Putnam Essay Response

In her essay “Mean Ladies: Transgendered Villains in Disney Films”, Amanda Putnam argues that Disney offers exaggerated portrayals of gender in the characterization of the heroes and villains in their animated films. Through an analysis of the proliferation of hypersexual heroines such as Cinderella and Ariel and overly masculinized heroes such as Mufasa, Putnam suggests that Disney crafts a ‘unified portrayal of happy heterosexism… clearly marked as the path to contentment and goodness’. Putnam then proceeds to contrast these characters with their villainous counterparts, observing their unconventional attributes and gender ambiguity that ‘constructs an implicit evaluation of transgenderism, unequivocally associating it with cruelty, selfishness, brutality and greed’. I share the viewpoint of Putnam and strongly align with her concern ‘of what… Disney is preaching’. The portrayal of Disney characters, especially villains, as having gender ambiguous characteristics, associates individuals would cross gender normative boundaries as evil and to be avoided.

To enhance her critique of the characterization of villains, Putnam juxtaposes them with the depiction of Disney heroes and heroines. Putnam particularly notes the appearance of female princesses with ‘long hair’ ‘flowing attire’ and ‘hour-glass figure’.  Putnam proposes that ‘Disney accentuates the ideal heterosexual female figure’. This argument cannot be disputed as when one recalls Disney princesses - Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Ariel, Belle, etc. - there exists an unequivocal correlation in their representation as beautiful women seeking to fulfill their desires of love and marriage. To enhance her argument Putnam also notes the princess’s hyper-femininity as demonstrated in their grace, poise, affinity to nature and strong domestic roles. This stereotypical gender representation is not limited to princesses, as their male counterparts also fulfill the clichéd heterosexual representation of muscular, courageous and charming men. Even the animal kingdom depicts hyper-sexuality as manifest in King Mufasa’s masculine role as valiant king and protector of ‘the circle of life’. Heterosexual desires are demonstrated as Putnam notes the betrothal of Simba and Nala. Putnam states ‘clearly, Disney’s royalty, whether human or animal, portray a safely traditional heterosexual view of the world, which offers a clear contrast to the complexity of the transgendered villains’. Supplementing Putnam’s view, I would add the Disney portrays a sensationalized portrayal of heterosexuality. The audience is programmed to view the marital, sexual and familial desires of the heroes and heroines as natural and congruent with goodness and happiness. As alluded to in the quote above, this accentuates the portrayal of the transgendered villains, correlating them with evilness.

Disney villains are depicted as having traits, behaviors and actions that do not correspond with their gender. Putnam uses an excess of examples, primarily the stepsisters in Cinderella and Ursula in The Little Mermaid, to demonstrate the transgendered representations of these villains. Putnam’s strongest argument, however lacking further discussion, is her description of the functional role of these villains. Putnam touches upon but fails to reinforce the correlations between transgendered villains in the films and the greater perception of transgenderism in our society. On the role of villains, Putnam argues ‘villains create the storyline… typically that storyline also disrupts and frustrates heterosexuality dominance by agonizing the happily-ever-after of the heroes and heroines. These evil actions or desires have very little to do with their gender-bending portrayals’. In this way, Putnam calls into question the excessive nature of the characterization of the villains. Their function in the scheme of the film is independent of their gender representation, hence calling into question the ‘superfluous’ nature of their transgendered depiction. This sentiment is shared in Putnam’s concluding sentence ‘Thus, while the Disney villains are mean, cruel and petty… it’s not because they are girly men or tomboys’. From this, we deduce that it is not their transgendered nature that makes them evil. Rather this implies that their wickedness is enhanced by their transgendered representation. Hence, it is clear that Disney is implicitly condemning transgenderism and promoting the values of heterosexuality. Outside the world of animation, Disney is perpetuating archaic views of gender and endorsing prejudice towards transgendered individuals. Playing on Putnam’s anecdote, if it is obvious enough for a young girl to recognize these gender representations, surely this is a more ‘unpalatable’ reflection of Disney's influence in our society.