Mulan: A sociological analysis The animated motion picture “Mulan” produced by Walt Disney, directed by Barry Cook and Tony Bancroft, retells the story of a Chinese folktale regarding a young woman named Fa Mulan who struggles to construct her identity amidst the confines of a highly traditional family and social culture. At first glance, Mulan seems to be a feminist film encouraging the individual empowerment of young women as she demonstrates her courage, resourcefulness, and ingenuity. Through the film, the audience follows the life of Mulan and her mission to bring honour to the family. Regardless of her destiny defined by the social structures (relatively stable patterns of social relations) in a patriarchal society, where women shall
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First and foremost, her transformation into a transgender (when a person’s gender identity does not match exactly to the sex assigned to them at birth) is one of the most obvious examples. The biggest portrayal of sexism (or gender discrimination is prejudice or discrimination based on a person's sex or gender) in the movie comes from the song "Honour to us all" discussed previously. The scene in which Mulan is preparing to meet the matchmaker. With sexist lyrics, the song displays that Mulan's worth is based upon how suitable she is for marrying a man and a domestic life. There are also many occasions when the word "girl" or "woman" is used as an insult. For example when Mulan's identity is revealed after she is wounded from the battle with Shan Yu, Chi Fu (Li Shang’s assistant) says "I knew there was something wrong with you! A woman!" and he later says "She's a woman, she'll never be worth anything!" when Shan Yu is finally defeated at the emperor's palace. When Mulan enters the Imperial City to warn Li Shang and her friends that the Huns are still alive, she is ignored and told that she does not belong there. When no one listens to her Mushu reminds her "you're a girl again". All these examples indicate that women were worth less than men and did not have the value that men had. Critics also argue that …show more content…
Outline the perspective that you have selected, then describe and explain its application to the movie.
Mulan is a movie often praised as being “a story about breaking conventional gender boundaries and roles, about the ability of the female to be as strong, as aggressive, as cunning as the male, it definitely broke the traditional princess role of being elegant and preoccupied with marriage. After watching the film, feminist theorists could argue that, Mulan is a woman in a man’s world. She had to pretend to be a man and largely surrender her femininity to be respected. This is problematic because it implies that femininity is inferior and the only alternative to the traditional role of women is to become masculine.
Explain how the movie as a whole, or in part, either reflects and is illustrative of current North American society, or how the movie contradicts or challenges our conceptualization of North American society. For instance, does the movie reflect current patterns, or illuminate differences that would lead audiences to think critically about the movie that they are
First and foremost, her transformation into a transgender (when a person’s gender identity does not match exactly to the sex assigned to them at birth) is one of the most obvious examples. The biggest portrayal of sexism (or gender discrimination is prejudice or discrimination based on a person's sex or gender) in the movie comes from the song "Honour to us all" discussed previously. The scene in which Mulan is preparing to meet the matchmaker. With sexist lyrics, the song displays that Mulan's worth is based upon how suitable she is for marrying a man and a domestic life. There are also many occasions when the word "girl" or "woman" is used as an insult. For example when Mulan's identity is revealed after she is wounded from the battle with Shan Yu, Chi Fu (Li Shang’s assistant) says "I knew there was something wrong with you! A woman!" and he later says "She's a woman, she'll never be worth anything!" when Shan Yu is finally defeated at the emperor's palace. When Mulan enters the Imperial City to warn Li Shang and her friends that the Huns are still alive, she is ignored and told that she does not belong there. When no one listens to her Mushu reminds her "you're a girl again". All these examples indicate that women were worth less than men and did not have the value that men had. Critics also argue that …show more content…
Outline the perspective that you have selected, then describe and explain its application to the movie.
Mulan is a movie often praised as being “a story about breaking conventional gender boundaries and roles, about the ability of the female to be as strong, as aggressive, as cunning as the male, it definitely broke the traditional princess role of being elegant and preoccupied with marriage. After watching the film, feminist theorists could argue that, Mulan is a woman in a man’s world. She had to pretend to be a man and largely surrender her femininity to be respected. This is problematic because it implies that femininity is inferior and the only alternative to the traditional role of women is to become masculine.
Explain how the movie as a whole, or in part, either reflects and is illustrative of current North American society, or how the movie contradicts or challenges our conceptualization of North American society. For instance, does the movie reflect current patterns, or illuminate differences that would lead audiences to think critically about the movie that they are