        Growing up for me, meant eating candy and re-playing my favorite Disney Princess movies over and over again. I can still quote Cinderella, Belle and Aurora on any given day. Watching these Disney movies gives me interest in this particular subject because it is not only showing other people how Disney negatively affects the minds of young girls and boys, but it also shows me a side of the movies I never saw. Growing up I always wanted to wear makeup and dress up in the prettiest dresses because that is how I saw all the Princesses in the movies. At the time it seemed harmless that young girls and I wanted to be Princesses when we grew up, but now I realize that it gave me unrealistic expectations on myself and on other individuals. Doing this research has and will continue to create a new image for the Disney movies and what they are teaching young girls and boys. I am qualified for doing this research and writing about the facts because I am someone who has been affected by what Disney's movies portrays and do not want these movies to put unrealistic expectations of young girls and boys.

 

        Ashley Bispo writes a paper on the effects that Disney's Princess movies have on not only young girls but also on young boys. She uses multiple topics such as the "History of the Disney Princess", "Gender Roles Portrayed by Princes and Princesses" and "Disney Princess Body Image". Within each of these topics, the author uses well researched information to overall convey the message that Disney movies are corrupting the minds of the young people.

 

        Bispo uses these topics in her article to portray the values that young children need to have instead of trying to have the "princess body image" or only live their lives just to find their "prince charming". Bispo states "Because most young girls revere the Disney princesses, they may associate their identity formation around the gender roles portrayed in many of the films" (Bispo 6). She is trying to show the readers that certain Disney movies are teaching the young people that it is okay to have no meaning at all unless you are extremely beautiful and about to marry a wealthy man, and she does not agree with the message.

 

        It is unquestionable the bias that Bispo has toward this topic. She shows her position on the topic, but also does not base her article solely on what she thinks or feels. Instead, Bispo uses thought out research and other articles of other author's work to help prove her point.

 

Jeff Guo shares the common idea with Ashley Bispo's, but he takes a different approach to convince the readers just what Disney is doing. Guo tries to convey the message that Disney movies, in particular 'The Little Mermaid' give the wrong message to the young viewers. Guo does this by evidence in the Disney movies, but also shows the roles of males and females by teaming up with Carmen Fought and Karen Eisenhower to analyze the amount of dialogue Disney gives to the male and female characters.

 

Guo stresses the values that Disney movies are teaching young kids today and does not agree with the message the movies are portraying. For example, a PhD student that Guo quotes multiple times in his article, says " ..there need to be more studies on how children process these films, to understand how these portrayals of gender affect young minds" (Guo 1).  He does go on to mention, with the research of Fought and Eisenhower, how Disney movies over time has created a new name for itself by giving the female roles a more independent role rather than a dependent role on men.

 

Guo does have bias in his article of course, but through the use of surveys and charts he shows that his bias, along with Fought and Eisenhower's research, it is hard not to side with their claims. This article does seem to be credible, but it is noted that because of the strong bias in the article there is a need to be cautious.

 

Amanda Yerby along with the other authors use different topics such as definition of gender roles, how certain character are portrayed in animation (males and females) and roles of princesses. Lastly, Yerby goes in depth on more certain films to portray the overall message, that Disney's movies give the wrong message about lifestyle and characteristic to young children.

 

The values and interest at stake in Yerby's article is the same as the other articles by Guo and Bispo. These authors seem to take different approaches to Disney movies, but they all get to the same point that what Disney is teaching the young viewers is unacceptable and not healthy for them.

 

Yerby and the other authors show bias throughout the article, but also back up their views by giving evidence from the movies and how they portray the wrong messages. These authors do not seem as credible as say Bispo, but they still have strong viewpoints and arguments that get readers thinking.   

 

        The research question that I have above does give a productive start to my research, however I have found that though Disney movies in the past, such as early 1950s, give a different feel than say the newer Disney movies. A lot of the sources I have found all agree with each other that the way Disney portrays a "pretty girl" or "successful man" teaches young girls and boys the wrong message about how they should see themselves. With the new research and new information, the new research question I have come up with is: How have past and current Disney's movies portrayed negative gender roles to young girls and boys?  
