as transgendered. While I agree that the way in which Disney villains are characterized presents a problem in how people are perceived by society, I don’t believe that Disney bears the burden of these implications. If she were to expand her argument to pick a bone with media as a whole rather than Disney alone, I would have an easier time agreeing more wholeheartedly.