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Abigail Jones
Professor Sorenson
UCWR 101- 036
12/14/2017
Race in Disney’s Princess and the Frog
For many, Disney is a childhood staple. Children grow up watching the classics at home and the newest films in theatres, taking a pilgrimage to Disneyland or Disneyworld, and buying merchandise with their favorite characters’ faces on them. Because of the huge influence that the company has on children, it is important that all people, regardless of race, ethnicity, and gender, are fairly represented. Disney is notorious for inciting public outcries of racism and sexism in the past in movies such as Aladdin , Dumbo , and Jungle Book (Barnes). Until the creation of
Princess and the Frog in 2009, the lineup of princesses did not include an African American woman. Tiana physically fills the void and diversifies the royal group, but to a lesser degree.
While almost all the other princesses are virtuous and dainty; live in a kingdom that respects and adores them; and live a traditional life of royalty, Disney lowers the standards and rewards for
Tiana, thereby making her noticeably inferior. Her life before and after becoming royalty, as well as the underwhelming difference between the two, doesn’t incite the same wishful thinking that her counterparts inspire. Being a princess doesn’t mean as much as it once did. In this way,
Disney almost taunts African American girls, telling them that they too can be anyone that they’d like to be in title, but that the implications surrounding the position will always be lesser. Why would Disney even bother making a film with such a racist undertone, blatant or otherwise? The decision was entirely based off of profits, a scheme that worked to their benefit by drawing a
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large number of African American parents to their stores. Tiana isn’t a symbol of how far society has come towards portraying an equal society, but rather an exploited princess in name rather than deed.
Synopsis of Disney’s Princess and the Frog
In director Peter Del Vecho’s Princess and the Frog , Tiana is a poor, African American woman who is committed to working multiple jobs to save money for the restaurant that she and her deceased father had always dreamed about. Her best friend Lottie is a rich, romantic white girl who dreams of becoming a princess. When Prince Naveen visits their city of New Orleans in hopes of marrying Lottie for her father’s wealth, he and his assistant meet The Shadow Man, who, in an effort to also become rich and as a way to appease the evil spirits who give him power, turns the prince into a frog and the assistant into the prince. While the assistant disguised as the prince effortlessly woos Lottie, Prince Naveen (as a frog) believes that Tiana is a princess at the costume party that they are both attending, and promises her the restaurant of her dreams in return for a kiss that will presumably turn him back into a man. But because she is not a princess, she too becomes a frog. They go on a thrilling adventure, meeting new friends such as
Ray the firefly and Louis the jazz-playing alligator, and also facing many dangers, such as hunters, the spirits, and other wild animals. Naveen falls in love with Tiana, and they agree that they would rather have each other than have their previous dreams of being wealthy and owning a restaurant, respectively. They are wed by a mysterious and magical woman who lives in the bayou named Mama Odie. Through this marriage, they become human again and both live happily ever after working at Tiana’s restaurant. African Americans Portrayed like Animals
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African Americans in Princess and the Frog are portrayed in the film as sub-human and animal-like. Megan Condis reports that “Tiana spends more time as a frog over the course of the movie (fifty-seven minutes of the film's ninety-seven minute running time), than she does as a human being, let alone as a princess”. The author goes on to analyze the relationships that other princesses have had with animals. In many of the classic Disney princess movies, animals are
“lesser creatures,” shown by “very different artistic styles,” “sound,” and explanations by the princesses themselves. While the animals are personified to be kind and helpful, they are treated more like “a pet or a baby” (Condis). She claims that minority princesses such as Jasmine,
Pocahontas, Mulan, and especially Tiana have “equal status with animals” (Condis). Many times throughout the film, Tiana is at the mercy of the creatures, especially Ray and Louis. She uses the two to guide them to Mama Odie, to protect them from the jaws of other creatures, and, most interestingly, to scare the businessmen into letting Tiana buy the building that they had previously promised her in the beginning of the film. It is unsettling that Tiana’s restaurant dream might have never come true without the help an alligator, as no other princess relies as much on someone other than themselves or their prince (Breaux 404). Even after Tiana is transformed back into a human, she continues to wear green in every outfit, including her wedding dress, which could be perceived as a subtle way to remind viewers that inwardly Tiana is still a frog in some sense, and that this trait is not something a kiss can change. One of the only outfits Tiana wears that is not green is the blue gown loaned to her by Charlotte. This is also the gown where she is mistaken for a princess, implying that Tiana is the most beautiful and princess-like in her white friend’s attire. African Americans had already been personified as
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frogs years ago, most notably by “one former studio animator, [who said that frogs’] large mouths made them ‘suitable animals to depict as African Americans’” (Condis).
