FILOZOFICKÁ FAKULTA Time to Let it Go: Redefining Gender and Social Stereotypes in Disney's Frozen Magisterská diplomová práce BA VERONIKA VARGOVÁ Vedoucí práce: doc. PhDr. Tomáš Pospíšil, Ph.D. Katedra anglistiky a amerikanistky Program Anglický jazyk a literatura Brno 2021 TIME TO LET IT GO: REDEFINING GENDER AND SOCIAL STEREOTYPES IN DISNEY'S FROZEN Bibliografický záznam Autor: BA Veronika Vargová Filozofická fakulta Masarykova univerzita Katedra anglistiky a amerikanistky Název práce: Time to Let it Go: Redefining Gender and Social Stereotypes in Disney's Frozen Studijní program: Anglický jazyk a literatura Vedoucí práce: doc. PhDr. Tomáš Pospíšil, Ph.D. Rok: 2021 Počet stran: 89 Klíčová slova: genderové a sociální stereotypy, Disney, Frozen, homosexualita, archetypy, duševní zdraví, feminismus 2 TIME TO LET IT GO: REDEFINING GENDER AND SOCIAL STEREOTYPES IN DISNEY'S FROZEN Bibliographic record Author: BA Veronika Vargová Faculty of Arts Masaryk University Department of English and American Studies Title of Thesis: Time to Let it Go: Redefining Gender and Social Stereotypes in Disney's Frozen Degree Programme: English language and literature Supervisor: doc. PhDr. Tomáš Pospíšil, Ph.D. Year: 2021 Number of Pages: 89 Keywords: gender and social stereotypes, Disney, Frozen, queerness, archetypes, mental health, feminism 3 TIME TO LET IT GO: REDEFINING GENDER AND SOCIAL STEREOTYPES IN DISNEY'S FROZEN Anotace Hlavním cílem této práce je prostřednictvím řady vybraných příkladů poukázat na klí- čové aspekty, které odlišují Frozen od předchozích Disney Princess filmů, a zároveň uznat společné podobnosti. Práce se zaměřuje na tři klíčová témata, která mají v obou filmech Frozen významné zastoupení: archetypy, feminismus a queerness. První hlavní kapitola je věnována vztahu mezi animovanými filmy a společností a zaměřuje se na témata, jako je role marketingu a zboží; reprezentace pohlaví, rasy a sexuality v animo- vaných filmech se zaměřením na Disney a reprezentace duševního zdraví ve Frozen. 4 TIME TO LET IT GO: REDEFINING GENDER AND SOCIAL STEREOTYPES IN DISNEY'S FROZEN Abstract The main aim of this thesis is to demonstrate on a variety of selected examples the key aspects which differentiate Frozen from previous Disney Princess films, while also ac- knowledging the shared similarities. The thesis is focusing on three key topics, which have a significant presence in both Frozen films: archetypes, feminism and queerness. In addition, the first main chapter is dedicated to the relationship between animated films and society, focusing on topics such as the role of marketing and merchandise; representation of gender, race and sexuality in animated films with a focus on Disney, and mental health representation in Frozen. 5 TIME TO LET IT GO: REDEFINING GENDER AND SOCIAL STEREOTYPES IN DISNEY'S FROZEN Declaration I hereby declare that this thesis with title Time to Let it Go: Redefining Gender and Social Stereotypes in Disney's Frozen I submit for assessment is entirely my own work and has not been taken from the work of others save to the extent that such work has been cited and acknowledged within the text of my. Brno May 15, 2021 ....................................... BA Veronika Vargová 7 TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Contents 1 Introduction 11 1.1 Background information about the production of Frozen ................................ 12 1.2 Frozen and H.Ch.Andersen’s The Snow Queen ........................................................ 14 1.3 The Thesis .............................................................................................................................. 15 2 Literature review 17 2.1 Evolution of Disney Princess ......................................................................................... 17 2.2 Archetypes ............................................................................................................................. 20 2.3 Gender performativity, gender and sex .................................................................... 23 2.4 Masculinity ............................................................................................................................. 25 2.5 Queer readings and the issue of querbaiting .......................................................... 28 2.6 Eve Sedgwick Kosofsky’s Epistemology of the Closet ........................................... 30 3 Cartoons, marketing and society 32 3.1 Marketing ............................................................................................................................... 32 3.2 Representation of gender,race and sexuality in animated films .................... 36 3.3 Disability and autism representation in Frozen .................................................... 