Stereotype Characters of Disney World within The Context of Values Education

Abstract

Disney, widely regarded as the dominant force in children's media and one of the world's most powerful entities, has always succeeded in attracting attention with the works it produces. In the context of values education, this study tried to uncover the stereotypes that Disney World's key characters reveal. The 2016 films Zootopia, The Jungle Book, Alice in Wonderland 2/Alice Through the Looking Glass, Finding Dory, The Big Friendly Giant, Pete's Dragon, and Moana provided the data for the document analysis method. The data were submitted to descriptive analysis that emphasized the dominant characteristics of the characters, followed by content analysis that investigated each type of character in depth. According to data collected from 749-minute films and animations, it was established that Disney's principal characters focus on two stereotypes. The first of them was the qualified character, followed by the heavenly character. According to the research findings, even though the qualified characters exhibited exceptional behavior, they were found to have some major flaws. On the other hand, it was revealed that, while possessing superhuman abilities, the divine figures needed humans.