This contrast can also clearly be seen in the difference between Lottie’s father ‘Big
Daddy’ LaBouff, the rich, white Mardis Gras King and Mama Odie, “voodoo queen of the
Bayou” (Del Vecho 37:59). Both are royals, but one seems to be of the human world, the latter of the animal kingdom. While LaBouff is a successful businessman and “represents the city’s social and business elite,” Mama Odie makes potions in a converted bathtub in the middle of the bayou, and her most faithful companion seems to be the snake that she uses as a walking stick
(Gregory 435). The only African American who is seemingly successful in the city of New
Orleans before the fairytale ending seems to be The Shadow Man, who uses dark magic and trickery to get what he has. Even then, it still pales in comparison to the LaBouff fortune. In a literal sense, the spirits that aid The Shadow Man shapeshift into forms that sometimes appear to look like human faces, and at other times move around like animals, further solidifying the racist idea that African Americans are not fully human.
And They All Lived Happily Ever After?
In all of the princess movies, good prevails over evil and the princess’ wish is fulfilled, a compensation of sorts for the struggles that she has faced and the goodness in her heart. While
Tiana gets her ‘happily ever after’ in the form of a restaurant, it is to a different scale than that of the other princesses, who usually wind up in a castle. Lauren Dundes writes that “viewers are just supposed to accept that, for a black character, this is sufficiently impressive… black ambition is firmly set at the service industries”. Just like in the beginning, she is again serving
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Charlotte, only this time, this is exactly what she wanted. In this way, she is no different than her
poor, non-royal mother, but certainly different from the rags to riches story that we see in the age-
old story of Cinderella. However, according to Richard Breaux’s research, there were no
restaurants owned by African American women in New Orleans in the 1920s. It would be an
extremely impressive feat for an African American man to own one, although there were a few
such cases (405). The numbers show that the odds of Tiana being a restaurant owner are about the
same as becoming a princess: little to no chance. With that in mind, if this is what she truly wanted,
then she did triumph and achieve her dreams.
Charlotte and Tiana: Who’s the Real Princess?
It is clear to see that Charlotte fits the Disney princess mold much better than Tiana, from her fair skin and blonde hair; obsession to wishing on stars; and the quick head-over-heels falling in love with the prince. And while Tiana triumphs and marries the prince at the end, it’s hard not to notice that in a sense, Charlotte is still doing better: she found her own prince, can spend her nights being served in her best friend’s restaurant, and remains incredibly wealthy. Sarah E.
Turner calls Tiana the “antithesis of Charlotte” in her article (87). From these deductions, it is clear that Tiana is either unique and groundbreaking, changing the idea of who a princess is and what she must look like or an imposter to the throne, stealing the spot that by virtue belongs to
Charlotte. By the way that Tiana is treated compared to her predecessors, the latter idea is very clearly implied.
Tiana’s Hometown: But is it Really New Orleans?
It is easy to tell that Tiana’s hometown is not picture-perfect from the drastic change of scenes from Charlotte’s lavish bedroom to the dated, plain kitchen in Tiana’s home. What’s
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harder to see is the racism that should have been unapologetically evident in the Jim Crow New
Orleans during the 1910s, the setting of the film (Breaux 404). There are conflicting feelings on this “colorblind” film (Turner 90). New York Times reporter Brooks Barnes writes that “Mr.
Del Vecho said the idea for a black princess came about organically. The producers wanted to create a fairy tale set in the United States and centered on New Orleans, with its colorful past and deep musical history.” But in this film, we don’t see the “colorful past” that he speaks of, only the parts of it that the producers chose to portray, one that is incredibly inaccurate and insensitive to all those that actually were discriminated against during that time period. This New Orleans is about as real as any setting in a fairytale, only without the magic. Some people say that because this is a children’s film, not addressing the racism was the correct thing to do; others say that if
Disney didn’t want to show racism, they should have picked a less difficult time period (Turner
90-91). Personally, I believe that almost all things can be addressed in a child appropriate way, and that the correct course of action would be to address the discrimination in a visible but light manner, as opposed to pretending that it never happened at all. Very few references are made, and most of them are incredibly subtle, such as the realtors’ comment, “a little woman of your background would’ve had her hands full ... you’re better off where you’re at,” which, as Turner points out, could have been said because of her race or gender (88). Whereas the other princesses are loved and respected by their subjects, Tiana would have been the exception, completely obliterating the previous notion that a Disney princess must be loved by everyone but the villain. Her life is undeniably hard, but some of the real struggles that she would have faced have been extremely sugarcoated or ignored. For example, both Tiana and her mother’s jobs (a
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waitress and dressmaker, respectively) are not generally ones that African Americans would hold; if Disney were to be accurate, they both would have been laundresses (Breaux 404-405).
