arharrison

Ah! Of course! That probably should have been apparent to me, given the context and framing of the article as a whole.

I largely appreciate the arguments you lay out in this article and the discussion you’re generating. The examples you use are all effective, and of course it was rational not to analyze every princess because that would take forever.
However, I protest your reference to a “man’s courage” and a “woman’s courage.” I believe there are many movies, including Disney ones, which depict men displaying a bravery that involves preserving the interest of others, rather than himself. Tarzan would be a prime example. He is negotiating the meeting of two worlds, just as Pocahontas does. To claim that selfish courage is “masculine bravery” seems equally unfair, as you point out that many females like Merida (and Ariel, Jasmine, and arguably even Tiana) demonstrate a self-motivated courage that disregards consequence to others.

This is an interesting article, and it addresses a topic I hadn’t really considered before. I had noticed a dramatic difference in the way British film and television tended to cast characters versus the way Americans do. British people tend to universally appear much more real. (Consider the difference between The Office U.S. and The Office U.K.) The discussion about their living spaces, though, is a new one for me, and very interesting!

That would be such an interesting topic to explore!! And it’s one that I’m very interested in, as Disney was my first love and parenting is something that (I hope) will be relevant in my life in the rapidly approaching future.

I think what I appreciate most about your examination about this question is that you do not get caught up in musings over whether electronic books will replace printed ones – as that really is an entirely separate question all-together, but one that I have found gets dragged into this conversation.
Your arguments concerning the necessity for shifts within novels’ formatting for its survival rings so true! We have seen that with all forms of art, and there is no reason it shouldn’t stretch to this realm of literature. Thanks for writing such an articulate, succinct article on this topic!

I must say that I agree with you whole-heartedly. I grew up watching Pinnochio, The Lion King, and other rich Disney films. As a child, I saw them very much as just stories being told. All stories had to have a villain, right? To my childlike mind, there was good and there was evil, and it was because the evil existed that good could win – ya know? Now that I’m in college, I can rewatch the films and appreciate the depth of them.
I think this author does a very good job of highlighting the necessity and benefit of emotional and thematic depth in children’s films, and the need for parents to recall their own experience with cinema growing up. It’s too easy to forget what it was like to be a child, and really, that memory is such a central part of deciding how to raise your own kids.

You make interesting arguments concerning the contrasts between the two shows. Having watched up through Season 5 of Supernatural so far, I am familiar with all the elements you mention. I also watched the first 4 seasons of VD, and am relatively familiar with Buffy.
That being said, those who have not seen the respective shows – particularly Supernatural, might fail to see what it is you feel the show brings to the table. Some more specific examples of the shows uniqueness might bring a skeptical audience around better.
As a whole though, this article reflects articulately on a popular sub-genre of teen-oriented television. Nicely done!