#1991 101 Dalmatians journal
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This is a historical artifact from 1992. Possibly 1991. At least for me it’s a huge piece of my literary history.
I’m a born story teller. I can remember coming up with original stories and original characters since I was four years old, possibly younger.
I wanted to share an idea for a story to act out with a friend and since I never knew when I’d see my busy friend again, I had to write down my ideas to make sure I did not forget them. I also suffer from poor short term memory and Executive Dysfunction which leads to choice paralysis, time blindness, and struggling to start and finish tasks. Because of this, I have gotten by with making notes for myself everywhere I could find a blank spot to write. Here, you can see me reminding myself what time to bathe so I could get to bed on time without getting fussed at.
Since I didn’t know how to draw Darkwing yet, I traced over a picture of him in my Disney Adventures magazine and put my tracing paper picture in my journal. That was the first year I started using markers, too, as my preferred tools for coloring were my awful, cheap, scribbly colored pencils, or my smelly childhood box of Crayola crayons with the built in sharpener.
I started my first Darkwing Duck fanfic in this journal. It was originally going to be a play between me and my then best friend, but I got stumped on how to include her in the story, since I knew she’d want an important role. I asked her for ideas and wrote the ending as she relayed it, with her as the random side character barreling in to save the day and defeat the whole hoard of villains. She was happy with that ending. I…was not. I wanted the hero to actually do something besides be the damsel in distress. 😆 So I started a new copy on loose leaf lined note paper. I redrew DW in the same pose and tried to draw Audubon Bay Bridge, and copied down my favorite prose that I wrote as a kid, and embellished the story with more details, more setting and mood, and ended up with a lot more angst. I remember taking my folder with all those loose pieces of paper on a trip to Arizona and New Mexico and trying to write in the car, and on my grandma’s coffee table. Physical comfort always took a sideline to my need to pour out an ongoing story while I was in Writing Mode. Even though I did not have access to Darkwing Duck episodes or comics then, I wrote from memory and later looked for the comics and episodes I referred to.
**Long post and triggering story ahead. Proceed with caution. Mentions of depression, cancer, death, grief, etc. **
Fast forward to 2010. I finally finished my hard copy of “The Villains’ Revolt” and decided it was high time to start typing the darn thing before my pencil copy became too blurry and faded to read. It was August 11, around six pm… I had just typed “One night, the city of St. Canard was unusually quiet.” And then I got hit with the worst bombshell of my life… My mom came in and said my dad, who was laying on a cot in our living room, suffering from debilitating, rare Lung Cancer that attacked his spinal fluid and shut down his organs and body functions one by one over the course of four months, was on his last breath. She asked me to come downstairs.
I saved my file, turned off the computer, left “Villains’ Revolt” on my desk, and descended into the worst depression of my life. I held my dad’s hand, read to him, showed him magazine pictures, choked out a song for him with other family members, and told him it was okay to let go… That we’d be okay… I was not okay. I didn’t want to let go. I wanted a miracle. I got one, but it was more like a hallucination than the miracle I was praying for… Dad gasped his last, and I hugged him one last time and walked away, told the hospice nurse I was okay, and shut down for the rest of the month, letting my relatives handle all the arrangements. It was awful. It was the worst pain I have ever felt in my chest. It was a weight I physically carried for the next fifteen months. I could not think, feel, or do anything normal without crying or feeling like I was watching from some other plain or existence. I could feel myself slipping away and feared leaving my devastated, depression-paralyzed mother alone. She wasn’t cooking, doing laundry, cleaning or doing anything for herself then except laying in bed for weeks and filling out forms and making phone calls. We were both overwhelmed.
I stepped up. I took over all the housework, lawn care, cooking, cleaning, and tried to find a new normal for Mom and me. I struggled to keep us on a meal schedule and sleep schedule. I struggled to be present for myself and my dog, who stayed quietly by my side, even when I forgot to feed or walk him. We survived. We pulled through.
But my heart needed an outlet. I had to release that volcano of feelings somehow.
I started a new story. “My Daughter, My Life.” I poured everything into that. All of my pain, fear, grief, confusion, vulnerability, struggles to make a new normal and find who I was again without the guidance of a parent or mentor, or even a friend. I was completely isolated by physical distance and emotional distance from everyone I knew…
Writing kept me alive. It gave me purpose. I had no idea what I was supposed to do with a story I could never publish but I had to have a safe outlet to process my feelings and project onto characters who I could relate to.
