Marie89, Dorfman and Mattelart

I find Disney to be a very interesting study as it is seen as encompassing the American Dream and all that America stands for. It is ironic, however, that there is so much to Disney that goes unnoticed that would imply otherwise. As a symbol of America, it contains a lot of aspects that are critiqued and questioned by those who dig deeper into the underlying motives of the once thought of, magical kingdom. On page 126, Dorfman and Mattelart state that, “The Disney world is sustained by rewards and punishments; it hides an iron hand with the velvet glove.” In other words, on the surface, Disney World is a place to make people happy and feel good about the world that they live in, when in reality, the basis on which Disney stands is corrupt and run by ulterior motives. “It enables the adult to partake of his own demons, provided they have been coated in the syrup of paradise, and that they travel there with the passport of innocence” (127). This sugar coated world of Disney has created an alter-reality for Americans. It allows them to dream and fantasize and let their dreams come true in a world where everything seems perfect. “Similarly readers find themselves caught between their desire and their reality, and in their attempt to escape to a purer realm, they only travel further back into their own traumas” (127). The truth is that Disney’s dream world is only a possibility because of sad realities. The ways in which Disney works through ideology convinces people of a false reality. In CMC200, we talked about how Disney omits parts of history that would suggest a negative view of Americanism. It is through this censoring that the American Dream seems to be a reality when it is only creating false hope for Americans, especially being the main attraction of America—a must see for all families.