Jack Zipes, in discussing the history and evolution of fairy tales, notes the changes that occurred with the publishing of the tales. He argues that the printing of fairy tales robbed them of their communal aspect not only because they were then meant to be read in private rather than shared publicly, but also because printed stories could only be read by the upper classes of society, which further excluded people (Zipes 335). Zipes goes on to contend that Walt Disney effectively attacked the literary tradition of the fairy tale by making them into films, which could be viewed and understood by almost anyone (Zipes 344). In the transition from literature to film, I would argue that more harm than good is done even though the audience for the tales increases. Films in general, especially Disney films, often leave little room for imagination outside the given plotline than do their literary counterparts. While most stories, especially fairy tales, are left somewhat open to interpretation, Disney’s depiction of Snow White in her red, blue, and yellow dress and of Prince Charming on his white horse actually become the characters for most children and then adults. In line with Zipes’ argument that the film makes the fairy tale more public, fairy tales become even less private in the sense that they are no longer really interpreted personally by individual readers, listeners, or even tellers. While I wouldn’t necessarily say Disney is to blame for this development, I do think that the decreasing awareness of the fairy tale tradition is troublesome.
For Disney, Zipes notes, the plot of the tale becomes secondary to the animation technology and art displayed in the film version (Zipes 350). This means that important elements of the story and its history could be completely ignored or lost in the translation to the screen. Richard Schickel accuses Disney of “nearly always robb[ing] the work at hand of its uniqueness, its soul…” (Zipes 351). Fairy tales would thus become nothing more than a story, any story, which seems like a shame given their rich history and tradition.
It is interesting to compare Disney’s seeming disregard for the fairy tale tradition with that of the Brothers Grimm. The Grimm Brothers collected the fairy tales in an attempt to preserve and honor German history and tradition, which they believed to be manifested in such fairy tales. While the Grimm Brothers also made changes to the stories it was probably not with complete disregard for the meaning or history of the tale. Still it is interesting that the Disney version of so many tales, including Snow White, has become THE version known and accepted by so many. Many viewers perhaps even remain ignorant of the origins of Disney productions such as Snow White and the rich history behind such fairy tales.
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It's true that Disney cares more for the animation and art than the story. i was shocked when re-watching snow white how little actually happens. The complex plot is cut down to 4 or 5 scenes, full of little ditties about cleaning. I don't think disney should be created with anything but the creation of a new type of filmmaking. He is not the mastermind storyteller that zipes puts forth, but a visual artist with no regard to folklore except when he can cut them down into acceptable plot lines.
ReplyDeleteIn Disney's defense, I don't think we can say without a doubt that his motives were more selfish that the Brothers Grimm. Perhaps they realized the potential fame they would receive for documenting all the popular fairy tales of their time.
ReplyDeleteI also don't necessarily believe that Disney had a complete "disregard for the fairy tale tradition." He simply created a version of these fairy tales that his contemporaries wanted. And he received great success for recognizing what society wanted.