Other Thoughts....

I am currently debating on changing my subject. I just finished the chapter on motion pictures and I was intrigued. My problem is that my original topic truly interests me. I'm also debating on what angle I could take when it comes to motion pictures.

Proposal

I am requesting your approval to do my Freshman Focus research project on the subliminal messages that are illustrated throughout Disney films. I hope to determine that there are underlying messages that transmit and express negative stereotypes such as racism and sexism to a susceptible society. Disney films have been a big part of my childhood since I was extremely young, and I want to explore any underlying messages that I might have learned unconsciously from some of the more popular Disney films. I am going to research how Disney films demonstrate stereotypical messages through character depiction, sound/music, and environment illustrations. I will be using a number of online resources to aid in my research. I will provide basic history on the creation of a few Disney films and explore some of the different stereotypes that have been recognized by my fellow researchers. I will also search for my own stereotypes as I review some of my childhood films.

Annotated Bibliography Number Six

Wingfield, Marvin, and Bushra Karaman. "Arab Stereotypes and American Educators - American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee." Home - American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee. Mar. 1995. Web. 23 Feb. 2011. <http://www.adc.org/education/arab-stereotypes-and-american-educators/>.

Disney created a controversial film with the production of Aladdin and their depiction of the Arab culture. It does portray an Arab hero, but the film does not come without its criticisms. The film has been condemned for illustrating the lead characters as light-skinned figures with Anglicized features. They have even been criticized for the use of Americanized accents as voices for their characters. The film has been further criticized for its illustrations of the Arab culture as being barbaric and cruel. Even the environment is portrayed as barren and desolate. The article continues by stating that popular culture has given a repeatedly bad image to the Arab culture with their portrayal of provocative women and violent men.  The article states that the educators of our children have done nothing to prevent bias amongst the young children viewers.  The backlash that accompanies these negative stereotypes has harmful effects on the Arab Americans in the United States. The Arab culture and their history is not something that is discussed or taught in schools today. The article concludes by stating that people should make an effort to avoid such harmful stereotyping.  (189)

Annotated Bibliography Number Five

Murnane, John. "Reversing the "Disneyfication" Process: Using Disney Films to Debunk Stereotypes and Oversimplification in Middle and High School Social Science Courses." The History Cooperative. Web. 02 Mar. 2011. <http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/whc/5.1/murnane.html>.

The article begins by stating that Disney has a wide, diverse audience. It continues by stating that Disney has a great impact on stereotypes and public perceptions of nationality, values, and gender biases. The article states that some people in society believe that people read too much into Disney films. Proponents of this position believe that Disney is purely for entertainment purposes. The article continues by stating that Disney is the first global experience many children are exposed to pertaining to the outside world and the different cultures. Because Disney is such a global phenomenon, the article states that Disney’s films have an impact on student perception in high school and middle school. This article proceeds with stating that a critical analysis of media would be beneficial to the school system by providing an opportunity to analyze a large part of the popular media culture. The article continues by critically analyzing the movies Mulan, Aladdin, Tarzan, and The Lion King as examples.  The article ends by stating that Disney films can be compared to different aspects of history, culture, or social studies. The article states that Disney provides an opportunity to recognize stereotypes and generalization in our history and culture.

Annotated Bibliography Number Four

Gillam, Ken, and Shannon Wooden. "Post-Princess Models of Gender: The New Man in Disney/Pixar." Journal of Popular Film and Television 36.1 (2008): 2-8. Academic Search Premier. Web. 8 Mar. 11.

< http://mulinutil1.millikin.edu:2274/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?hid=110&sid=02f6a686-1078-4d03-b0c1-9fa7e45e57db%40sessionmgr110&vid=5>.

                       

The article begins by stating that Disney’s Pixar films have featured macho stereotypes in many of their previous movies. The alpha-male persona has become a prominent occurrence throughout Disney’s history of films.  Three major pictures discussed in this article are Cars, Toy Story, and The Incredibles. Male Disney leads undergo a change as they progress throughout the film. According to this article, all the male characters strive to achieve the ultimate male persona and at the end achieve a new understanding as a man. It continues by stating that Disney manipulates the male image to encompass new outlooks on the male identity.  The article proceeds by saying that many of Disney main male characters undergo changes that allow them to accept a more understanding and kinder outlook that proceeds the transformation to the “new male” model.  The author continues by stating the male bonds are essential in the creation of this new model of male characters. The “new man” is a character that has evolved and accepted his emotions and masculinity to emerge transformed. The article ends by stating that we must be conscious of any messages that are being illustrated to society through Disney films. (200)

