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Angie Holt
Ms. Hull
English 2010
4 May 2014

The Princess Fever: Have children caught a Disney Disease?

The Controversial Disney
The word Disney is well known both nationally and internationally. It may stir up some
old memories of nostalgic princess movies or magical trips to Disneyland. Recently, a
controversy has begun to pop up, leaving people wondering exactly how Disney has been
effecting the development of our societys children. One side of the argument believes that
Disney has negatively affected child development by pushing unhealthy ideas of body imaging
and gender roles onto children. A second side argues that Disney has positively affected child
development by guiding children through social situations and teaching them proper values. A
third side says that Disney has a neutral effect on child development. They believe that movies
and trips to Disneyland are just forms of entertainment and nothing more. This essay strives to
delve further into the Disney controversy in order to provide a good understanding of the many
viewpoints on this controversy.
In this new century of technological growth and development, many people in our
world can be seen with some form of shiny new touch phone or laptop computer. This does not
even exclude young children. Parents are growing concerned about the rate at which children
grow up. Children seem to be dressing older and worrying about things that most young adults
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worry about. Petula Dvorkak, writer for the Washington Post, says
that, To make matters worse, medical experts say parents need to
start thinking about cholesterol levels and sexually transmitted
diseases when we talk about the health of our 10-year-olds (Par. 14).
All of these concerns about children growing up too fast lead people
to wonder exactly how and why. Many people have turned to
media in order to find the source of this issue. Disney is one of
the main concerns for these people and question in the end is
whether Disney has any effect on children at all and if so, is it
something to be worried about?

The Damaging Disney
Those who believe Disney has negative effects on child development claim that the
Disney Corporation thinks only of building its empire .They believe it readily provides Disney
characters that encourage unhealthy views on body image and gender roles. Stephanie Hanes,
journalist for Yahoo News, points out the increasing pre-teen pursuit of more adult looks. Hanes,
along with others of the same opinion, believe that children are growing up too fast trying to look
like their Disney princess role models. She writes that:
It only takes a glance at some recent studies to understand why parents are uneasy:
A university of Central Florida poll found that 50 percent of 3-to-6-year-old girls
worry that they are fat The marketing group NPD Fashionworld reported in
2003 that more than $1.6 million is spent annually on thong underwear for 7-to-
12-year olds And on and on. Its enough really, to alarm the most relaxed
parent. (Hanes, Par. 9)
Some researchers argue that young
girls are growing up faster,
participating in more adult-like
activities.
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Children take to role models easily and the Disney princess is seen by many children as the
ideal woman. She is thin, beautiful, and always gets her happily ever after. In an attempt to
become like their Disney princess role models, young girls may unconsciously try and copy the
images and mannerisms they portray. They may try to be skinny and diet or put on makeup at an
early age, constantly worrying about their looks. Hanes finds this damaging to the way girls view
themselves. They are objectifying and sexualizing themselves in an effort to become that ideal
woman.
People with this same opinion believe Disney actively tries to influence child culture in
order to increase profit. Henry A. Giroux, Global Television Network Chair in English and
Cultural Studies and Grace Pollock, co-director of The Public Intellectuals Project claim that that
Disney not only knows that children obsess over Disney princesses, but that they exploit it too.
They state that, Corporations such as Disney recognize the potential for lucrative profits to be
made off the commodification of childrens culture, and they stop at nothing to discover the
buying habits of kids and ways through which kids can influence parental spending (3). They
say that Disney was able to figure out the infatuation children have with Disney and were able to
produce thousands of products ranging from princess dresses to the ultimate Disney room dcor.
Giroux and Pollock surmise that Disney fuels an unhealthy obsession with Disney Princesses.

