In this week’s blog, I will start writing about my conclusions after I read what R. Banks wrote about the two movies, Bambi and the Little Mermaid. Banks expressed his interest in the ideological facts presented from watching Bambi, but not from the Little Mermaid.
Banks had the chance to watch the movie “Bambi” in the theatres for the first time with his brother, cousin and uncle. He was four years old at the time. He mentioned that after watching the movie he became a new person with a new outlook on life. The second time Banks watched the movie was when his three year old granddaughter stayed with him and his wife at their house. He and his wife tried various ways to amuse the little girl by visiting amusement parks and watching kids TV programs which were rare for kids at her age. In the end, they rented many children’s movies and watched them with her. None of the movies attracted the girl’s attention until they played the movie “The Little Mermaid” which seized her attention and engaged her emotionally. Banks and his wife felt that the movie wasn’t from the sort that they wished their granddaughter to watch while she was staying at their home. Banks believes that one of the ideologies of this movie was to promote rewards of female submissiveness. This ideology and other facts from the movie do not help his granddaughter to develop her understanding of life values. Although she was still young, he still wanted her to be exposed to valuable facts of life.
Banks, in his essay, highlighted that he was deeply affected by the movie Bambi , but he did not explain the ideologies and values which affected him intensely . However, the reader can feel the ideology of male dominance represented by the father (stag) who was always away from his son and wife. Also, the reader can recognize Bambi’s significant move towards maturity when his mother told him, “If you live, my son, if you are cunning and don’t run into danger, you’ll be as strong and handsome as your father is sometime.” This demonstrates Bambi’s future aspiration: to become like his father.
In regards to my reading of Connie Portar’s essay, I beleive that in her children’s book she tried seriously to change the stereotypical understanding of the term “Baldheaded.” It is acustomed that the term is always connected to a charachter who is dislikable, unlovable or misbehaved. Connie tried couragously to change this stereotype when she created the girl named Sarah in her book who is baldheaded, but she made her lovable, intelligent and tender-hearted.
I beleive that Connie Portar was brave in her attempt to change the pre-determined understanding of baldheaded. She was explicit in her essay talking with the big picture in mind without going through the unncessary details that will take one away from her main goal.
