Abstract As a genre of children's literature, fairy tales are filled with magic, coincidence and good luck for the good characters and bad luck for the bad characters. These delightfully entertaining tales are also filled with gender stereotypes. This paper examines female stereotypes within three fairy tales in particular: "Cinderella"; "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" and "Sleeping Beauty". The paper examines their representations of female passivity, their emphasis on outer beauty as the quality that saves the heroine and their portrayals of competition among women for male attention (e.g., to marry the handsome prince), based on external beauty.
From the Paper "Next Cinderella wishes, like her stepsisters, to attend the festival at which a handsome prince will be looking for a bride. But her request is refused by her stepmother because, "You have no clothes and shoes" (Grimm). The stepmother acts as if she is trying to protect Cinderella from ridicule, but it is clear instead that she wants as little competition as possible for her own daughters. Cinderella is ordered to help her stepsisters get ready, the first instance of feminine rivalry among Cinderella, the stepmother, and the stepmother's blood daughters."
Abstract This essay provides a discussion of the relationship between two lonely men, the dwarf Fin and the coffee shop owner Joe from the film "The Station Agent". The paper explains how through his unique communication style, Joe eventually provides the defensive Fin with hope for a personal and social life.
From the Paper "In The Station Agent Finbar Fin McBride is a lonely dwarf who inherits an abandoned trains station when its owner his only friend dies. He moves to the station in Newfoundland New Jersey where he expects to live a life of ..."
Abstract In this article, the writer notes that there have been many studies concerning the moralistic and cultural values portrayed within Disney movies, mainly in the areas of racism and sexism, which have resulted in divided opinions among researchers. However, the writer points out that very limited research has been conducted concerning the way that Disney treats disability issues. This essay considers this subject, through a critical analysis of certain animated Disney movies. First, the paper considers the subject's contextual frame, reflecting on the importance of the evaluation of children's viewing and how children are affected by what they watch. The essay then considers the portrayal of different characters in 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs', 'Dumbo', 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame' and 'Finding Nemo', deliberating on characterization and perceived attitudes towards disability issues.
Outline:
Introduction
But it's Just a Cartoon
Looking Inside the Mouse
Conclusion
From the Paper "Over the past seventy years Disney has released hundreds of movies, and cartoons, which address difficult issues pertinent to modern society. Dealing with what it feels like to have to cope with the death of a parent; to have a step-mother that is wicked; to live with a family that is not your own; to be physically abused and/or cruelly treated; the difficulties of having to live with an emotional or physical disability; what it's like to be poor, discriminated against, or to be visibly different from those around you; are all subjects that Disney has tried to tackle to some extent or another since its first conception."
Abstract In C.J. Koch's, "The Year of Living Dangerously", Billy Kwan is an achondroplastic dwarf who seems to be at war with himself and ill-fitted for membership in any one group or ideology. This paper explores Billy's tormented existence and argues that his crisis of identity and his crisis of political philosophy are deeply entwined.
From the Paper "To start with, it must be noted that Billy Kwan resembles, at least in his physiognomy, the Indonesian locals who view all of the pale-faced foreigners in Jakarta with such disdain (Koch, 22). Beyond that, Billy seems to be uncomfortably straddling two worlds - his father was Chinese, his mother Australian - and this leads to a crisis of sorts at the center of his being. As Wally notes at one point when discussing his diminutive sometimes drinking partner, "He's not sure whether he is (Chinese) or not" (Koch, 4). This is a remarkably telling passage inasmuch as 1965 - the year wherein the story is held - is right around the time when the People's Revolution is inflaming China and turning that nation's ancient society upside down; not to be passed over lightly, it is also a time wherein Mao has turned the structure of the state towards Marxism. "
Abstract The paper relates that Pierre Bonnard's 1894 "La Revue Blanche" (The White Review) was a poster designed to promote a Parisian periodical that published work by cutting-edge writers of the late 19th century. The paper describes the two figures of a woman and a dwarf in the drawing and their significance. The paper asserts that Bonnard's work is still powerful today due to his stylistic composition and the unique and haunting nature of his figures.
From the Paper "Bonnard's primary aesthetic influences were Japanese woodblock prints which accounts for the flat textures and perspective of La Revue Blanche (The White Review). The print shows the beautiful, detailed face of a beautiful female Parisian aristocrat with pale eyes and a shapely nose that casts an alluring, slightly off-center and mysterious gaze at a point just slightly off-center from the viewer's position in relation to the print. Her slender form and thick black ruffled coat are flat and black and evidently from the ink of a woodprint. They stand in stark and striking contrast to her detailed face. Her towering hat is a similar contrast in darkness and light, starkness and detail. The hat is only a vague shape but the small white flowers are extremely well-crafted and detailed."
Abstract The paper relates that stars are born, live their stellar lives and then die. The paper then discusses how "protostars" can evolve into high-mass stars, intermediate mass stars and low-mass stars and when they finally stop burning, they die and form white, black, brown or red dwarfs. The paper concludes that while we know much about stars, we still do not know enough.
