Disneyfication of the fairy tale, Snow White

“The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination.”

-Albert Einstein

To focus on what aggressive fantasies mean to young people and what roles they play in personal development we must dig deep into our society because of different fantasy medias. I want to find out why we enjoy these fantasies and all those fairy tales that keep on being retold, from the lullaby and all the stories that our parents read to us a thousand times and their parents read to them. And then all those stories that Disney and other film companies have transformed and made it their own. The magical way Disney tells a story is so effective that not only children enjoy them, but also their parents and the movies become popular all around the world. The question I ask with this essay is how has our culture today made such violent and morally problematic tales into saccharine morality tales that fit the American Dream? It has not only changed the way children look at their future life but also formed such pornographic ideals for all women. How much has Disney articulated today’s culture? And is it a good or a bad thing?

real life

“Squeaky-clean image”

The whole world enjoys the entertaining way Disney tells the stories. The way they do it could get any story, fairy tale to be remembered and loved around the world. Disney relies on European folk tales like the Grimm’s fairy tales but they make them colourful and perfect for the American dream, happily ever after.

Along with the usual plethora of pro-Disney stories, many of print medias now occasionally carry stories about Disney’s problems, misdeeds and greedy or controlling corporate behaviour, presented in a way that often suggests that it is the contrast with Disney’s innocent, family-values image that makes these stories newsworthy or important.

Disney has become a big and inviting media target, and draws special attention to its corporate behaviour because writers, artists, editors, and segments of the pubic are increasingly aware that behind all those cute characters, that family fun, and that nearly impenetrable aura is another avaricious multinational corporation…The high culture criticism of this period in the United States often focused on the mass cultural blandness and aesthetic banalities introduced into Disney’s adaptations of fairy tales such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and literary classics such as Alice in Wonderland (1951) and Peter Pan (1953). Indeed, the term “Disneyfication” arose in this period to describe the studio’s sanitization, homogenization, and Americanization of its literary and artistic sources on folk and fairy tales and classic, mostly European children’s literature and illustrations. (Budd, M. and Kirsch, M.H. (eds.) (2005) Rethinking Disney – private control, public dimensions. Middletown, Conn.: Wesleyan University Press. Page 3 and 7.)

Disneyfication or Disneyization is generally used in a negative way to describe a transformation of something, usually society at large, to resemble The Walt Disney Company. They imply homogenization of consumption, merchandising and emotional labor. They can be used more broadly to describe the processes of stripping a real place or event of its original character and repackaging it in a sanitized format. References to anything negative are reamoved and the facts are watered down the intent of making the subject more pleasant and easily grasped.

Snow White and the seven dwarfs

Disney’s first animated feature-length film was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Snow white is a young princess, the “Fairest of Them All” who, in her innocence, cannot see any of the evil in the world. This makes her vulnerable to her jealous stepmother the Queen who wishes to be the fairest in the land, however, Snow White’s inherent kindness and purity inspires her friends, the forest animals and the seven dwarfs to protect her. In the film, she is both a protective mother figure and an innocent child in her relationship with the forest animals and the seven dwarfs. (The Disney Wiki, Snow White (character))

The famous story of Snow white is originally written by the Grimm brothers and the princess name was not Snow White but Snow Drop. Why the name changed is a mystery but I think it might be all because of the Disney remake of the tale. Snowdrop is a name of a little flower that blooms in winter.

