Below is your assignment:
Identify the thesis/the argument(s) in Jack Zipes' essay , Breaking the Disney Spell’. Do you agree or disagree with him? Justify the stance you take.
- Posts to be sent in by Midnight on Tuesday
- Comments on two other posts to be posted by Midnight on Wednesday
Ann
I believe that the thesis is that Disney capitalized on American themes-- modernity, democracy, and technology mainly-- in developing characters, settings, plots, and other elements, in order to strengthen and perpetuate the status quo, that was being threatened by the effects of modernity [i.e. industrialization, rise of technology-- overall, the meshing of the classes]. Zipes basically states that Disney took advantage of and manipulated the American people, and used the commoner, or lower-class person, to his advantage. [I disagree though-- Disney glorifies them as hard-working]. But, Zipes does Zipes claims that Disney used his films to elevate his own personal status, as his films were somewhat autobiographical. Basically, Zipes says, Disney captured the entrepreneur type-- the American ideal at the time-- and de-idealized the commoner in many ways.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Zipes. He does not give Disney enough positive credit. Zipes is excessively critical, and does not touch on any of the good that Disney did for children and adults alike. Also, I feel like any artist, in their work, always imposes a bit of themselves into it-- and it's therefore somewhat autobiographical in one aspect or another.I believe that Disney was able to connect with such a wide American audience, and in each film, every viewer could identify with at least one character. In addition to making his films relatable to real life, Zipes also made them pleasurable to watch. They were aesthetically pleasing, and always ended on high-notes, as fairy tales do.
Disney was working during difficult times, such as, the Depression in the 1930's, and he uplifted people
Zipes puts a slightly positive spin on Disney, saying that he truly did revolutionize the fairy tale as institution through cinema.