It was exhausting and painful but I finished three stories, and a bit of research led me to Fan fiction .net. I was scared to share so much of myself, but I was so lonely, even a critique would have been welcome. Just being noticed and acknowledged as a living person was enough. I figured the worst that could happen was I’d be ignored. I’d lose nothing by posting. So I did.
That is my history, and the beginning of the new me.
My stories were accepted with open arms, and a fan wrote to me to suggest a new story idea based off of my short story. I did some more research, and found a whole fandom on a forum I never knew existed. I needed a little bit of encouragement to approach so many strangers online, but I joined the forum and quickly found a friendly fun community that made me feel like I actually fit in for the first time in my life.
That community was my home for the next ten years, and it will always have a piece of my heart. They helped me grow so much as a person, opening my eyes and mind and filling me with more dopamine and excitement than I could contain! I had more energy from talking about anthro ducks online than I had as a growing child! It was amazing, and I made some amazing friends online that I still talk with on a near daily basis.
Nice year old me would be surprised to see where old me is now, and very confused by my new perspectives, but she’d be relieved to see that I wasn’t alone my whole life. I didn’t suffer endlessly in silence. I’m still here. I’m still writing. And I’ll keep writing for as long as there is a spark of inspiration and flexibility in my aching hands.
This is my story. My past and my present. And I am proud of how far I’ve come. What happens next? Who knows! The future awaits!
#lupineleigh’s writing#lupineleigh’s history#archaeological artifact 😆#child journal#1991 101 Dalmatians journal#a well used diary#Darkwing Duck Fanfic The Villains’ Revolt backstory#grief#loss#my personal story
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U. Creative Investigation – First Draft
“How allegory and anthropomorphism are used in order to convey messages and values to the audience of 101 Dalmatians, beauty and the beast and the lion king”
I chose to investigate how and why Walt Disney Studios implement the use of allegory and anthropomorphism within 101 Dalmatians, Beauty And The Beast, and The Lion King, in order to allow the audience to develop and maintain an emotional relationship with the characters of the film.
As part of my coursework I conducted a study of the use of allegory within 101 Dalmatians, Beauty & The Beast and The Lion King, in order to understand how the audiences of these films understand the messages and values which are communicated throughout the film. My three chosen focal films, 101 Dalmatians, produced in January 1961, Beauty & The Beast, produced in November 1991 and finally, The Lion King was produced in October 1994 will enable me to evaluate the success of the films, over time, which may have led to allegory intentionally being incorporated within the films. I chose to investigate the inclusion of allegory and anthropomorphism within 101 dalmatians, the lion king and beauty and the beast because as an individual I am intrigued as to how audiences involenterilarlly create emotional realtionships with the characters, due to their aesthetic appeal and narrative of the plot. I also selected these three focal films specifically, due to the fact that the use of allegory and anthropomorphism varies greatly from each film. For example, the audience of the lion king are encouraged to interpretate a greater moral message through the use of allegory, specifically, throughout the film, which reflects and affects their lives in a personal way. As opposed to the message which is portrayed through 101 dalmatians, which although has an important moral message which is portrayed throughout the film, the message is not as emotionally influential, nor is beauty and the beast. The use of anthropomorphism, within my three focal films is also particularly prevalent, as the abilities of the animals vary between each film, I believe that by constructing the characters this way, the audience interpretate different messages and values through the film.
