Thursday, 29 October 2009
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Why are All the Disney Princesses Size Zero?
I watch a lot of Disney movies, both because I like them and because I live with a two year old. Her two favorites happen to be Snow White and The Little Mermaid. Since I'm taking a History of Hollywood class, I've been paying more attention to who produced what and when it came out. Especially for movies from the 1920s and 1930s.
Now that I'm watching these with an older set of eyes and paying attention to dates, I've noticed one thing. You can tell that our culture shifted its view of beauty. It just so happens that Snow White came out in 1937, The Little Mermaid in 1989 and Aladdin in 1992. That's a 55 year difference between the first and last. What differences do you notice about these heroines?
Snow White:
The Little Mermaid:
Jasmine:
My observations are as follows:Snow white is probably in a size 8, possibly a size six. She's not fat by any means, but she's got a nice rounded body for a cartoon. A waist is there, but it isn't a huge indentation. She also has hips. Though she's relatively flat chested, compared to the other two heroines. Along with their larger ta-tas, Ariel and Jasmine are both super tiny. What would you guess, about a size 1 or 2? Probably a zero to be honest.
They both also have long hair, and show a lot more skin than Snow White does.According to my grandma, who was born in 1931, Snow White was gorgeous when she first came out. That's how all the ladies wore their hair. They were all feminine and beautiful like Snow White. The standard of beauty has changed though. Now you need to be tiny. Now cartoons are being drawn as size zeros, and considered the classic norm for what beauty is. Just an observation. Somewhere in the last 55 years or so (72 years if you bring it up to today's date) our standard of beauty has changed. You can see it in many places (media, magazines, ect), including our beloved disney movies. This is probably why children start paying attention to their weight from as early as 8-12, rather than when they get older. =(
What do you think about these Disney characters? Do you think our body image has become increasingly complex over the years?
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- From: petitenoirtenue@xanga
- Name: Krissy
- About Me: "One of my greatest pleasures is falling into a story someone else has written." ~ Nora Roberts.
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Comments (344)
i think snow white is classically gorgeous. i love vuluptious bodies.
cus that's how society is unfortunately, the disney princesses are beautiful and "perfect", so of course they have to be skinny, cus skinny is "perfect". :/ :| </3
i have a newfound respect for snow white.
you're kind of forgetting that beauty and the beast came out in the 90's and belle doesn't show any more skin than snow white..
i never really thought about this. wow. i do love ariel, regardless of them all being beautiful.
my theory for thin cartoon characters is because it saves time and ink in the world of animation :D
AND ARIEL IS A MERMAID. what do you want her to be wearing a shirt?@? that would weight her down when she's swimming so she wouldnt be able to swim as fast!!
The perception of what's beautiful has definitely changed... to our society's detriment, I believe. But even though that is a very interesting (and I believe... relatively valid) observation about Disney characters, I'm also wondering - aren't these "Princesses" supposed to be young? Do their ages ever get identified? I thought I remember that Ariel was the youngest sister... and I don't ever remember hearing Snow White's or Jasmine's ages being said. The reason I bring that up - maybe they're supposed to be teenagers? Not that I'm saying teens should be stick thin (that's when a lot of eating disorders start, incidentally) but maybe these characters aren't supposed to have "womanly curves" yet. Just a thought... Still, very intriguing observation (though part of me would like to just keep lovin' my Disney Princesses without wondering how even *they* are playing into our country's warped view of beauty...) Hmmm.
Yeah they're skinny, but they have big hips. so they look a little odd. ahh well :/ :] x
I'm pretty sure ariel and jasmine are exaggerated beyond a size 0...I mean, their faces are wider than their waists.
@Passionflwr86@xanga - I recall Ariel being 16, but I'm not sure about the others.
their waists r bout the size of one thigh = =
@just_the_average_jane@xanga - Ariel and Jasmine are both 16.
you know, for being a mermaid, Airel is pretty well covered up for most standards lol.
And its a cartoon! Look at comic books! Those women have been drawn tiny from day one. Any DC or Marvel heroin is drawn slim, large busted, long legs and so on. Growing up my hero wasn't belle, it was Rouge from X-men, and I thought she was AWESOME because she could kick butt. Oh, and most of her outfits, while tight, covered her up.
So, who cares? its a cartoon.
This was spot on.
and the only two princesses that really show skin are jasmine and ariel.
one is a mermaid (and most mermaids are depicted as not wearing anything to cover breasts) and the other lives in a desert.
while society does depict beauty as being thin, the princesses are all still healthy thin.
they could have been drawn pretty damn bony, with the way our society is now a days.
ariel <3 jasmine <3
Who cares? They're classic.
I see what youre trying to do by pointing out that beauty has changed, but seriously? Cartoons? They arent supposed to be real. And even if thats what you base youre ideas of beauty around, you... like a lot of other posts on here.... are looking at a size. They arent only non proportional but they have lumps of hair rather than strands. One meets seven dawrfs and is poisoned by a witch, another lives under water and talks to fish and the last one has pet tiger and flies on carpets. as much as I love these movies and see your intentions lets all remeber... its not real.
Disney Princesses? Look what playing Street Fighter as Ryu turned me into =/
Still can't quite Haduken... hmm. Can cook though.
hmmm i never noticed this...
Well, if you think about it, they ARE pubescent adolescent girls.
Because the world was at a time where that kind of thing was all there is to think about. Pretty women with tiny waists.
Now, some of us want some chub (sorry if this word offends anybody) on our women. :)
What is Barbie? just curious...
they also have tiny feet :/
That is why in general I like pixar films better...there is a bigger variety of character shapes and sizes. I know pixar is owned by Disney, but there still seems to be a distinction.