40 4 Character and plot archetypes in Frozen 46 4.1 The Disney Princess ........................................................................................................... 46 4.2 Analysis of selected scenes in Frozen according to Propp’s archetypes ..... 48 4.3 Elsa the Villain ...................................................................................................................... 56 5 Feminism 59 5.1 Feminism and Disney ........................................................................................................ 59 5.2 Feminism in Frozen ............................................................................................................ 60 5.3 Nature, ecofeminism and Frozen .................................................................................. 62 6 Queer reading of Frozen 67 6.1 Why is it possible ? ............................................................................................................. 67 6.2 Queer metaphors in Frozen ............................................................................................ 71 7 Conclusion 75 9 TABLE OF CONTENTS 7.1 Concluding remarks ........................................................................................................... 75 7.2 Gaps and potential for further research .................................................................... 76 8 Bibliography 78 9 Resume CZ 86 10 Resume EN 88 10 INTRODUCTION 1 Introduction When discussing children’s stories, it is common for adults to see the story and the characters simply as a mean to occupy the minds of their children for several precious minutes, during which the parents are able to rest and focus on themselves or on all the tasks that need to be completed that day. Many stories are clearly written specifi- cally for this purpose. Understandably, only a few would then care to pay closer atten- tion to the finer details, themes and most importantly, the messages of these stories. However, in 2021, it seems that such an attitude is far too dated. Topics that were considered taboo or too sensitive for public discussion are now being discussed openly. People of all ages and backgrounds are willing to share their stories and so the boundaries between the public and the private are more blurred than ever before. A person well acquainted with contemporary Anglo-American children’s and young adult literature of the past decade will certainly realize how quickly the publishing in- dustry responded to readers’ demands for diversity in books. In fact, ever since the paranormal /dystopian era of the early 2010s ended in 2014, it is rare that a book for young adults released in the past 6 years which does not feature at least one character who is not white, has a disability or is queer. Regarding the representation of gender, particularly noticeable is the frequent occurrence of strong and independent female characters. Furthermore, as many of the recent films and series are adaptations of these books, a similar trend can be observed in the cinema industry. Being arguably the biggest and the most influential producer of animated films for children, it was only a matter of time until Disney also responded to these changes. 11 INTRODUCTION And while all four of the most recent Disney Princess films – The Princess And the Frog, TAngled, BrAve and Frozen – can be considered to be Disney’s answer, the films which had the greatest impact was Frozen, the subject of the present study. 1.1 Background information about the production of Frozen Frozen is Disney’s 53rd full-length feature film, co-directed by Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck. It is also the first Disney film which was directed by a woman (Lester,2019). The main characters are voiced by Idina Menzel (Elsa), Kristen Bell (Anna), Jonathan Groff (Kristoff), Josh Gad (Olaf) and Santino Fontana (Hans) (imdb,undated). From its re- lease in 2013 until the release of The Lion King remake in July 2019, Frozen was the highest-grossing animated film of all time, earning over 1.25 billion dollars worldwide. The Lion King remake earned 1.65 billion dollars. The sequel film, Frozen 2, which was released in November 2019 is currently the second highest-grossing animated film of all time, earning over 1.45 billion dollars worldwide (Wikipedia,undated). During the early stages of production, a number of major changes were made to the original story- line. According to James B. Stewart (2005), Elsa was initially written to be a typical Disney evil witch who would freeze her potential suitors, until she meets an ordinary man who melts her heart. This trope is widely used in modern literature and cinema, however, it would be the first time Disney features it in one of its Princess films in this exact form. The implication here is clear