For my first question, I am going to investigate how allegory is included within all three films through various aspects, such as character design and script composition. I am interested to find out if allegory was specifically included within all three films, of if allegory appeared due to the natural human likeness of the non-human characters within the film; for my second question I am going to explore the use of anthropomorphism within my three focal films by investigating the same key areas, character design and script composition . Within my essay, I will include key and relevant information regarding the development of my three films, along with the views of many critics via various sources, such as the internet, books, and documentaries. I will also include aspects of the representation theory because I believe that this is relevant to my topic of interest. Over the course of investigating the use of allegory and anthropomorphism, I found several sources which were of great assistance of furthering my knowledge and understanding of the subtopics I have chosen to investigate; all of the sources I found vary from many different formats, such as online newspaper articles, magazines and blogs. One of the sources I found particularly useful regarding the use of anthropomorphism is, a blog by Chiang, J. (2015), titled: SHOT ANALYSIS: 101 DALMATIONS, which provides a detailed analysis of the structural framing and character development, of several scenes within the film. I found this source particularly useful due to the fact that it includes visual demonstrations of how the characters alter their physical being, which in turn causes the audience to perceive their character differently. One of the main sources which I beelive assisted me in the process of developing my understanding of allegory is, an Journal Article Found on a Website titled, Mufasa’s Paw. This source developed by understanding of allegory within my investigation, because it explaines in detail How, throughout the lion king, Simba is Portrayed As The Protagonist; I also found this source perticulalry useful, due to the fact that it does not only analyse the use of allegory within the narrative, but also evaluates the entire film as a whole, and addresses that The Lion King Is Defined As A Childrens Film, Although Serious Themes Are Included.
Aims of Research
Ultimately, I am going to investigate,
“How allegory and anthropomorphism are used in order to convey messages and values to the audience film texts”
The specific criteria which I will focus on within my investigation are;
The use of allegory, within 101 Dalmatians, the lion king and beauty and the beast
The use of anthropomorphism within, 101 Dalmatians, the lion king and beauty and the beast
I selected these subtopics to focus on throughout my creative investigation, because as an individual I am intrigued as to how audiences involuntarily create emotional relationships with the characters, due to their aesthetic appeal and narrative of the plot. Furthermore, I have never researched into the topics of allegory and anthropomorphism, therefore I feel that this is something which I will be interested in as an individual.
Primary sources:
Filmography
Item 1: The Lion King: Roger Allers, Rob Minkoff (1994: Walt Disney Pictures and Walt Disney Feature Animation)
Budget: $45,000,000 (estimated)
Opening Weekend USA: $1,825,849, 15 June 1994, Limited Release
Gross USA: $312,900,000
Cumulative Worldwide Gross: $987,483,777, 12 November 2013
Item 2: 101 Dalmatians: Clyde Geronimi, Hamilton Luske, Wolfgang Reitherman, (1961: Walt Disney Productions)
· Budget: $4,000,000 (estimated)
· Opening Weekend USA: $2,389,226, 22 December 1985
· Gross USA: $144,880,014
· Cumulative Worldwide Gross: $215,880,014
Item 3: Beauty and the Beast: Gary Trousdale, Kirk Wise, (1991: Walt Disney Pictures, Silver Screen Partners IV, Walt Disney Feature Animation)
Budget: $25,000,000 (estimated)
Opening Weekend USA: $2,073,437, 11 January 2002, Limited Release
Gross USA: $218,967,620
Cumulative Worldwide Gross: $424,967,620
Secondary research texts:
Journal Articles Found on a Database or on a Website:
Wong, V. (1993). Deconstructing The Walt Disney Animation The Lion King: Its Ideology And The Perspective Of Hong Kong Chinese. Kinema a Journal for film and audiovisual media, [online]. Available at: http://www.kinema.uwaterloo.ca/article.php?id=210&feature [Accessed 22nd September. 2017].
A Journal Article Found on a Website regarding The Representation Of Animals Within The Lion King, And The Moral Reasoning Included Within The Film
Shmoop. (2008). Beauty And The Beast Theme Of Identity. Shmoop Journal, [online]. Available at: https://www.shmoop.com/beauty-and-the-beast/identity-theme.html [Accessed 28th September. 2017].
· A Journal Article Found on a Website regarding How Individuals Perceive Their Identity Along With How They Interpret The Identity Of Others.
Shmoop. (2008). The Beast (Voiced By Robby Benson). Shmoop Journal, [online]. Available at: https://www.shmoop.com/beauty-and-the-beast/the-beast.html [Accessed 30th September. 2017].
A Journal Article Found on a Website regarding How The Beast Was Portrayed Through Beauty And The Beast And How His Personality Was Portrayed To The Audience.
Shmoop. (2008). Mufasa’s Paw. Shmoop Journal, [online]. Available at: https://www.shmoop.com/lion-king/mufasa-paw-symbol.html [Accessed 2nd October 2017].