From the Paper "Stars twinkle and shine pretty in the night sky but they are actually complicated heavenly bodies. They are like us in that they are born, live their stellar lives, and then die. The early phases of a star's life begins when an "early phase of gravitational collapse," (Dasch) forms a "stellar embryo" (Dasch). Gas falls into the embryo, heating it up and when the embryo becomes warm enough, it begins resisting gravity. At this point, the embryo is called a "protostar" (Dasch). Grace Wolf-Chase maintains that this gas is "vast agglomerations of gas and dust" (Chase). Some of matter around the protostar begins to accumulate in a disk shape, rotating around it. Forces of gravity cause the disk to pick up speed and move toward the center. However, the gas and dust must slow down in order to fall onto the protostar."
Abstract Analyzing various Disney films and the concept of animation and its development since the 1900s, this essay focuses on various best-sellers including "Shrek," "Monster, Inc.," "Mulan," "Chicken Run," "Snow White" in the context of Walt Disney's rise to fame. It also discusses others in the business, including the Fleisher Brothers, with Ko-Ko the Clown.
From the Paper "Snow White is shown in the traditional role of mother to the Dwarfs as she cleans and cooks for them. But she also is a heroic figure who battled the frightening dark shadows of the forest and found her way into the light. Her indomitable spirit and optimism is inspiring even to the most jaded viewer. Disney utilized multi-plane technology with 250,000 paintings on celluloid cells hand finished by hundreds of men and women artists. Mirth, melody, beauty along with color, music, laughter and romance all combine to make this first feature animated film as vibrant today as it was in 1937 when it premiered."
Abstract This paper discusses how black holes are created. It studies the ideas of physicist John Mitchell, his discoveries and how Isaac Newton's physics ideas helped lead to his discoveries on black holes. It also covers white dwarfs (stellar corpses), the most famous being Sirius.
From the Paper "The black hole was first named by the English physicist John Mitchell in 1783, more than two hundred years ago. But what are these black holes? Do they really exist? Based on planet movement studies made by Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler, John Mitchell deduced the existence of a force that made the Sun, the Earth, the Moon and everything contained in the cosmos."
Abstract This paper evaluates how the images of women depicted in movies can be excellent indicators of a society's view of women in that time period and how a look at some of Disney's well-known characters can give us insight into the expectations of women at the time each movie was produced. It analyzes the female lead characters from 13 different Disney films, including "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," "Cinderella," "The Little Mermaid," "Pocahontas," and "Mulan." It explores the themes of rescue, romantic attraction and reaction in times of adversity and shows how the disparity between the Disney heroines prior to 1960 and after 1989 could not be more obvious. The earlier female leads are weak and passive. They depend entirely on others to help save them when in trouble and their major priorities are cooking, cleaning, looking beautiful and waiting for their princes to come. The later female leads are strong and active. They actually play the role of hero and rescuer more frequently than the men.
From the Paper "Snow White never for a moment considers defying the Evil Queen. She never refuses the chores that are forced upon her, never thinks of running away, and is innocent to the point of naivet?. She completely trusts the huntsman who leads her into the woods to kill her, as well as the old woman who gives her the poisoned apple. It is her beauty alone that saves her, compelling the Prince to fall in love with her and kiss her. We have no evidence that she possesses any intelligence, wit, courage, or personal strength, but if she does, they are of no use to her. She is completely dependent on the help of others, and she is very childlike. Her voice is extremely high-pitched, and she runs after the Dwarfs? approval like a small child seeking the approval of her parents."
Abstract This paper looks at how the story of the legendary "Snow White" developed over the years. It discusses how there the most famous written version is that of the Brothers Grimm, but they did not create the story and instead only collected it along with other Germanic fairy tales of their time. It looks at other versions of the story and how these change or differ from each other. It ends with a discussion of movie versions of the story.
From the Paper "The stories collected by the Brothers Grimm constituted the first attempt to preserve in pure form the traditional domestic tales of the German people. The Grimms collected these stories chiefly from the mouths of the peasantry in Hanau and Hesse, with contributions from the other provinces of Germany as well as German Austria and Switzerland. The Grimms sought to avoid all additions, logical or artistic, and to retain as far as possible the actual language of the peasants while also eliminating all foreign and added elements as far as they could. This was in sharp contrast to an earlier collection by the Perraults from around 1700. They had converted several of the same folk tales into elaborate entertainments for the French court at Versailles and had made whatever emendations they wanted in doing so. In their original 1812 edition, the Grimms offered the stories in a style that was markedly terse and direct, with almost no description and few adjectives (other than "wicked," "good," "wise," and so on). The supernatural elements in these stories tend to be forces of nature (magic trees, animals, flowers, and winds). These were not children's "fairy stories," found in a middle-class 19th century genre. Instead, these were tales told largely to adults around the kitchen fire while they spun their wool and mended their tools, after their children had gone to bed. By 1850, such peasant family entertainment was dying out in the face of the Industrial Revolution, and the Grimms preserved the tradition ("Brothers Grimm: Tales for Children and Households")."
