Racism In Animated Films Essay - 913 Words

Racism in Animated Films While Disney animated films are the ideal family movies, it is undisclosed to many that such racism is being portrayed. Rarely do we ask about the origins and intentions of the messages we encounter through mass media; sometimes we forget that [producers] have origins or intentions at all (Lipsitz 5). The social inequality found in such popular culture can be due to several reasons. According to David Croteau and William Hoynes in Racial Crossroads, media content can be the reflection of producers, audience preference, or society in general (Croteau and Hoynes 352). In their films or other such media, producers often reflect on personal experiences. In other words, they may draw on their own family lives†¦show more content†¦Although Aladdin takes place in an Arab town, the main character and hero is more-so depicting an American boy rather than Arab in his voice and appearance. Nevertheless, he is Arab and represents this in that he is of a lower class as well as in t he song he sings: Oh, I come from a land, from a far-away place Where the caravan camels roam Where they cut off your ears if they dont like your face Its barbaric, but hey, its home (Maio 4). This song endears a sense of belief that people of his race are less off than those of other races. And of course the evil characters, like Jafar, look very Arabic with darker skin and a more foreign speech (Maio 4). Aladdin is simply one of many animated films with racists attributes. Motion-pictures, including Disney films, emphasize the separations between people (Lipsitz 19). Films with animal characters, such as The Jungle Book and The Lion King, further illustrate this race separation. The Jungle Book is about a small Indian boy being raised by wild animals. In this film there are monkeys which seemingly represent the oppressed blacks in the ghetto (Cox 1). These monkeys too take part in the racial stereotyping in the songs they sing, not only through the jazzy melody which is often associated with African-Americans, but through the lyrics as well. In the lyrics it talks about how the monkeys could become human and be accepted in societyShow MoreRelatedEssay on Racism in Disneys Aladdin993 Words   |  4 PagesRacism: discrimination which exemplifies stereotypical differences between the ethnic groups to which people belong. While Disney animated films are the ideal family movies, it is undisclosed to many that such racism is being portrayed. 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