Visual Examples

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://img.listal.com/image/1184407/500full.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.listal.com/list/racist-disney&usg=__cUGv_YMgazM-AZ_fUSb9BB14058=&h=200&w=400&sz=42&hl=en&start=0&sig2=cSxbj61HjNAmo6xZgNUb1g&zoom=1&tbnid=qL4Pwc65NPZcMM:&tbnh=94&tbnw=188&ei=_6pgTeGgBoX7lweS3qT6Cw&prev=/images%3Fq%3DRacist%2Bimages%2Bin%2Bdisney%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1123%26bih%3D437%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=674&vpy=108&dur=1043&hovh=159&hovw=318&tx=148&ty=99&oei=_6pgTeGgBoX7lweS3qT6Cw&page=1&ndsp=10&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:0

http://www.pinpics.com/cgi-bin/group.cgi?group=2114
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.kids-comforter-set.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/Disney_Jasmine_princess.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.kids-comforter-set.com/tag/kids-comforter-set/&usg=__ydI3EtW8R-SJ1GloBvt5XiDgxGo=&h=650&w=324&sz=106&hl=en&start=0&sig2=D-N0W2sFWD6h5rhmxiWR9A&zoom=1&tbnid=HGrO5lepqWMtRM:&tbnh=115&tbnw=57&ei=xKtgTdmgLoLGlQeH6bzjCw&prev=/images%3Fq%3DJasmine%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1123%26bih%3D437%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=163&oei=xKtgTdmgLoLGlQeH6bzjCw&page=1&ndsp=14&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:0&tx=30&ty=58

Idea Number Two

         My next idea would be the comparison of American photojournalism to other countries photojournalism. I would research the difference techniques and the varying censorship that distinguishes America’s techniques and expression versus other countries. What interests me about this topic is that different cultures hold different standards for what they allow shown in their media. My research had indicated that different nations have strict guidelines for what they allow in their media. My fear with this topic is that there will not be enough reliable sources for me to reference.

Idea Number One

I am considering doing is an investigation into the discovery of subliminal messages expressed by Disney films. More specifically, I believe my focus will be on the sexist and racist messages expressed by the films imaging. I grew up with these films, and I believe it would be interesting to learn more about their creations and how society perceives these movies. My research has indicated that things such as clothing, mannerisms, and body shape can express a deeper message than what we are currently aware that we perceive. Movies can express an underlying message that reinforces stereotypical views about cultures and ethnicities. I will rely on dependable and scholarly articles and books for my research.  This is an open paper because it depends on how each individual evaluates the findings. It will depend on how you analyze my research to decide if you believe that Disney has included subliminal messages into their children oriented animation films. I will attempt in limiting my research to only scholarly articles and published novels to adhere to your guidelines for sources.

Annotated Bibliography: Number Three

Brunette, Libby, Mallory, Claudette, and Wood, Shannon. "Stereotypes and Racism in Children's Movies." 1-4. Web. 12 Feb. 2011. <http://www.nhaeyc.org/newsletters/articles/Racism_in_Childrens_Movies.pdf>.

This article begins by stating that young children are very impressionable at an early age. They develop their own identities early and label others based on what they learn from older generations and media influences. The article continues on to define racism and stereotypes using the Merriam Webster Collegiate Dictionary. The article claims that Disney Corporation has major influence over children’s ideologies. The article states that Disney has had many instances of racism that has been recognized by society in their films. Examples come from movies such as: The Jungle Book, Oliver and Company, Lady and the Tramp, Aladdin, The Lion King, Tarzan, and Pocahontas. These films include stereotypes of African Americans, Native Americans, and Asians. Parents, guardians, and teachers have a responsibility to show an impressionable youth positive images of other nationalities. According to this article, children need guidance to understand and accept different cultures and ethnicities.

Annotated Bibliography: Number Two

Yerby, Amanda, Baron, Samantha, and Lee Youjinn."Gender Roles in Disney Animation." Rpt. in American.edu. Vol. 1. 1-11. Web. 8 Feb. 2011. <http://www.american.edu/soc/film/upload/Gender-Roles-in-Disney.pdf>.

This article defines gender roles as actions or behaviors that are usually attributed to either male or females. It is the stereotyping of a person’s identity based on preconceived notions of how a gender should behave. Animation is one major way stereotypes have been spread throughout our societies. Animations creators pigeonhole genders into certain standards that can be portrayed visually through things like body shapes. Movies create images that children take to be the “norm.” Disney films have especially pushed the stereotypical “princess” image as a prominent gender role that women are intended to fulfill. The female role of a princess heroine has become more popular as the years have passed. Men are illustrated with muscles and agility to continue portraying stereotypical images of the male gender. Even characteristics such as things like age effect how people perceive an animated character. The article continues with a quick analysis of four very prominent Disney films that have differing lead female characters.  It concludes with saying that the portrayal of women characters has changed over time.

Annotated Bibliography: Number One

Fishman, Jessica and Marvin, Carolyn. “Portrayals of Violence and Group Difference in Newspaper Photographs: Nationalism and Media.” Journal of Communication, 2003.  53: 32–44.

            Fishman and Marvin make the comparison of United States photojournalism versus other countries photojournalism and how people and political factors relating to violence are displayed differently in media. Two hypotheses are proposed as to how the entities differ from each other. One is that the U.S. identity is related to visual displays of concealed violence. The second hypothesis is that other countries relate to obvious violence with their media. The article defines violence in media based on physical and oral coercion. The authors continue to expand the definition of coercive typology by categorizing it into three different types: explicit, latent, and dramatic. Studies conducted showed that other countries tend to be portrayed as being more explicitly violent in photojournalism than actual American entities in U.S. journalism. There is a mass debate over violence in the media displaying different actions that has been widely disputed and will continue to be a controversial issue pertaining to photojournalism.