Not another love story.

I went to the Tim Burton Alice in Wonderland premiere Thursday night right after our class discussion on the stereotypes and gender roles perpetuated by Disney. I was almost frustrated by the fact the flash of Disney logo in the beginning put me in the mindset to seek out these stereotypes and gender roles throughout the film. Nonetheless, the movie was amazing, but I did not find the gender stereotypes we talked about. Alice dumps the ‘proper’ man to marry, despite her sister’s insistence that you don’t have to love a man, and it is best to marry a good one before your looks begin to fade. A mockery is made of the old maid, but the ‘woman needs a man’ mentality ends here. In wonderland, queens, not kings, rule. There is no love story. If anything, it is a story of adventure and freedom, of embracing madness, of going off the beaten path.

Now, I’ll admit, this is my opinion. When it boils down to it, all interpretation is perspective and manipulative framing, what Grioux calls, ‘scattered hegemonies’. Giroux could probably find some way to twist this adventure plot into something pessimistic about how Alice’s imagination ruins her chances with a man in the ‘real’ world.  And if a woman should involve herself in fantasies or business, she sacrifices her chance at love. Grious made some very legitimate claims in his article, but his interpretations are offensive me.

A woman can no longer aspire to be a housewife without critical glances of the new generation. A woman can take care of her family and “wear the pants” in the relationship. In rejecting conventional stereotypes we draw a line between ‘stereotype’ and ‘not stereotype,’ which, in turn, becomes its own stereotype. Alice is in every possible way the ‘not stereotype’ (the woman who is very conventionally and purposefully unladylike). This is not the kind of leading-lady we encounter in most past Disney movies, but it is the kind of woman that has become increasingly popular. A woman that other people will cheer on for her independence and pay to see live out her adventure.

Giroux suggests, “Disney movies work because they put children and adults alike in touch with joy and adventure,” and in a more sarcastic and condemning tone, “they present themselves as places to experience pleasure, even when we have to buy it” (57). I agree with the statement entirely, sarcasm removed. Yes, we have to pay for the pleasure of Disney stories, but it does not make them less pleasurable. Disney is a reflection of the dominant vision of America, the vision that makes money and the reason it is so massive is because people buy it. So, in the past they have shown the “stereotype” woman because that’s what people wanted to see, and now they show Alice and racial minorities (Princess and the Frog) because that’s what people want. It is not a corruptive and exploitive system because it is a capitalist venture. Capitalism isAmerican culture and consumption determines norms. If you don’t like it, move.