Disney rocked us with some truly cult movies. If some cartoons seem to have softened our childhood, they have anchored in us a somewhat patriarchal vision of relations between women and men … to the point of contributing to a certain culture of rape. Explanations.
Many cartoons from our childhood have endured over time. It is the Disney films that have mostly crossed the generations. Most of these feature films are inspired by famous myths or tales. The Brothers Grimm, Charles Perrault, Hans Christian Anderson … Multiple are the authors at the heart of film adaptations produced by the firm with big ears. So, inevitably, in addition to the tales that we were read as children, the first films that we have seen in our entire life are, very often, adaptations of these tales. But what messages were conveyed through these cult feature films? If today, Disney seems to evolve and present modern human relationships, for a long time we have been able to observe a contribution to the culture of rape.
Consent rarely taken into account
Of course, there is no rape in the Disney movies. But on closer inspection, consent is rarely taken into account. It is a terrible mistake when you know the target audience which is young. This is where the culture of rape comes in. We told you about it some time ago: rape culture is a sociological concept that qualifies inappropriate behavior within a society.. These actions are often minimized, standardized, or even encouraged. Rape is not a culture of course, it is a real scourge. We talk about rape culture when we trivialize it but not only. It also includes the failure to consider consent and sexual assault.
Rape culture is the act of trivializing rape and all that it encompasses: non-consent
It is there that to take a closer look, the films which rocked our childhood sometimes lack the consent between the characters. The exposed relationships are distorted. The greatest Disney classics feature damsels in distress. They are saved by princes, of course, but the method exposed is often questionable. Snow White is poisoned while eating an apple. While the seven dwarves weep over his corpse, the prince intervenes during the funeral and allows himself to kiss him. If the kiss saves her from a terrible death, it is not consented to. It is the same for Aurore, in The Sleeping Beauty. She is destined to prick her finger and sentenced to 100 years of sleep. It is the kiss of a prince that will save her … Now, Aurore being asleep, the kiss is not granted either. Certain questions then arise. We are witnessing an odious right of control by men over women's bodies.
Towards a trivialization of sexual assault
If all these stories are romanticized and idealized, they raise questions: have we witnessed sexual assault from a young age with films like those of Disney? Consent is absent and the fact that these women were unconscious at the time of the incident is never questioned. The ends are all the same: they live happily and have many children. However, with hindsight, it would have been fairer to point a finger at the behavior of these young men. We are then shown that kissing someone against their will is not that bad as long as all that comes out of it is love.
Beauty and the Beast is a classic case of Stockholm syndrome
This is probably why, since our earliest childhood, we have never identified problematic behavior within these feature films. We trivialize a gesture that is nevertheless serious. In a study published last year, Victoria Cann, professor at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, England, spoke about The beauty and the Beast, released in 1991. According to her, we idealize a relationship based on Stockholm syndrome and minimize a toxic act on the pretext that a violent man can change over time.
But women are not saviors. They do not have to bear the brunt of the dangerous behavior of their torturers: "Beauty and the Beast is a classic case of Stockholm syndrome. Throughout the film, the Beast seems to be about to resort to violence. And the story makes it seem like a woman can change. an abusive companion if she perseveres long enough.At the end of the film, the beast transforms into a white and blond man and it is as if they are now going to live happily ever after, as there is no way for him to become threatening or angry", she explained in an interview with the newspaper The Sun.
A distorted image of romantic relationships
So, what image do these films give on romantic relationships, and more particularly between women and men? They express that forced kissing is not so serious and that love will always come out of it. Yet Aurora and Snow White, totally oblivious, never expressed their desire to be kissed by these princes, although attractive. There is a very patriarchal and reductive view of women and human relations, calling into question gender equality. In 2017, a British mother opened the debate on this subject. Sarah Hall wanted to see fairy tales like these banned from classrooms: "It is not normal to wake up a stranger by kissing him. So why teach children that?" she explained on Twitter.
With The beauty and the Beast, the message also seems problematic: it expresses the idea that a woman will end up loving what is imposed on her. This moral is somewhat disturbing when you consider how much pop culture in general contributes to building us as individuals. Wouldn't the solution be to treat these subjects with more nuance. We should weigh the pros and cons and put less emphasis on the idea that the man will have the last word in a relationship. Our children need to explore other options. They must realize, from an early age, that a serene and lasting relationship is not based on a forced kiss or by sequestering the one we love. Fighting against gender stereotypes is necessary from an early age.
It is not normal to wake up a stranger by kissing them. So why teach this to children?
Fortunately, many Disney films today go against this rape culture. We have seen that Vaiana, for example, did not need a suitor to emancipate herself. Romantic relationships are not featured in the film and no rape culture is identified. It is the same for Snow Queen where Elsa is single and independent. Her sister Anna, meanwhile, is called to order when it comes to having a crush. Instead, she will fall in love, of course, but with a respectful man she will have taken the time to know throughout the film. Until the end, his consent is taken into account and is not silenced.
The first works of Disney have, it seems, taken a serious blow of old. They idealize toxic relationships that one might consider genuinely dubious. So, should we ban them from our screens and deprive our children of these tales? No, "cancel" these works would be highly regrettable. On the contrary, these films could be useful as part of educational support by explaining the inappropriate behavior present to be banned in everyday life.
The new wave of animated films from studios is raising awareness of this. With the necessary hindsight, they opened our eyes to the culture of rape unconsciously advocated by production before.
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