Appropriated Tales

Offering an incisive dive into Disney's method of fairy-tale storytelling, Michelle Anya Anjirbag examines three decades of the corporation's films and how the corporation has shaped public understanding of what fairy tales are and who belongs within them. Anjirbag interrogates the gap between Disney's stated intentions to create stories inclusive of racial, ethnic, and national difference and the real community impact of the racism and misrepresentation that undergirds Disney's tales. Further, she demonstrates that Disney shapes childhood experiences and imagination in a way that strategically promotes American cultural imperialism. Through close film analysis, applied critical theory, and social analysis of the Disney corporation, Anjirbag unearths a new framework for studies of Disney fairy tales and how they shape popular culture.