Native Americans & Disney

Term Paper # 116359

Anthropology > Cultural
Communication > Mass Media
Film > Analysis, Criticism, Etc.

This essay presents a look into the Disney Corporation's power to stereotype and marginalize the Native-American culture, focusing on the movies 'Pocahontas' and 'Peter Pan'.

2,984 words () | 7 sources | APA | 2007 United States

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer examines the images and discourse surrounding Native Americans in Disney movies. The writer discusses Disney's ability to marginalize the Native-American culture through their prevalent role in popular culture, their stereotyping of the culture through the images they use of Native Americans and the discourse and language they use in the movie and the movie's songs. The writer also utilizes the critical perspective in order to clarify the problems with Disney's representations of Native Americans. Disney's stereotyping is discussed and illustrated through a description of the images of Pocahontas and the Indian characters in Peter Pan.

Outline:
Introduction
Review of the Literature
Disney as Popular Culture
Discussion, Analysis, and Critique
Concluding with Power and Privilege
References
Appendix A
Appendix B
Appendix C
Appendix D
Savages (Part 1)

From the Paper:

"Now, I will explore the images and portrayal of the character Pocahontas in the movie Pocahontas and I will compare the physique, clothing, and characteristics of the cartoon images versus real life images of Pocahontas. If you take a look at the cartoon version of Pocahontas, it is apparent that her proportions are unrealistic and is nothing like the images that we have of what the real Pocahontas looked like. Her leather dress is rather short, low-cut, and form-fitting. This portrayal of Pocahontas is degrading compared to what the real Pocahontas looked like and can especially be seen as degrading when looking at the Disney merchandise of Pocahontas, especially the Barbie Doll of Pocahontas, in which her midriff is exposed. This showing of her midriff is degrading and unnecessary due to the fact that at no point in the movie was her midriff ever showing, and yet the maker of the Barbie chose to expose her stomach for apparently no reason at all."

Sample of Sources Used:

Allen, B. J. (2004). Difference Matters: Communicating social identity. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press Inc.
Ayres, B. ed. (2003). The emperor's old groove. New York, NY: Peter Lang Publishing, Inc.
Dundes, L. (2001). Disney's modern heroine Pocahontas: revealing age-old gender stereotypes and role discontinuity under a facade of liberation. The social science journal, 38. 353-365.
Martin, J. M., & Nakayama, T. K. (2007). Intercultural communication in contexts. (4th Ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Pewewardy, C. (1997). The Pocahontas paradox: a cautionary tale for educators. Journal of Navajo education. Kansas: University of Kansas.