Tittle: SNOW WHITE & SEVEN DWARF'S
Released: 1937
The film
Snow White and Seven Dwarfs shows lots of different stereotypes with the characters: prince, princess, dwarfs and stepmother (prince-beautiful and handsome, princess-caring, beautiful, dwarfs-dirty, grumpy hardworking, stepmother- evil, mean to her stepdaughter) . In this
Disney movie Snow White is described as a beautiful girl with red lips,
black hair, white skin, skinny body, and a beautiful face. Snow White is also
considered beautiful because she has "skin as white as snow", which
can be an indirect concept of racism. What about the girls whose skin
is darker, would they think that their
skin is as pretty as Snow White's skin? I don't think so! The mirror would always say how she is beautiful:”lips red as the rose, hair black as ebony, skin white as snow” said: Tala El Hallak in her vision of the Snow
White and the Seven Dwarfs.
Snow White in the film is described as an
innocent and shows the femininity of her gentleness. (Maio, Kathi. 1998 article). With this statement I agree, and I think that
they can have an impact on young girls when they are watching the film. Girls may dream
about themselves to be as beautiful as Snow White, and they can look at the mirror
and may see self as a perfect and become selfish and competitive, hoping that no one is as beautiful as them. This film
shows lots of feminist and sexist attributes. Also, this Disney film describes
a prince as an important part of Snow White's life. She needs to be rescued by a
prince and enter prince’s life instead of creating her own. (Lamb & Brown,
2007 article). “I’m wishing for the one
I love to find me” (Snow white and the Seven Dwarfs, 1937). In my opinion, this can send a negative message to young girls, as it emphasizes the idea that women
are weak and that they should marry a prince or someone famous in order to be happy in life. We all know how different the real life is, some women do
not get married and some do marry but not to their true love. Prince, in this
film, is described as handsome, wealthy with blue eyes and tall. It is also
another sexist attribute in this film because it shows to young girls that
their future husband should be like that, handsome and wealthy, and if they do
not find that kind of prince in their life they can become unhappy. 
Also in
this film, Snow White is described as housewife working and cleaning the home
which is also another stereotype about what all women should do. The Seven Dwarfs are also strongly
placed in their gender roles. The little
Dwarfs in the home are described as uncivilized and dirty, working in mines,
they do not wash hands and don’t know how to talk. All these facts can have a
negative images to children, showing them that little people are
without manners and uneducated. Also, Dwarfs are depicted as manly men, they do not cook, clean, take care of
themselves. They go to work and take advantage of Snow White’s
ability to appear to be a homemaker. Also
the end of story shows stereotypes such as “happy ending”, where prince kisses
Snow White and breaks the spell and they live happily ever after. 
Resources:
http://niverse.byu.edu/2013/04/09/stereotypes-in-disney1/
http://www.flickeringmyth.com/2014/02/the-evolving-princess-progressive.html
http://universe.byu.edu/2013/04/09/stereotypes-in-disney1/
What a great review of Snow White! The pictures you chose make it very visually pleasing to readers.
ReplyDeleteI like your point regarding the different reactions that you had now versus when you watched it as a young child. I think this is a common feeling among educators and students alike. I agree that stereotypes are definitely present throughout the film and that it would be very likely for a young girl to pick up on the portrayal of a 'perfect' and 'beautiful' young lady, which may produce a skewed view of race and feminism. Your point regarding the manly dwarf's conveying stereotype's is another great example of the 'hidden' stereotypes that are interwoven into our society. Great Job!
I enjoyed reading your write up. I believe that almost every disney movie has the same story line. I also think most movies out there for children are set up the same as disney. It is what sales. Parents just need to decised what they are going to allow their children to watch and be there to teach them right from wrong. What is real and what is a story line.
ReplyDeleteYeah, there's not a lot of positive messages in Snow White. Not only do you have the helpless female who needs to constantly be rescued by men (first the huntsman, who wouldn't kill her, then the dwarves, and finally the prince), but the reason that she is in peril to begin with is because she is so darn beautiful---and the queen can't tolerate any woman who is more beautiful than she. This places emphasis on how important looks should be to women. No, this movie is pretty bad....but I really liked it too when I was a kid.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your review of the movie Snow White. I loved this movie growing up and still do! I didn't realize the hidden meanings behind the dwarves. I think that we can still find the good in this film and that it's not all stereotypes or sexism. I think the way we view films as adults will translate to our children.
ReplyDeleteWow, what an amazing movie. I;m a big fan of this movie and I really enjoyed reading you blog post. This just made me want to watch the movie again and again. Good job, and keep up the good work.
ReplyDeleteOh this movie! I loved it growing up but now I see how horrible it is! A girl who constantly needs saving from a man and another woman's jealously of a beautiful girls looks so she poisons her! What in the world was Disney thinking with this movie? And yes, "pretty skin as white as snow" is pretty out there in terms of skin colors and excluding other girls and their skin colors. Love the pictures on your blog and how organized it is! Good job!
ReplyDelete