Childhood in the Media

 What is my connection to Disney and childhood media culture?

  As a child, my older brother and I would spend every other weekend staying with my Nana. Every night, my Nana would turn on one of four movies to put us to sleep: Monsters Inc., Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, Home Alone, and The Little Mermaid. For years, we would drift off to sleep listening to the banter between Mike and Sully or the clash of lightsabers or the tortured screams of Kevin McAllister's robber-victims or Ariel's songs. Upon reading Christensen's work, I began to question what ideologies were reinforced as we fell asleep to these movies? And how can we make those ideologies visible to us and to children who may be in similar situations --- dozing off to subliminal messages. 

  In chapter seven of Rethinking Popular Culture and Media, Christensen detailed how some of her students graded cartoons based on their hidden ideologies. Her students argued to the local PTA that Duck Tales taught students that money is the only thing of value in life, that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles endorsed violent conflict-resolution, and that Popeye reinforced harmful gender stereotypes. Now, Leonardo, the blue turtle, didn't sit down and explain to the audience that violence is always the correct solution. The ideologies were not made explicit, rather they were cultivated through what Christensen calls a "secret education" (175). 

  I think it would be valuable --- and maybe even fun --- to explore the "secret education" of the aforementioned sleepy-time movies that I grew to love as a kid a la Christensen's students:

Monsters Inc.: Although Monsters Inc. features a cast of diverse monsters with unique bodies,it still body shames some characters. Mike Wazowski is seen as inferior due to his shape. Roz the slug is viewed as unlikeable, and this characterization is deepened by her appearance as a slug.

Return of the Jedi: Much like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the Return of the Jedi teaches kids that violence is the most effective solution. Also like Monsters Inc., this movie creates a connection between sluggish fatness and unlikeability. The main heroes are all thin and hot, while Jabba the Hutt is large and sleazy.  

Home Alone: Home Alone teaches kids to face their challenges head-on, with little regard tothe consequences and bodily harm that may befall you. That kid was almost murdered multiple times and he never asked his community for help! What does this movie teach kids about how they should act in dangerous situations?

The Little Mermaid:  Some may argue that Ariel gave up her voice for a man. I subscribe to the ideology that Ariel gave up her voice for the freedom of being on land --- and it was just an added bonus that a hot prince happened to be involved in her plans. Either way, the narrative is still problematic because it teaches little girls that you have to give something up in order to get what you want. The new movie connects to the reading because it features a Black actress playing a previously white role. It's great that more children movies are featuring dynamic BIPOC characters. However the reading argues that stories with more diverse characters still reinforce subliminal messages. For example, the Cindy Ellie story, a Black reimagining of Cinderella, still featured a main character who had the goal of "not working to end the plight of the homeless or teaching kids to read [but she did have the goal of getting a] new man" (182), the new Little Mermaid film --- while having a more diverse cast --- still perpetuates messages of giving something away in order to have what you want. 

 

What is my connection to the Barbie movie?

  When I saw the Barbie movie in theaters, I enjoyed it. I didn't experience a grand connection to the narrative or characters, but I appreciated the movie for being a vehicle to discuss the role that feminism plays in modern day. I would have appreciated the film more if it leaned further into its criticisms of white feminism --- rather than just making a few jokes about the very serious issue of whiteness co-opting intersectional feminism. I would have loved to see queer characters in the movie. I suppose that Weird Barbie and Alan are representative of the LGBTQ+ community, but explicit representation would have been nice to see. The exclusion of explicitly queer characters sheds light on the biases and ideologies of the people and groups who produced this film.