Cartoon Mothers Dead

Sara Boxer, author of “Why are all the Cartoon Mothers Dead?” illuminates readers on the horrors of the beloved cartoon films so many people love to watch. Boxer was previously an editor and writer for the well-known Newspaper Company New York Times. The author attempts to persuade readers of her ideas that influence her to write this essay. Her first claim is that Mother characters are often killed before the film or in the early beginnings. She also finds herself pointing towards father figures and the false depiction they receive in movies vs what actually occurs in real life. Boxer also realizes the demeaning roles that women figures are often given in films and the discomfort that comes from it. She sees the gap of unawareness and tries …show more content…
“He may start out hypercritical (Chicken Little) or reluctant (Ice Age). He may be a tyrant (The Little Mermaid) or a ne’er-do-well (Despicable Me). He may be of the wrong species (Kung Fu Panda). He may even be the killer of the child’s mother (Brother Bear). No matter how bad he starts out, though, he always ends up good.” (Boxer 88). By including this, Boxer is able to provide her examples in one area allowing readers to make their connections to her claim much more quickly. Readers are able to grasp these examples and think of some of their own in order to have a better understanding. She emphasizes on the father that gets projected in the films as a character that tends to evolve throughout the film and tends to play the role of both mother and father. Boxer moves away from examples and captivates readers with studies, when she speaks about the unrealistic portrayal of fathers in films. In her essay, Boxer describes that less than 10% of households with children have a single father present. (Boxer 90). Unfortunately, she does not include a source and leaves readers wondering how precise those stats are and the possibility of resisting her claim is expected. “The Evolution of Hollywood's Christmas Dad” is an article from Globe and Mail where writer Dave Mcginn states “He is always self-sacrificing. And nothing is more important to him than the well-being of his wife and children. Who is this man? He's dad. Not your dad or my dad, but Hollywood's idealized version, who is never so conspicuously reflected in the movies as when he is called upon to swoop in and save Christmas.” (Mcginn). He also realizes the misrepresentation of fathers in other films but looks at a different reason of why this might be. While Boxer makes many assumptions and asks readers’ questions, Dave’s article points toward a