From Mouse to Mermaid: The Politics of Film, Gender, and Culture (Paperback)

~ Elizabeth Bell (Editor), Lynda Haas (Editor), Laura Sells (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

From Mouse to Mermaid, an interdisciplinary collection of original essays, is the first comprehensive, critical treatment of Disney cinema. Addressing children's classics as well as the Disney affiliates' more recent attempts to capture adult audiences, the contributors respond to the Disney film legacy from feminist, marxist, poststructuralist, and cultural studies perspectives. The volume contemplates Disney's duality as an American icon and as an industry of cultural production, created in and through fifty years of filmmaking. The contributors treat a range of topics at issue in contemporary cultural studies: the performance of gender, race, and class; the engendered images of science, nature, technology, family, and business. The compilation of voices in From Mouse to Mermaid creates a persuasive cultural critique of Disney's ideology.

The contributors are Bryan Attebery, Elizabeth Bell, Claudia Card, Chris Cuomo, Ramona Fernandez, Henry A. Giroux, Robert Haas, Lynda Haas, Susan Jeffords, N. Soyini Madison, Susan Miller, Patrick Murphy, David Payne, Greg Rode, Laura Sells, and Jack Zipes.

About the Author

ELIZABETH BELL is Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication at the Unviersity of South Florida. LYNDA HAAS is Assistant Professor in the Writing Program at Ithaca College. LAURA SELLS is a doctoral student in the Department of Communication at the University ofSouth Florida.

Product Details

• Paperback: 280 pages
• Publisher: Indiana University Press (November 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0253209781
• ISBN-13: 978-0253209788
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #297,701 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Accessible Critiques, November 21, 2000

By	"disneychick" (Main Street, USA) - See all my reviews

Perhaps the most important contribution to Disney Studies this book offers is an accessibility that, at the same time, offers a serious reconsideration of Disney films. Disney, for these scholars, is not above serious consideration and critique. In considering Disney worthy of study, the authors pay Disney a sincere (if backhanded and misunderstood) compliment. Rather than dismissing Disney as "just for children," they collectively question Disney's products and examine their influence.

In this collection of essays, the editors have managed to compile a broad range of materials that critique Disney in the spirit of critique, meaning a thoughtful and serious investigation. As the title suggests, much of the work here is interested in gender, but questions of race and ethnicity are also asked, as well as issues of power and identity. Although these are fairly heady topics, many of the essays are lively and engaging. For those just beginning to study Disney seriously, the works of Jack Zipes and Henry Giroux are recommended. For work on the animated films, the contributions of the editors (Bell, Haas, and Sells) are thought-provoking as well. All the essays, in fact, offer food for thought, whether one is in agreement with the authors or not.

People who think, "But it's just a cartoon," may not enjoy this challenge to reconsider Disney's films for their cultural impact. Then again, these very same people might be the most rewarded by such a collection. It is recommended for educators wishing to introduce critical thinking into a college classroom using Disney films, scholars working in Disney Studies, and Disney enthusiasts keeping abreast on writings on Disney.

5 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars No Sense of Fun, November 7, 2006

By	Michael T. Landis (Washington, DC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"From Mouse to Mermaid" is a delightful collection of essays analyzing a variety of aspects of Disney media. Most of the essays are indeed thought-provoking and insightful. However, many of the contributors take themselves far too seriously and draw spurrious conclusions. Simply put, they allow their determination to be scholarly critics to trump their sense of fun. As a Disney historian, I can safely say that several contributors come to conclusions that are simply not substantiated by the evidence. The contributors forget that Disney films, media, and parks are designed primarily to entertain, not to inculcate. The authors appear petty and eager to rip apart Disney (the man and the company), as if such an endeavor legitimized their humorless, pointless criticism.

7 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars the not-so-wonderful world of disney book, August 13, 1999

By A Customer

Maybe it's about time to change your opinion about Uncle Walt and his gang. This book is a must have for those who consider the walt disney company is not more than just a merchant, selling his merchandises all over the world. And not all of his merchandises are free from hazardous ingredients that can give dangerous impact of the young ones. But the book, and find the sexist, racist and greedy uncle scrooge inside the walt disney company.