· A Journal Article Found on a Website regarding How Simba Was Portrayed As The Protagonist, And How The Lion King Is Defined As A Children’s Film, Although Serious Themes Are Included
Newspaper Articles Found on a Database or a Website:
Schwartz, D. (2017). How ‘Beauty And The Beast’ Became A Heartbreaking Metaphor For AIDS. OBSERVER, [online] . Available at: http://observer.com/2017/03/beauty-and-the-beast-metaphor-aids-howard-ashman/ [Accessed 24th September . 2017].
A newspaper Article Found on a Website regarding How And Why The Beast Was Portrayed The Way He Was.
JACKSON, K. (1996). FILM Tails Of The Unexpected: `101 Dalmatians’ Proves A Passable Christmas Treat, And `Star Trek’ Boldly Goes Where It Hasn’t Before. Independent, [online]. Available at: http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/101-dalmatians-one-real-bitch-1314633.html [Accessed 6th October. 2017].
A newspaper Article Found on a Website regarding How The Characters Within 101 Dalmatians Were Represented Through The Use Of Anthropomorphism And Why.
Magazines:
LOGAN, E. (2017). The Real Story Behind Beauty And The Beast Is Not What You Think. GLAMOUR, (online).
· An Online magazine Article Found on a Website regarding The Representation Of The Beast Along With How And Why The Beast Was Portrayed The Way He Was
Blogs:
Chiang, J. (2015). SHOT ANALYSIS: 101 DALMATIONS. [Blog] Art, Animation & Film Analysis. Available at: http://www.animatedspirit.com/shot-analysis-101-dalmations/ [Accessed 4th October. 2017].
A Blog regarding How The Scenes In 101 Dalmatians Are Composed Structurally In Order To Allow The Audience To Form An Emotional Bond With The Characters
Emslie, P. (2008). Animals As “Human Types”. [Blog] The Cartoon Cave. Available at: http://cartooncave.blogspot.co.uk/2008/06/animals-as-human-types.html [10th October. 2017].
A Blog regarding How The Characters Within 101 Dalmatians Are Represented To The Audience Through The Use Of Anthropomorphism.
Melissa, A. (2012). One Hundred and One Dalmatians: Melody First, then Lyrics. [Blog] A Waltz Through Disney. Available at: http://www.awaltzthroughdisney.com/the-tales-blog/one-hundred-and-one-dalmatians [Accessed 12th October. 2017].
· A Blog regarding How The Characters Within 101 Dalmatians Are Represented To The Audience Through The Use Of Allegory & Anthropomorphism.
The Philosophyzer. (2012). ‘The Allegory of The Cave’ by Plato: Summary and Meaning . [Blog] philosophyzer . Available at: https://philosophyzer.wordpress.com/2012/09/21/the-allegory-of-the-cave-by-plato-summary-and-meaning/ [Accessed 8th November. 2017].
A Blog regarding the Academic definition of allegory and its purpose.
Websites :
The Lion King Source, (2012). The Lion King Is Not A Kids’ Film. [online] Available at: https://www.animationsource.org/lion_king/en/articles/The-Lion-King-is-not-a-kids-film/199304.html&id_film=13 [ 8th October. 2017].
· A website regarding How The Classification Of The Lion King Affects Its Value.
NCBI (2007 ). “On seeing human: a three-factor theory of anthropomorphism.”. [online] Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17907867 [Accessed 8th November. 2017].
· A website regarding Three academically correct definitions of anthropomorphism.
The use of allegory is evident within all three of my focal films, the lion king, 101 Dalmatians and beauty and the beast; throughout numerous scenes. By definition, Allegory is “a story, play, poem, picture, or other work in which the characters and events represent particular qualities or ideas that relate to morals, religion, or politics”, according to the Cambridge Dictionary. Within the opening scenes of “The Lion King” the audience are instantly introduced to the film with the song, “The Circle Of Life” which immediately conveys a higher moral message to the audience, and is not just an irrelevant musical opening to the film. The musical number at the beginning of the film also introduces the audience to Simba’s character, as he is a young lion who’s struggling to find his place in nature’s “circle of life”. Beauty and the Beast also expresses a great use of allegory, as the narrative concept of the film is based on a traditional fairy tale, and the Beast is based on the same character from that fairy tale. Furthermore, the understanding the audience have of the beast’s character is that he used to be a human; this expression of allegory allows the audience to sympathise with him, and develop a human-like relationship with him. Finally, allegory is highly evident within the opening scenes of 101 Dalmatians, although contrasting from my previous focal films, allegory is portrayed largely through the use of props. For example, the cigarette smoke is used to express the individual’s moral standings; when Roger, the protagonist within the film, smokes his pipe, the smoke itself is grey/white. However when Cruella, the antagonist, smokes the smoke is coloured green which connotes evil, further conveying her antagonistic nature.
