Masculinity In Disney Movies

Growing up as a child, it is typical to be introduced to Disney movies early on. These films are fun, inspiring, musical, and often valuable when it comes to teaching certain lessons. However, these movies might not always display gender or culture the accurate way. In Disney’s movie Mulan, the song and footage “I’ll Make a Man Out of You,” depicts society’s views of masculinity. However, the film was released in 1998 and is based around Chinese culture during an early dynasty. Because of this, there may be some differences between society and culture then compared to modern day, but the film still depicts gender roles that individuals can still relate to. Gender is a large influence in culture and it has been for hundreds of years. Cultures …show more content…
One of the most common traits associated with the term masculinity is strength. In “I’ll Make a Man Out of You,” the ideal strength of a man is portrayed several different times. Right away the video begins with the men and Mulan attempting to climb a wooden pole. This image and idea is used to depict not only the physical strength of a man, but also the mental strength. Another example of “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” displaying masculine strength is the ability of being able to smash a solid brick using only a hand. Also, the images of the soldiers training by carrying extra weight on their shoulders as they travel uphill. Another example is simply combat fighting. It is a skill that all soldiers will most likely use and it requires great strength to overcome a competitor. In the minds of their leaders, these techniques will help build them into the strong men society thinks they need to …show more content…
“I’ll Make a Man Out of You,” contains several different examples of these two aspects. Archery is viewed as an important skill in the war against the Huns. Besides explosives, it is the main source of weapon the soldiers have. In order to be effective, the user has to be accurate in hitting the desired target. Part of this song is designated to the teaching of archery. Skill and quickness are also displayed in another training technique as well. In this technique, soldier balance a container of water on their head and use a wooden pole to deflect rocks thrown at them by the other soldiers. It is used to increase reaction time as well as coordination. Another example of these aspects is the catching of the fish in the river using only their hands. Combat fighting is not only used for strength training but also reaction