Sunday, September 25, 2011

Lost Nostalgia: Reward $1,000,000

       The other night, my roommates and I decided to bring back some childhood memories by popping in a classic Disney movie, Aladdin (on VHS, of course). It was interesting, we still knew all the words even after so many years of responsibilities and life lessons. It was nice, it was...comforting. Then, it got weird. With a more educated and experienced mind, we caught onto things that would have simply gone right over our heads as children. The gender codes! Oh the gender codes! All the Disney "princesses" had tiny waists, big tits, and needed a man's help to get through any circumstance. It never occurred to me at a young age, but, now I wonder what exactly was Disney teaching me? That I can't do anything without strong men? That I need to be beautiful in order to feel like a princess? This got me thinking about how little girls feel about themselves, not just girls growing up in the 90s like myself, but girls now, the girls facing even more pressure than ever to follow these hidden gender codes found in Disney shows.
      What has happened to the world!? I ask myself this anytime I accidently flip on the Disney channel. The main characters on these shows are dressing sluttier and sluttier, wearing more and more make-up, and getting thinner and thinner. Shows like Hannah Montana, Wizards of Waverly Place, and The Suit Life of Zach and Cody are teaching young girls that THIS is how you should act and THIS is how you should dress in order to fit in and be "cool". Girls are striving to fit the standards that these Disney stars are setting. At such a sensitive age, where building your identity and trying to find a place in this crazy world is so important, television should be teaching kids what is important in life and that being different is simply beautiful.



---LizP

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