After conducting secondary research, I found numerous sources, which reference and analyse the use of allegory within my three focal films. One of the sources which I read, is written by “Kinema”, relates specifically to “The Lion King” due to the following statement ““Hinson (1994) Said, “Of The 32 Animated Films Disney Has Produced, This Story Of A Young African Lion’s Search For Identity Is Not Only More Mature In Its Themes, It Is Also The Darkest And The Most Intense. Shakespearean In Tone, Epic In Scope, It Seems More Appropriate For Grown-Ups Than For Kids.” which demonstrates how the serious messages within the film allow the audience to connect with the characters through the use of allegory. through conducting extended research I also found another source by “Glamour Magazine” titled “The Real Story Behind Beauty And The Beast Is Not What You Think” which stated, ““”It Was A Story That Sent…A Beautiful Message About The Power Of Love And The Importance Of Valuing Character,“ Says Tatar. "A Perso n Does Not Have To Be Necessarily Good-Looking.” Or Young. Or Immediately Likeable. Or Whatever Else You Were Hoping For In A Husband. There’s Hope.”; this quote suggests that, unlike my other focal film, “The Lion King” the physical characteristics of the Beast are composed in order to defy the audience’s expectations of his character, just because he looks fierce doesn’t mean he actually is, which portrays a greater message to the individual regarding their judgements of others by their physical appearance. I believe that the most dominant reference to allegory, included within 101 Dalmatians is included within the sequence of Rodger and Anita’s wedding; an article by “A waltz through Disney” titled “One Hundred and One Dalmatians: Melody First, then Lyrics“ stated that “There were no guests at Roger and Anita’s wedding… all the church pews were empty.” – yet Pongo and Perdy were there which demonstrates how Roger and Anita treated Pongo and Perdy as their family, which further encourages the audience to do the same though the characters are entirely animated, therefore the emotional response of the audience regarding this scene is constructed by the use of allegory entirely.
“The Allegory of The Cave’ by Plato: Summary and Meaning” states that allegory is based largely upon philosophical reasoning, and that “knowledge gained through the senses is no more than opinion and that in order to have real knowledge we must gain it through philosophical reasoning. Which proposes the question, because these films are only able to be viewed visually; does this therefore mean, that the moral lessons portrayed through the story cannot be considered as allowing the audience to gain knowledge, because the films are based on no philosophical reasoning? Therefore my it be argued that allegory has no real impact on the audience’s relationship with the characters within the film.
As an individual, I believe that the “typographical theory” by Richard Dyer, applies to the use of allegory within 101 Dalmatians, Beauty And The Beast, and The Lion King. Dyer’s theory stated there were four main aspects to representation which are as follows: “Re-presentation”, “Being representative of”, “Institutions creating texts for profit, not accuracy or realism” and finally the “Audiences’ responses to representations”. Re-presentation is relevant to my three focal films and the use of allegory, as the type of media language is being used to portray the subject is film. Within all three of my focal films the antagonist’s morals are all shown at some point through the use of lighting, which causes the audience to understand that the subject is evil.
(Explain how lighting shows the characters, 101, bnb, ltk)
The importance of the characters being representative of is also highly important, as films use stereotypes to communicate characters to the audience. As I previously mentioned within 101 Dalmatians, the careful selection of mise-en-scène and iconography is used to convey meaning and reinforce these stereotypes to the audience.
(Explain how stereotypes shows the characters, 101, bnb, ltk)
Institutions create texts for profit, not accuracy or realism, due to the fact that most audiences prefer to be entertained rather than think, so stereotypes are used repeatedly because they meet the audience’s expectations, for example all of the antagonists appear physically conventional to the antagonistic stereotype, as Cruella wears puppy skin coats, Scar is skinny, scrawny and has dark fur, and the beast is animal like, therefore perceived as vicious and untamed.