The Valuable Disney
Another viewpoint on the issue is that Disney helps teach children valuable social lessons.
Nicholas Sammond, English Professor at University of Toronto, states, Though [parents] could
create their children, they couldnt invest them with reality. To do that, they needed help, a
conscience to whisper at the child Walt Disney was that someone. According to Sammond,
Disney showed children how they should act in society. Disney has produced many movies with
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multiple storylines. These storylines depict difficult social encounters and interactions that are
solved by the end of the movie. Sammond believes that Disney guided children through similar
situations and could almost be considered a parental figure, an entity that taught children values
that parents could not.
Carmen R. Lugo-Lugo and Mary K. Bloodsworth-Lugo, Professors of Critical Culture,
Gender, and Race Studies at Washington State University, share similar opinions to Sammond.
They believe that, In a basic sense, the narratives embedded within these recent stories provide
children (their primary target audience), and even adults, with audio-visual reinforcement of
ideologies concerning gender roles, the importance of
conquering ones fears, the rewards of hard work, or the
benefits of team effort, making these stories powerful
agents of socialization (166-167). Lugo-Lugo and
Bloodsworth-Lugo point out that the stories shown in
many Disney books and movies socialize children
positively. They show children how to behave correctly
and the importance of accepting themselves. Children are
taught the difference between good and evil and how to be a
hero in society. The messages within these films stay with
children and can be considered a learning tool.

The Neutral Disney
A third opinion is that Disney really has no giant effect on the development of
children. Those who hold this opinion believe that Disney parks and movies are just a form of
entertainment and are not the source of any problems that pop up as children grow up. Kathryn
Many researchers argue that Disney
stories incorporate values, teaching
children how to behave
appropriately.
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Brostowiz, student at Western Illinois University, says that it is actually Disney that reflects
society, not society that reflects Disney. She states that, It is clear Disney does not support the
oppression of women, but instead reflects images of women as they are in each particular decade.
As long as society keeps growing and changing in a positive way, so will Disney's princesses
(Par. 12). Disney has been developing over the years much like society. Older Disney princesses
portrayed submissive women with clear gender roles, similar to many of the women of the mid
1900s. As time passed, more recent films portrayed more independent women who opened their
own businesses and participated in warfare, just like the society of today.
Peggy Orenstein, award-winning writer, editor
and speaker on issues affecting girls and women, hints to
the idea that Disney Princesses may not be causing the
problems that any growing girl faces. She writes, In the
end, its not the Princesses that really bother me anyway.
Theyre just a trigger for the bigger question of how, over
the years, I can help my daughter with the contradictions
she will inevitably face as a girl, the dissonance that is as
endemic as ever to growing up female. It is a well-known
saying that correlation does not necessarily mean causation.
Yes, Disney has become a big part of the lives of young
people and yes, the younger generation seems to be growing up faster. But, according to
Orenstein, that doesnt mean that Disney is causing children to act any certain way.



There are those who believe that
movies such as Brave reflect social
changes. Brave, a movie about a very
warrior-like girl, was announced one
year after women were allowed to
serve on submarines.
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The Disney Debate
The controversy of whether or not Disney effects child development positively,
negatively, or not at all is an ongoing issue. Some may think Disney gives children unhealthy
views, some may think Disney teaches valuable social lessons, and some may think Disney
really has no effect. There are many different facets to this growing debate and what you believe
in is up to you. Hopefully, over time, more research can be conducted on this issue at hand and
we will come to a clearer understanding on just how much of an effect Disney has on child
development.














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Works Cited

Hanes, Stephanie. Little girls or little women? The Disney princess effect. Yahoo News. Yahoo
News, 24 Sept. 2011. Web. 8 Feb. 2014.
Giroux, Henry A., and Grace Pollock. The Mouse that Roared: Disney and the End of Innocence.
Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2010. Print.
Sammond, Nicholas. "Manufacturing The American Child: Child-Rearing And The Rise
Of Walt Disney." Continuum: Journal Of Media & Cultural Studies 13.1 (1999): 29.
Academic Search Premier. Web. 8 Feb. 2014.
Sammond, Nicholas. "Manufacturing The American Child: Child-Rearing And The Rise Of Walt
Disney." Continuum: Journal Of Media & Cultural Studies 13.1 (1999): 29. Academic
Search Premier. Web. 8 Feb. 2014.
Lugo-Lugo, Carmen R., and Mary K. Bloodsworth-Lugo. "Look Out New World, Here We
Come"? Race, Racialization, And Sexuality In Four Children's Animated Films By
Disney, Pixar, And Dreamworks." Cultural Studies/Critical Methodologies 9.2 (2009):
166-178. Academic Search Premier. Web. 8 Feb. 2014.
Orenstein, Peggy. Whats Wrong With Cinderella?. New York Times. New York Times, 24
December 2006. Web. 11 Feb. 2014.
Brostowiz, Kathryn. Disney movies affect feminism in society. The Western Courier. Western
Illinois University Campus, 19 Oct. 2011. Web. 8 Feb. 2014.