A fragile, gentle princess cries endlessly for help from a distance in hope that someone will save her from the villain keeping her hostage. News then travels to the princess\u2019 hometown informing residents that she\u2019s been caught; and as they get ready to attack the villain head-on, in swoops a robust, tall prince to save the day. Through clever tact and superhuman strength, the prince rescues the princess and wins her love. They get married and live happily ever after.<\/p>\n
This simplistic mold has been the primary archetypal plot for Disney animated films since the debut of <\/span>Snow White<\/span><\/i> in 1937. Disney \u201cprincess films\u201d have always followed the same model: a beautiful, yet helpless princess saved by the manly, chiseled-face prince. Children and adults alike have seen this classic plot repeated through countless movies such as <\/span>Snow<\/span><\/i> White<\/span><\/i> and <\/span>Cinderella<\/span><\/i>. But are audience members aware of the model\u2019s effect and relayed message? It\u2019s seemingly obvious that these films emphasize gender norms and traditional patriarchal beliefs, and, although Disney has recently drawn female main characters as autonomous and strong, in films such as <\/span>Tangled<\/span><\/i> and <\/span>Frozen<\/span><\/i>, the stereotypes seen in the classics remain concealed in other forms. And if we know how these movies carry out their plots, why do we keep watching them?<\/span><\/p>\n Though it all began with<\/span> Snow White <\/span><\/i>and <\/span>Cinderella<\/span><\/i>, the latent sexism and hegemonic masculinity in the company\u2019s films were all-encompassing in <\/span>Beauty and the Beast <\/span><\/i>(Disney\u2019s fifth princess film).<\/span> The male main character in this film is a man turned beast, and the destined princess lived to care for her father in a town where she is expected to aspire to marriage. Aside from the beast, Disney also presents us to the male figure Gaston, an egotistical hunter who\u2019s in love with Belle, the \u201chousewife\u201d turned princess. And despite his goal to win her love, Gaston assumes that he already has her heart for there is no other man like him in town. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Through characters like Gaston, <\/span>Beauty and the Beast<\/span><\/i> slaps you in the face with its almost overwhelming display of hegemonic masculinity. Gaston\u2019s character is sketched to ensure that he seems as \u201cmanly\u201d as possible–his biceps are huge, his shirt is stretched by his immense muscles, and he has sharp, chiseled facial features that compliment his menacing and patronizing smirk, the constant reminder to others of his ultimate superiority. Furthermore, Disney artists made sure Gatson would appear significantly larger than the other characters in the film. Simply put, everything about Gaston says, \u201cI\u2019ll always be better than you.\u201d As if his physical appearance was not enough to emphasize his superiority and intimidating influence in the small town, Disney gives Gaston an entire musical number in which the villagers around him gleefully sing, \u201cNo one’s slick as Gaston. No one’s quick as Gaston. No one’s neck’s as incredibly thick as Gaston. For there’s no man in town half as manly. Perfect, a pure paragon. You can ask any Tom, Dick or Stanley. And they’ll tell you whose team they’d prefer to be on\u201d (<\/span>Beauty and the Beast<\/span><\/i>). Glorification for his strength and looks is a common occurrence. Disney even gives him, what seems like, superhuman strength. In one scene he bullies the short, ugly men in a bar to remind both the townsmen and the audience that he is a force to be reckoned with. Further still, in this same scene, background women admire Gaston and deem him attractive. Finally, having already demonstrated narcissism and an enormous ego in the tavern scene, Gaston also proves to be sexist, displaying the traditional belief that women should consider neither autonomy nor education important. His attitudes are made clear when he throws Belle\u2019s book to the mud, \u00a0and tells her to focus on the more significant things in life, such as himself. If nothing else, Gaston performs one role perfectly with his exaggerated physical strength, narcissism, aggression, impulsivity, and brash sexism –the embodiment of hegemonic masculinity.<\/span><\/p>\n