A response to "Marriage or Bust" for Disney's Women:

>> Maybe Disney is why I got married so young, although many of those movies didn't come out until later. <<

Disney is a symptom of our cultural bias. Its work comes FROM our culture, but it also gives back to the culture, reinforcing our cultural attitudes. As does every other media product, in my opinion.

>> The interesting thing is not only are these girls incredibly focussed, many of them turn against their father (Ariel was the worst) in order to fall into the arms of their "true love." <<

Yes. I'm sure people have written whole books and papers about the role of fathers and lovers in Disney movies. Suffice it to say Disney heroines generally go from one to another. They don't stand up for womanhood or themselves.

>> One of the shocking moments for me was when Alexis, a youngster of 6, saw Captain Janeway on one of the Star Treks (didn't watch it that often, so I can't remember what it was called) and said that she can't be a captain because she was a woman. <<

It's Voyager.

There you go. Thanks for that excellent example of how even young children absorb messages from their cultural milieu. I'm gonna quote it online—I hope you don't mind.

I think I've heard the same six-year-olds say Indians are dead. I heard of one child who said a picture of the real Pocahontas wasn't real because it didn't look like the movie Pocahontas. This could be a good topic for a book: "The Terrible Truths Six-Year-Olds Get from the Media." Maybe James W. Loewen could add it to his series of "Lies" books. Lies My Teacher Told Me, Lies Across America, Lies Kids Learn on TV.

>> Despite her father's attempts to continue to infantilize her (I could go on and on and on about this) <<

Unfortunately, a lot of fathers probably do that with their daughters.

>> She was the only girl, but she held her own. Sometimes she just makes me so proud! <<

Fight on for women's equality and grrl power!

Rob

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