Breaking the Glass Slipper: Analyzing Female Figures’ Roles in Disney Animated Cinema from 1950-2013

In this study, heroines and villainesses in nineteen Disney animated films from Cinderella (1950) to Frozen (2013) are characterized as traditional, complex, or non-traditional. Traditional female figures are beautiful, dependent on male characters, and engage in heterosexual relationships to achieve a “happily ever after” associated with domesticity.  Early in a film, complex heroines act independent from male figures and are outspoken, but later they are dependent on male fathers and heroes. Regardless, in these films, they end their tale beside their male hero. Non-traditional female characters are all independent, outspoken and self-determined. They are separated into two sub-categories: villainesses and heroines. The villainesses are characterized as evil and masculine in appearance while the heroines are viewed as inherently good and feminine in appearance. A total of twenty-four female characters are classified based on their representation, actions, personality traits, appearance, and relationship status. Disney’s animated female characters in the 1950s to early 1970s reinforce Cold War values of demure femininity and devotion to family. Most of the “princesses” of the 1990s-2010s reflect changes brought about by activist efforts of the 1960s-1970s, attempting to incorporate multicultural and feminist ideals in their representations of heroines. With recent positive portrayals of independent female characters, Disney has experimented with representing non-traditional families, which are increasingly prevalent in 21st century America. The study concludes with an examination of the future of Disney female figures based on current Disney films and media such as Moana (2016), Elena of Avalor (2016) and Beauty and the Beast (2017).