At the beginning of the story, a queen sits sewing at an open window during a winter snowfall when she pricks her finger with her needle, causing three drops of blood dripping into the freshly fallen snow on the black windowsill. Admiring the beauty of the resulting color combination, she says to herself, „Oh how I wish that I had a daughter that had skin as white as snow, lips as red as blood, and hair as black as ebony“. Soon after that, the Queen gives birth to a baby girl who is as white as snow, lips as red as blood, and with hair as black as ebony. They name her ‘Snow White’, but sadly, the Queen dies after giving birth to her. (Snow white, Wikipedia.com)

To most people today, the name Snow White evokes visions of dwarfs whistling as they work, and a wide–eyed, fluttery princess singing, „Some day my prince will come.“ Yet the Snow White theme is one of the darkest and strangest to be found in the fairy tale canon — a chilling tale of murderous rivalry, adolescent sexual ripening, poisoned gifts, blood on snow, witchcraft, and ritual cannibalism. . .in short, not a tale originally intended for children’s tender ears. In the Grimm’s tale, an enchanted mirror serves not only as a clever plot device and a useful agent of information, but as a symbolic representation of the queen’s insecurity, solipsism, and growing madness. Snow White, too, is a mirror — a reversed mirror of the queen, reflecting all she is not. Each day she becomes more lovely, more good — as the queen becomes the opposite. (Snow, Glass, Apples: The Story of Snow White by Terri Windling)

Disney replaced the traditional repetitive narrative elements with running gag and comic repetitions, both visual and verbal. In Grimm the Queen is forced to dance till her death in red-hot shoes at Snow White’s wedding but in Disney she falls of a precipice and then (off screen) eaten by vultures. In Disney Snow White also takes a role as a slave, she is dressed in rags and made to clean the palace, which is not originally from the Grimm tale.

dillon boys snow white

The poisoned apple

When Disney made the story of Snow White into their own they transformed it in their own way and removed two attempts by the Queen to kill Snow White, first with a poisoned comb and then with a bodice. They decided to only have her try it once and that with the apple. After that the apple became a symbol of Snow White and used again and again in different movies. It became “The story of the poisoned apple”. ‘The consumption of the apple by Snow White seems to mirror the stepmother’s desire to consume her daughter, to take Snow White’s very essence into herself.’ The apple is a simbol of many things, like fertility in the Norse mythology. Apples appear in many religious traditions, often as a mystical or forbidden fruit. It is a life giving element, which can make women pregnant and keep gods young and alive for centuries. With Adam and Eve the apple is the simbol of sin. It seems to also show love and desire in some stories.

Apple Inc. Is an American multinational corporation wich uses the logo of an apple that has been taken one bite out of, just like in the fairy tale of Snow White.

The fantasy film

Film has an extraordinary capacity to expand our reality; it matters because it has the power to connect us to a world outside of our own, even if the only travelling we do is from our sofa. Film is the most pervasive form of communication and entertainment. Whether we like it or not, our most profound thoughts and most intimate secrets, are now constantly expressed and experienced via moving pictures on screens big and small.

As children, we all hear fairy tales and read our lives into them, but we also want to see and realize our lives as virtual fairy tales even as we grow older. We never abondon fairy tales. So it is not by chance that the fairy tale film has become the most popular cultural commodity in America, if not the world… Hundreds of sentimental films that rely on the fairy tale structure in which a magical transformation or miraculous event brings about a satisfying, happy ending. We could possibly argue that Hollywood itself as an industry and a trademark is inseparable from the fairy tale. In fact, Hollywood as a symbol is a utopian fairy tale destination, a place where the good fairy as destiny waits to transform unknown talents into known stars, where fortunes are made, where, like the enchanted forest, something special happens that brings genuine happiness to the true in heart. (Zipes J. 1997 Happily ever after)

The story of Snow White has appeared in many motion picture films and just reasently in two films almost at the same time but they were totally different from each other. One was very entertaining with comedy and it was very colourful made by Relativity Media. While the other one was very dark and more exciting with drama, action, horror and dark magic from the Universal Studios. Both movies had the original plot except in the darker movie the Huntsman showed love and effection for the princess as it was his kiss that woke Snow White from the dead and there wasn’t really a prince in the end or happily ever after. Snow White woke up and got men to fight against the queens army and she wore an armor and killed the queen by herself. In the brighter movie, they changed the story in a strange way, there was not huntsman and the prince seemed to take a big part of the film but they all acted silly and to be honest I didn’t like that film at all. There have also been made TV shows with the story about Snow White as well as more movies. So many we loose count and but nothing can take over how well we know the first Disney animated film. For example, her dress can be recognized as Snow Whites dress on any women just by those blue and red shoulders.