Henry Giroux, paraphrased in Richard Breaux’s article, says that inaccurately portraying history for African Americans “shape[s] public memory in ways that benefit corporate interests” (404).
With this in mind, by denying racism in this film, it might help to keep viewers from exploring it further, which would lead to less people finding out about Disney’s own previous racist actions.
Profits and Princess and the Frog
A quick search of Princess and the Frog at the official website for Disney merchandise reveals dozens of Tiana products for all ages, ranging from designer handbags to plastic tiaras to phone cases. There are also a variety of price ranges, such as two Tiana statues, one going for
$12.95 while the other sells for $174.95. The message is clear: different ages, tastes, and wealth can all find something to buy on this site (ShopDisney). This is a smart business move, a way to appeal to more people. In creating Tiana, the hope was to do the same thing. By creating an
African American character, the hope was that more African American consumers would buy merchandise. Disney was correct. More than 50,000 Tiana dolls were sold, one reason being that some African American mothers thought that it would raise their daughters’ self-esteem.
These sales, along with other Princess and the Frog merchandise, contributed to Disney earning over $18 billion dollars in the first half of 2010. Cities “ranked in the top ten for black buying power” saw the most intense demand of the merchandise, which led to “long lines at Disney stores” and sold-out dolls (Breaux 414-415). Photos of the merchandise were released months before the actual movie was, a way to drum up excitement and combat that the significant
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decline in profit that the company was struggling with (Barnes). Also factored into the profits were the movie ticket sales, which accounted for $200 million dollars (Gregory 442).
Conclusion
On the surface, Princess and the Frog is a social justice victory; Tiana is a new addition to an exclusive princess lineup, one where minorities are extremely underrepresented. But to classify her as royalty, Disney lowered the standards and implications of this once prestigious title. Ever since the film was released in 2007, it doesn’t matter if you’re a frog or a restaurant owner, because literally anyone can be a princess. And if everyone can have this title, then it isn’t a significant honor at all, let alone something to dream about. Disney states that Tiana is a princess, but implies that everything about her, including the color of her skin, is to a less perfect degree; in their eyes, she only makes the lineup because the new rules are flexible. Regardless of the company’s stance, it will continue to sell Tiana merchandise, an act accused to be the motivation behind the movie in the first place. Tiana lives happily ever after, but it is clear to see that in the story of diversity and Disney, there are a few more chapters and obstacles to complete before this narrative can be advanced. Perhaps with the work of advocates and a few wishes on stars, there will soon be an African American princess that could qualify based on the standards set by the previous princesses.
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Works Cited
Barnes, Brooks. “Her Prince Has Come. Critics Too.” The New York Times, May 31, 2009.
Factiva , https://global.factiva.com/ga/default.aspx.
Breaux, Richard. “After 75 Years of Magic: Disney Answers Its Critics, Rewrites African
American History, and Cashes In on Its Racist Past.” Journal of African American
Studies , vol. 14, no. 4, 2010, pp. 398–416. Academic Search Complete, http://flagship
.luc.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=60
311044&site=ehost-live.
Condis, Megan. “She Was a Beautiful Girl and All of the Animals Loved Her: Race, the Disney
Princesses, and Their Animal Friends.” Gender Forum , no. 55, 2015. ProQuest Gender
Watch, http://flagship.luc.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.flagship.luc.edu
/docview/1748547378?accountid=12163.
Del Vecho, Peter, producer. Princess and the Frog . Original story by Ron Clements, Greg Erb,
John Musker, Jason Oremland; screenplay by Ron Clements & John Musker and Rob
Edwards; directed by Ron Clements, John Musker. Walt Disney Studios Home
Entertainment, 2010.
Dundes, Lauren, and Madeline Streiff. “Reel Royal Diversity? The Glass Ceiling in Disney’s
Mulan and Princess and the Frog.” Societies , vol. 6, no. 4, 2016, p. 35. https://doaj.org/
article/cbcbd23633b442c3bf32f5fca278ba07 .
Gregory, Sarita McCoy. "Disney's Second Line: New Orleans, Racial Masquerade, and the
Reproduction of Whiteness in the Princess and the Frog." Journal of African American Studies ,
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vol. 14, no. 4, 2010, pp. 432-449. Academic Search Complete, http://flagship .luc.edu/login
?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=60
311045&site=ehost-live.
ShopDisney. https://www.shopdisney.co m/search?query=the%20princess%20and%20the
%20frog.
Turner, Sarah E. “ Blackness, Bayous and Gumbo: Encoding and Decoding Race in a Colorblind
World.” Diversity in Disney Films : Critical Essays on Race, Ethnicity, Gender,
Sexuality and Disability , McFarland and Company, Ebook Central CARLI Consortium
Purchased Collection , 2014.