Disney Feminism

What it Means to Be a Princess It has been stated that of all film studios to produce princess movies, Disney has the claim on this particular market (Whelan). From Snow White, Cinderella, and Aurora to Rapunzel, Tiana, and Merida, there has been a progression in the way Disney portrays the females in their movies. In the beginning, Disney studios went along with the beliefs from the period that women should be frail and in need of a man to come and rescue them. By the last few movies, however, the women became independent and strong characters that no longer could do anything without a man to help. In 1939, Disney studios released Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. In this retelling of the Grimm fairy tale, a princess named Snow White loses her father and is forced to grow up with her evil stepmother who wants nothing more than Snow White’s death. However, the desire of the queen to see Snow White dead has nothing to do with power or money. Instead, her motive is vanity. While Snow White lives, the queen can never be the fairest in the land. Pride wounded, the queen tells her huntsman to take Snow White to the woods, kill her, and bring back her heart in a box. However, the huntsman takes pity on Snow White and tells her to run. When he returns to the castle, he has the heart of an animal in the box, and the queen is placated. By this time, however, Snow White is making her way through the forest, terrified and alone. She finally stumbles across a tiny cottage and walks in. When she walks in, she notices that the cottage is dirty and decides that there must be men living there and that she should clean it. This she does with the help of her animal friends. Eventually, the Dwarves return and see Snow White in their home. They welcome her with open arms, and Snow White cooks for them. Snow White and the Dwarves continue on their lives of the Dwarves going off to work and Snow White staying home and continuing to cook and clean for them until the Evil Queen

Cited: Whelan, Bridget. “Power to the Princess: Disney and the Creation of the 20th Century Princess Narrative.” Interdisciplinary Humanities 29.1 (2012). 21-34