dillon snow white

Dillon Boy

The work of Dillon Boy emerged from a street art and graffiti background, combining pop culture, branding, advertising, and perhaps most importantly, the ability to take these sources further than they were intended. His inspiration comes from Americana and the 1950’s advertising „look“ rooted deep in the nostalgic times of the Eisenhower era. Dillon Boy said his preferred media is spray paint artwork, which creates an interesting 3-D effect–much like a sculpture. The finished piece can be displayed in glass cases or on shelves and are a unique art and conversational piece. Incorporating decoupage, stencils, paint, and spray paint into a single piece is another special trait he brings to his original pieces, which often have no prints made. When he does make prints typically 10 to 50 copies they are always signed and numbered, which reflects his dislike of large print runs. Dillon Boy is all about change. In fact, just as his style has evolved, so has the creative side of the man. Dillon Boy has changed the tools of his craft, moving away from pencil and paint, as well as his name.

Here to the right you can see a work by Dillon Boy called ‘Snow Whiteout’. As you can see Dillon Boy has taken the Disney film about Snow White and made his own scene. Here is Happy, one of the leader of the dwarfs holding an apple that has been bitten, but it actually looks excatly like the logo for Apple inc. Snow White also holds something that’s not from the movie but thats a figure of Dillon Boy himself. All the dwarfs seem very happy and a bit excited for Snow White to except the apple but her face looks a bit shocked.

“DIRTYLAND”

This evolution is evident in his series DIRTYLAND, where he takes the ever-popular childhood icons of Disney’s princesses and removes their context, and clothes. Dillon Boy believes that it’s his job as an artist to question the very things around him and to continuously break down the traditional and more conventional ways of making art. He thinks it’s his job as an artist to take things one step further.

Disney princesses, those surreal creatures of so-called human perfection, with long hair, big eyes and slender figures, are under attack by artists, feminists and supporters of diversity for sending little girls wrong messages of how to look and behave. According to present day standards, Disney princesses should be designed to range from size 2 to 14, be disabled or even become porn stars! (The Voice of Russia, Disney princesses fall under attack… January 31st)

The way Disney has become so popular with it’s perfect princesses and the happily ever after in the end, young girls take them for their icon of how they should look like to get the fairy tale ending. Many people say that because of the song when Snow White wishes to meet a prince has formed the way girls act today. “Where have all the good men gone?” has been the big question, talked about in TV talk shows and in movies. But the real issue might be the way women look at themselves and compare themselves to other women. Plastic surgeries, skin tan, nails and hair coloring it’s all connected to the female, making her self more like a plastic doll-figure or a fairy tale princess (as well as Barbie) that should not exist.

Sexualizing Disney characters is somehow daring or cutting edge. Granted, there is plenty of room for parody or re-imagining. Disney was hardly alone in supporting the white-bread image of the typical American family, while carving out their own special niche in the Disney Princess. Disney continues to perpetuate these stereotypes to this day, with only minor adjustments. But artists have been daring and transgressive toward Disney characters for three-quarters of a century or so without any significant result. The Princess keeps her crown, and the artists gain a pinch of notoriety, which quickly fades. Keith Haring’s mashup of Andy Warhol and Mickey Mouse is more disturbing than any tarted-up Princess.(Cartoonbrew, Disney princesses gone mild by Stephen Persing)

Pornography and the ‘pornification’ today

“Well, one thing is for sure, we live in a sexually charged culture. Walk outside and you will quickly find a billboard or an ad in a publication showcasing a woman as a sex object. Sex sells remember. I simply used the pure, untainted characters of Walt Disney to convey that message. But that’s obvious, I’m not doing anything that hasn’t been done before… but I’m ready to do it again!”

