"Race/Gender and Financial Status in Disney Throughout the Years"

Student Author(s): Alexandria Spakes and Kylie Hendrickson   Faculty Mentor(s): Pei-Chun Tsai Forum Engagement Gender Studies Showcase   ~ 4:30 to 5:30 pm ~ Heth 022

"Our topic is important because Race/Gender and the Financial Status that Disney portrays is over looked. Many people do not see the race aspect that Disney gives since many of their main characters are Caucasian, gender roles define men as superior, and the financial status of the characters are Princes and Princess are wealthy. This teaches children that being a certain race, gender, or financial status is better than the other. This ties to Psychology of Diversity because it shows the social and culture differences not only in Disney movies but today’s society as well. We are exploring sexism, racism (stereotypes), and how financial status plays a role. The poor are not portrayed throughout the media such as the news and fictional television shows, they are portrayed through talk shows and reality television (Streib, 2016, p. 2). The poor are often under represented and labeled as lazy, unintelligent. The middle class is over represented in reality television, and the media. The working class is portrayed as irresponsible, backwards, and morally corrupt (Streib, 2016, p. 3). The media not only frame people but also class structure. In Disney, Princesses are usually portrayed as physically weak, that they needed help with something or they would fail, they are submissive, they are readily obedient, and emotional (England, 2011, p. 5). While these are negatively viewed there are also positive ways to looks at these characters such as nurturing, affectionate, and helpful (England, 2011, p. 5). For our menu topic we will look at media as a whole and how they portray the race/gender and financial aspects, compare that to Disney to see how it has changed over time."1 Keywords:  sexism, racism, SES stereotypes, Disney movies

Alexandria Spakes                                                                                                                     Kylie Hendrickson

1Page 103  2019 Annual Student Engagement Forum Gender Studies Showcase:.Pages 99-103

Center Home  Psychology   Women's and Gender Studies  College of Humanities & Behavioral Sciences   Radford University

Web page:  w. andrew     Last update May 8th, 2019