“Woman then stands in patriarchal culture as signifier for the male other, bound by a symbolic order in which man can live out his fantasies and obsessions through linguistic command by imposing them on the silent image of woman still tied to her place as bearer of meaning, not maker of meaning.” -Laura Mulvey, Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema
After reading Mulvey’s article on the male gaze, I thought of the many advertisements I’ve been exposed to which objectify women to this male gaze emphasizing what I should be or try to be; although, these advertisements are not a fair example of my every day life. However, I thought mostly of the Disney princesses because my group had discussed them in Friday’s discussion. After some research on the interwebs, I discovered, “All [Disney] secretarial staff was female between 1932-1959, and the female input of the animated films was strictly limited. Referred to as ‘the ink & paint girls,’ this department added colour to what is grossly considered a ‘minor art’ (Mulvey, 78) in an artful process controlled (at least publically) by Disney’s Nine Old Men, the masters and pioneers of their craft. I found this interesting because in all the Disney films I watched growing up, gender specificity is prevalent; the Disney princesses are clearly depicted, and fall into what is believed to be the perfect interpretation of the female as a subject. I asked my parents which Disney princess movies I watched most often as a kid, and they shared that I actually enjoyed watching Pinocchio and The Lion King, haha, but I also did enjoy the princess movies. The princess movies allow Disney to expose and conform young girls to the world of the male gaze, where women are passive and men are active. There are some Disney princess movies, which at first glance would seem to be exceptions, such as Mulan, but this is not the case as Mulan is sent to a matchmaker to be fitted to be the perfect bride in order to bring honor to her family. Although the character Mulan rejects this idea, the stereotype is still reiterated in the film, and coincidentally Mulan is not considered one of the main Disney princesses.
Also, I realize I never explained why Liz Lemon is a true princess. I’m sorry. This week has been chaotic, but I will eventually post about why Liz Lemon is more awesome than any Disney princess. For now, all you really need to know is she is a confident, sassy career driven woman.
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