-Dillon Boy (Beautiful Decay, Dillon Boy reframes Disney’s princesses in ‘DIRTYLAND’, january 27th)

This kind of reappropriation of pop culture icons is nothing new, but seems to be happening at a rapidly increasing pace, indicating that artists are remaining relevant to many audiences by constantly questioning what we collectively see daily. Dillon Boy notes that he has not seen much in the way of criticism of his DIRTYLAND series.

We now live in a massive sexualisation or so called pornification which is a term that refers to various changes in the media, especially with the advent of international TV channels and the Internet, which occurred towards the end of the 20th century and included increased access to pornography as soon as they made ​​it difficult or impossible to enforce restrictions or a ban on its sale. At the same time became the demise of the Cold War and the development of organized crime in order to change the supply and composition of both pornography and prostitution issue in Europe. This has led to fears of moral decline of the sex industry as a whole will gradually recognized and accepted, not only versions of pornography, but also things like nude dancing and prostitution as many have pointed out that connects modern slavery (human trafficking), and gender-based violence and some will even mean that this necessarily implies inevitably. It is often said that in particular the development of the entertainment industry; for example advertising, fashion and music, visible signs of the pornification.

You can say that todays culture doesn’t make any sence in many ways. For example how people tend to dress their girls to look like women and women want to be younger so they dress up like young girls. The employment of youthful celebrity adolescents in highly sexual ways to promote or endorse products. Some cultural critics have postulated that over recent decades children have evidenced a level of sexual knowledge or sexual behaviour inappropriate for their age group. Research has linked sexualization with three of the most common mental health problems diagnosed in girls and women: eating disorders, low self-esteem, and depression or depressed mood.

Studies have found that thinking about the body and comparing it to sexualized cultural ideals may disrupt a girl’s mental concentration, and a girl’s sexualization or objectification may undermine her confidence in and comfort with her own body, leading to emotional and self-image problems, such as shame and anxiety. (Wikipedia, Sexualization; Report of the American Psychological Association)

Discussion of the need to counter the pornification has been prominent in various groups concerned with moral issues concerning, for example, religious groups that connect with mainstream sex of society. In Iceland, discussion of pornification has been associated with third wave feminism has condemned the increased weight of the sex industry in Icelandic society, with the advent of strip clubs, which furthers the sexual objectification of women and gender-based violence.

where magic lives

Was it their intention to have such strong effect

“You’re dead if you aim only for kids. Adults are only kids grown up, anyway.”

-Walt Disney

These worlds may have affected the whole deal of how Disney movies like Snow White have had cush strong effect on our culture. Strong messages to not only children but also people on every age. Sexual attractness, typical stereotypes, figures and way of acting around other people.

Disney has formed our culture with many kinds of behaviour. The characters in the movies have such strong emotions and opinions that it affects all kinds of people around the world. Some find something similar to the character and become more like the character with longing to experience the same magical adventures as the character does in the films. Some say Disney is the reason for world chaos, but maybe it’s the opposite. Some claim that the song that Snow White sings in the Disney movie “Some day my prince will come” is responsible for the problems of a whole generation of American women. Like the apple in the story about Snow White, it was very appealing and looked like a delicious and juicy apple, but when a bite had been taken, it tasted terribly disgusting and was poisoned as well. Disney films have the same effect with its films. We look at the movies and see all the beautiful wonders it appeals but when we look into the messages it brings, the movies are poisoned. They lie to us about the true way of life, and fate. But we must not let it control us.

Disney has taken over the world, basically. Artists, writers, feminists and all kinds of people are taking that what Disney has made and show how wrong we people understand their messages, and even show how Disney can control our society. Movies today do this too. They are starting to but the normal world into the fairy tale and put all these questions in to it, and make us question what is real and what is the fantasy. Everybody knows that we live in this world that has no happily ever afters, or so they say. The way we talk about happily ever after we think of the rest of the life having no worries, problems, accidents, failures and so on. But we can live happy forever after with all that. That is what we forget!

Bibliography

Segðu mér hvað þér finnst :)