(Explain costume shows the characters, 101, bnb, ltk)
The audiences’ responses to representations supports the use of allegory, as a mass audience could watch any of my focal films, although the individual’s readings of texts, and interpretations of each film will vary as they choose to make preferred, negotiated or oppositional interpretations of the moral messages within the films . I believe that Disney films, such as 101 Dalmatians, Beauty & The Beast and The Lion King, enable their audiences to be able to connect with the animal characters, due to the use of allegory, because the narrative of all three films are not solely about the life of a lion, Dalmatian or beast, and instead their characters portray a much deeper storyline, whereby the audience is enabled to build emotional relationships with the characters, as they feel as though they are able to learn from the journey that the characters in the film experience.
The second question I have chosen to research is, how anthropomorphism is included in all three films. I will investigate the use of anthropomorphism through the several through key components of all three films, such as character design, script composition, editing, narrative, mise-en-scene, and cinematography techniques. For this question, I am also keen to research if anthropomorphism was purposefully included within the development of all three films. Furthermore, I am also going to investigate if anthropomorphism was included within all three films I have chosen to research, in order to allow the films to meet the expectations of the audience, due to the audience linking this theme to the visual and aesthetic appeal films produced by Disney. Finally, I am going to research how anthropomorphism encourages the audience to emotionally attach themselves to the characters.
I chose to investigate the use of anthropomorphism within 101 Dalmatians, Beauty & The Beast and The Lion King, in order to understand the impact this technique has on the audience; of these films, and how anthropomorphism encourages the audience to develop and maintain an emotional relationship with the non-human characters within the films; I am also interested to investigate how this relationship is constructed by the producers of the films, Disney. Due to all three films being released over various time periods, I believe that this will enable me to understand if anthropomorphism was included within 101 Dalmatians, beauty and the beast and the lion king, in order to increase revenue from the film, or if anthropomorphism was unintentionally included as an aspect of the creative design of the films.
Anthropomorphism is included within all three of my focal films, the lion king, 101 Dalmatians and beauty and the beast; in order to conform to the audience’s expectations of the films. According to the Cambridge Dictionary, anthropomorphism is the “ the showing or treating of animals, gods, and objects as if they are human in appearance, character, or behaviour”. Anthropomorphism is included throughout the entirety of “The Lion King”, as all of the characters are animals, who have been given human like qualities, personalities, and abilities, for example, they’re able to talk to each other in English.
(screenshot of nala and simba talking)
within “The Lion King” Simba’s dad, Mufasa is introduced to the audience as the ruler of Pride Rock and the lands that surround it. The way in which Mufasa is introduced to the audience allows them to relate to Mufasa as being the parental figure and build a likeness to their own family structure, further allowing them to emotionally connect to the characters. Mufasa is also portrayed in an almost god-like way which further demonstrates the use of anthropomorphism.
(screenshot of musfasa as king)
my second focal film, beauty and the beast also include anthropomorphism, as all of the beast’s friends within his mansion are objects such as tea pots and wardrobes, although they’re given the qualities of human beings. Again, the audiences understanding of the beast’s character is that he was once human, and he is now a beast therefore anthropomorphism is automatically included within the narrative.
(screenshots of funritiure talking and what their apperarences show through the use of anthropomorphism)
my final focal film, 101 Dalmatians also includes anthropomorphism, as Roger and Anita treat Pongo and Perdy as if they’re human family members, as their house is decorated with photos of them, the choice of mise-en-scene within the house portrays the use of anthropomorphism in order to allow the audience to understand the closeness of the relationship between the protagonists of the film.