Abstract The Tonkin Gulf Crisis 1964 ranks with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the assassination of President John F. Kennedy as events that David Kaiser of the U.S. Naval War College refers to as "controversies in American political history that dwarf all others". The paper shows that today, Tonkin Gulf researchers are still examining the evidence to determine whether or not President Johnson's administration intentionally instigated the first attack on Maddox in the Gulf of Tonkin. It is still not entirely clear whether or not Hanoi actually launched a second attack on Maddox, either. The paper shows that researchers are investigating the facts to determine whether or not Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara deliberately lied to the U.S. Congress to gain support for the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, which sealed Johnson's re-election and led the United States into the Vietnam War.
From the Paper "According to McNamara at the time of the incident, the Maddox crew did not have knowledge of the 34-Alpha raids. McNamara has since acknowledged that this claim was false, but denies knowing this at the time. The crew knew of the 34-Alpha operations and were worried that the 34-Alpha operations were putting their ship in danger. Many say that this incident made the crew nervous, therefore making them unreliable sources regarding the second attack in the Tonkin Gulf.
When the Senate approved Tonkin Gulf Resolution, Senators Morse and Ernest Gruening opposed the resolution. However, Congress voted 4160 in support. Morse stated, "I believe that within the next century, future generations will look with dismay and great disappointment upon a Congress which is now about to make such a historic mistake (Ford, 1997).""
Abstract The debate over the causation of congenital anomalies is discussed in this paper, as well as various preventative measures that have been implemented over time to help reduce the neonatal death rate. Medical practices and scientific approaches towards human birth deformities are well explored and cited throughout the paper.
Abstract In this paper, the writer looks at the approaches Emerson and Thoreau take to social criticism. The writer shows that they share a common dislike of a large society that dwarfs and silences the individual. It then shows that the two authors have many differences in their style of criticism. Whereas Emerson writes to inspire the masses to change and create a better society, Thoreau writes in a less optimistic style, aiming to affect individual readers, so that they might rise above their flawed society rather than be a part of an improved one.
From the Paper "The two American literary pioneers Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau gave voice to a philosophy of individualism and a mode of life striving to reach something beyond ordinary existence. In fact, the two were close friends, sharing very similar thoughts concerning American life in the 19th century. Thoreau was a neighbor of Emerson?s, and for a short time was actually employed by Emerson as a handyman. Emerson played a key role in having Thoreau's early work published ? both in the Transcendentalist newspaper The Dial (of which Emerson was the editor), as well as to a wider audience."
Abstract This paper examines how Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm's "Kinder und Hausm?rchen" (Children's and Household Tales), published in 1812, is one of the most recognized and influential books ever circulated in German and how, today, these classic fairy tales are still told to children around the world. In particular, it looks at one of the tales that has endured many changes since the original was written, "Snow White". It discusses how, although modernizations of "Snow White" have become distorted from the original Brothers Grimm version, "Snow White" in all its forms continues to be recognized as one of the greatest fairy tales in history; it transcends the bounds of time and culture to remain a popular and relevant tale to both children and adults alike today. It also looks at how although "Snow White" can be considered an important part of German history and can be analyzed to find hidden meanings, sometimes it must be viewed the way a child sees it ? as a magical fairy tale.
From the Paper "Because of the symbolism hidden throughout the story, various aspects of Snow White can be interpreted in many different ways. Although nothing is told about her relationship with her father, it can reasonably be assumed that it is "competition for him which sets stepmother against daughter" (Bettelheim 203). The Queen seeks reassurance in the mirror by asking it regularly "Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who in this land is fairest of all"?(Grimm 2). She equates beauty and desirability with worth. When the mirror unexpectedly answers, "You, my queen, are fair; it is true. But Little Snow-White is still A thousand times fairer than you", the Queen instantly feels threatened by her youthful and innocent daughter."
Abstract Race plays an important part in shaping the lives of the main characters and their behavior throughout Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings: he Fellowship of the Ring". The paper shows how the hobbits must overcome their dislike of change and adventure to embark on the quest to destroy the ring, and the quest ultimately destroys their childlike hobbit innocence. Aragorn, of the race of men, must struggle with mankind's complicity in the evil of the ring, while the animosity between dwarf and elf is played out in the actions of Gimli and Legolas.
From the Paper "The movie's main character, Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) is one of the Hobbits. He is joined by his Hobbit friends Sam (Sean Astin), and Perry (Dominic Monaghan) on his adventure to return the ring to the fires of Mount Doom. Hobbits are essentially a race that is about half the height of men, with wide, hairy feet. They are by nature timid and childlike, and Frodo, Perry, and Sam live in the shelter of an idyllic shire before adventure sweeps them into their epic tale. Notes Bilbo Baggins (the uncle of Frodo) of the Hobbits, "Hobbits have been living and farming in the four Farthings of the Shire for many hundreds of years, quite content to ignore and be ignored by the world of the Big Folk. Middle-earth being, after all, full of strange creatures beyond count, Hobbits must seem of little importance, being neither renowned as great warriors nor counted among the very wise"."
