Talking Points #2

Unlearning the Myths That Blind Us

Linda Christensen

The authors' main idea of this article was to bring attention to the way cartoons depict everyday life and how they shape our behaviors and our ideas. She tries to bring out the 'bad' parts of the cartoons that millions of us as well as the younger generations have watched or are just starting to watch. She wants her students to realize that a lof of what they have learned throughout their lives has been planned out for them in the cartoons they watch. "Look at the roles women, men, people of color and poor people play in the cartoon. Who plays the lead? Who plays the buffoon? Who plays the servant? The body type of each character. What about woman other than the main character? What jobs do you see them doing?" She is trying to open the public's eyes to a whole other way of thinking.

"Young people, unprotected by any intellectual armor, hear or watch these stories again and again, often from the warmth of their mother's or father's lap." I completely disagree with that statement. I understand exactly what she is trying to say, but in my household, I was never allowed to watch a lot of television and whenever I was, an adult was usually somewhere nearby. It just sounded like the parents don't have much control over what their children watch. Although, I do agree with it half-heartedly. My sister just throws her children (5 & 7) in front of the tv and then wonders where they get the vocabulary of a 16yr old from. Sometimes I think people have waaaayyy too much time on their hands to be breaking down such innocent things and making such a big deal about nothing. I am not saying that I don't respect what people are trying to point out, I just feel that sometimes people try so hard to pull something out that's really just not there in the first place. Basically just starting drama where none is needed.

• Babar? From what I remember Babar depicted a happy-go-lucky family of elephants dealing with everyday 'problems'. There was a mother, a father and a couple of children. In no way did I think it was racist, sexist or anything like that.
• A Black Cinderella??? Disney made a movie staring Brandy as Cinderella and every person in the movie was of a different ethnicity. So yes, people are willing/wanting to see a change.