(screenshots of their house, treating pongo and perdy as humans)
My secondary research into the use of anthropomorphism within my three focal films has developed my knowledge and understanding of the films as I have found numerous sources which perceive the use of anthropomorphism very differently. For example an article published by "Animation source” titled “The Lion King is not a kids' film” states that anthropomorphism Is Used “In Order To Make The Story More Appealing To Children, But The Crucial Matter To The Film Is The Story And The Crucial Matter To The Story Is What The Characters Are Inside And What Their Choices Try To Teach The Viewer..” the quote I have selected from this secondary source expresses that the use of anthropomorphism allows audiences to understand the deeper meanings within The Lion King, and enables them to be able to connect with the characters on a deeper level because they are able to familiarize the events with real life, though the use of animals with human qualities, as opposed to actual humans, encourages audiences to familiarise themselves with the events, but not be as deeply emotionally effected by their outcomes. another secondary source I found relates specifically to my second focal film beauty and the beast; the article was published by “Shmoop” and is titled “THE BEAST (VOICED BY ROBBY BENSON)” this source states that “The First Mention Of The Beast Is All Negative: He’s A Young Prince Who Is “Spoiled, Selfish, And Unkind,” According To The Narrator. He’s Actually Not All That Different From Gaston.” therefore suggesting that the use of anthropomorphism affects the audience’s perception of the beast because his behavioural characteristics are not that different to Gaston therefore showing that the antagonistic nature of his character is purely derived from his physical appearance, and his true character is actually of the same moral grounds of the human being he actually is. within my final focal film, 101 Dalmatians, the use of anthropomorphism is also evident as the main protagonists, Pongo and Perdy are able to talk English to each other, even though they are dogs. The extent of anthropomorphism included within 101 Dalmatians, though evident, is limited to each species, as all of the dogs can communicate to other animals, such as cats and horses, though they cannot communicate to humans in a similar way.
(screenshot of Pongo and perdy talking to eachother and aniamls, then one of them barking at people)
one of the sources I discovered during my research is titled, “Animals as "Human Types"” written by “Cartoon cave” states that, ““When We Watch This Sequence Play Out, We Are Viewing Them Not Merely As Animals, But As Familiar Human Types That We Have Seen In Many A British Wartime Drama” which further denoted that the characters are not just fictional and based on fictional identities, they are in fact based on real life, human characters and the use of anthropomorphism, treating them as humans was a creative decision in order to allow the audience to understand the characters. One of the sources I discovered during my research is titles, “On seeing human: a three-factor theory of anthropomorphism.”; this theory states that individuals only use anthropomorphism for three reasons, one of which, is the individual feels “the motivation to explain and understand the behaviour of other agents and the desire for social contact and affiliation” which may suggest that anthropomorphism was included by the directors of the three films I have chosen in order to meet their “desire for social contact”
I also believe that the “typographical theory” by Richard Dyer, which I previously discussed, in relation to allegory, also applies to the use of anthropomorphism within my three focal films. The four main aspects to representation, included within Dyers theory, still comply to the use of anthropomorphism; re-presentation is relevant to my three focal films and the use of anthropomorphism, because the media language is being used to portray the subject is again film. Within my three focal films the antagonist’s morals are further reciprocated through their appearance , which causes the audience to believe that the subject is evil. although the audience understand that the beast is actually human, they are still lead to fear his beastly appearance, similar in “The Lion King” as the audience understand that scar is Simba’s Uncle, the construction of his physical appearance, such as the scar on his eye, also convey his evil personality to the audience.
(include examples of protagonists and explain their apperarnce and why, pro and ant)
101 Dalmatians slightly challenges this theory of representation, as the antagonists within the film are humans, not animals, therefore their antagonistic nature is not portrayed through the use of anthropomorphism, as they’re already human. The characters within my three focal films are also being representative of a character stereotypes in order to communicate to the audience the film structure they are used to, which further ensures that there needs as an audience are being met. The conventional structure of my three focal films, whereby the antagonist also looks evil through their physical appearance also demonstrates how institutions create these film texts for profit, not accuracy or realism.
(Antagonists/protagonists characteristics)
The audiences’ responses to representations supports the use of anthropomorphism within my three focal films, due to the fact that millions of individuals will have watched them, yet each individual will have a different interpretation of events within the film, along with the moral messages which are intended to be perceived through the film.
After investigating the use of anthropomorphism and allegory within 101 Dalmatians, Beauty and the beast, and the lion king, i have concluded that both of these features are included in order to allow the audiences of the films to develop and maintain a strong and emotional relationship with the characters included within the films. Allegory and Anthropomorphism are both carefully crafted into several elements of my three chosen films, including the mise-en-scene, character design, scripts which are all portrayed through the use of cinematography and sound. Due to the fact that the topics I chose to investigate do not allow me to produce a definitive answer, I have been unable to conclude to one. I believe that this is due to the fact that the topics I have chosen to investigate are instead based largely upon opinion, and an individual’s interpretations of the film, and the messages and values they feel are communicated to them through the film.
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