Through the Eyes of a Mouse:

Disney’s Influence on American Self Image

 and Historical Perspective

 

Daniel R. Vogel

Edinboro University of Pennsylvania

 

While standing in line at the Magic Kingdom recently, a guest behind us said to my fiancé, “It is sad that the line to meet Jack Sparrow is over twice as long as Mickey Mouse’s.” This statement has important meaning for those who enjoy the study of Disney and the study of the representation of history in general. On the one hand, the iconic titan that is Mickey Mouse is being eclipsed by an upstart pirate captain and anti-hero from the Disney Company’s much more recent Pirates of the Caribbean movie franchise. There is a bit of irony thrown in; the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise was derived from an attraction built at Disneyland in 1967. Disneyland and the Walt Disney Company itself was started on the back of Walt Disney’s original Mickey Mouse cartoons; therefore, this is almost as a grandson striking down his grandfather.

On the other hand, one should be asking: why were so many people lining up to see a pirate? History has been good to pirates, The Disney representation is not an abnormality; their interpretation is just the most recent painting of a pirate’s life as one of adventure and glory. However; it is Walt Disney’s institutions that have helped shape the most recent adaptation of piracy. And again, this is not an abnormality in procedure for the people at Disney; it is just merely one in a line of many instances where Disney has reinvented something historical for mass cultural acceptance.

The problem of the first hand can be satisfactorily explained away with a look at how Jack Sparrow and Mickey Mouse are currently marketed, and an inquiry into the comparison of frequencies at which Disney allows guests to interact with the captain and the commander in cheese. Sparrow ends up with much more publicity than Mickey Mouse, and much less time and fewer locations within the Disney theme parks to interact with guests. These explanations can not really solve the problem of the second hand, and this problem leads to a more striking question; what impact does Disney have on the perception of history? This is the subject that this essay will start to crack.

Along with his influence on history, it would be hard to argue that Walt Disney and his company have not affected the cultural perspective of the American people. Over the last century Disney and Company has had a profound impact on how the world views American history, and within his projects his cultural ideals appear to manifest themselves in entertainment form. Disney enjoyed history and used it as an influence for many of his works. By examining his career and later the Walt Disney Company’s projects, one can get a sense of how this cultural father examined and interpreted history for the masses. One can also find the influence his company had on the American public, if not the world. In such projects as Disney’s rendition of Davy Crockett, Disney revitalized interests in areas of history to the public. Even though fictionalized, Disney’s ventures in history were entertainment and provided a perspective for younger generations of Americans to come. By examining this history starting with Disney’s animation and continuing today in the theme parks and multimedia endeavors, one can see the definite impact Walt Disney has had on American self image.[1] 

First a note about Disney history in general; most credible historians break up Walter Elias Disney and his company, now the Walt Disney Company, into two sections by period. The first covers the lifetime of Walt Disney, and the second covers the period after his death. Disney was a heavy handed manager, so one can easily see how the corporate entity took its own shape after his death. Still the institution that Walt built – the company during his time and the company after his passing can never truly be separated; but, they can be compared and recognized by researchers as different entities.

This is especially important when trying to look into the historical representations Disney had provided us with over the last eighty years. Walt Disney the person and the company he controlled interpreted and presented history different than his successor company did.  Disney provided ideology behind his interpretations; whereas, the corporate version, or “Corporate Walt” as Mike Wallace terms it, seems to shift between capital grossing intentions and political correctness in the form of appeasement.[2] As the Walt Disney Company is one of the major players in twentieth century cultural history, there is too much to squeeze into an essay of this size; therefore, this paper will present a few cases where the institution of Disney has influenced American culture and sum it up with some thoughts on the uses of Disney’s versions of history.

 

Walt Disney at the Reigns

               Disney grew up in multiple locations, but none as memorable to him as Marceline, Missouri. It was a brief couple of years on the family farm there that set the tone for all of Walt Disney’s future productions, including his views on history.  Disney’s father had bounced around the county with a multitude of failed businesses. He had also become sentimental to the populist ideal in the 1890’s and became attuned to socialist ideals later in life. Disney ended up sharing his father’s populist vision, but any hint of socialism was eradicated with the worker’s strike at his studios in 1940.[3]

               Disney’s early works in animation lead to the creation of Mickey Mouse. Mickey’s personality included the morals that Disney envisioned the average American to have. America took so well to Mickey Mouse, that Walt later claimed that the studio was too restricted with Mickey Mouse, and that it was hard to find comical situations for them to put their star in. Mickey was a role model for a good American, and what parents wanted their children to be.[4] Mickey had wholesome values rooted in Disney’s populist ideals. For example, in 1936’s Mickey’s Rival Disney’s hero squared off against his nemesis Mortimer Mouse for Minnie Mouse’s affection. This is a classic example of Disney’s love for the underdog. Mickey was a common mouse with common possessions. Mortimer had a fast car, good looks, and apparent class.[5] Mortimer picks on Mickey when not in the view of Minnie; in one scene he plucked Mickey’s famous buttons off to taunt him. Mickey is plainly dressed, an ideal middle class mouse, while Mortimer has the air of old money about him. Of course, Mickey wins in the end when Mortimer is confronted by an angry bull and runs away; meanwhile, Mickey saves Minnie. The little guy showed what he is in the end, honest and willing to stand up for what he believed in; and Mortimer, the bully which stood for all that Disney was against, fled.

               Hard work was always one of Disney’s favorite themes. In 1933’s The Three Little Pigs, Disney ensured the country that hard work would lead to success. It was only by the hard work of the everyday man that America would raise from the Great Depression. This motif is revisited once again in 1937’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, where Disney shows us that the seven dwarves are free individuals who make their own way in life because of hard work.[6] Disney’s war effort during World War II also showed the importance of the ordinary citizen. In a series of shorts, Disney used Donald Duck to show Americans who the Nazis were, teach Americans how to be citizen soldiers, and to encourage Americans to pay taxes and make sacrifices at home for the boys over seas.

               Up until after the Second World War, Disney’s film excursions were influencing upon America’s character but had yet to make a vast impression on the way Americans viewed history. It was really the Baby Boom generation that finally crowned “Uncle” Walt as one of America’s cultural fathers. It would be this generation that would watch Disney’s Davy Crockett in 1954 and then have their parents buy $300 million dollars in merchandise.[7] This fan base created the leverage Disney needed to make the leap from entertainer to engineer and educator. Baby Boomers ate up Disney’s ideals in his programs, further making him an institution with credibility and not just a man.[8] Davy Crockett was important for another reason; it was also where Disney really began to influence perceptions of history. While other westerns were out killing off Native Americans, Disney continued a long tradition of defending the American Indian as an equal.[9] Disney’s Crockett fought Indians when he had to, but he also defended their rights against land grabbing white men. This perception of equality for all that Disney helped implant would continue with the generation into more turbulent times.

               The crowning achievement of Walt Disney was Disneyland, and its extension Walt Disney World. Not only did it cement Disney as one of the most powerful cultural figures in American history, but it also allowed him to codify his ideals into a physical form for all time. It is in Disneyland and the Magic Kingdom that Disney’s concept of history can most easily be identified. Disneyland and the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World are identical in format; though vary slightly, for this paper I will refer mostly to the Magic Kingdom which is the last theme park Disney had a direct hand in planning.

               The Magic Kingdom is divided into themed lands; all of these themes revolve around historical time periods. More importantly, they revolve around popular ideals of the time periods they represent. A white-washed history per say, one that is the way people may feel it ought to have been. Disney relied on nostalgia to connect his guests to his ideals within the parks. Disney provided his guests with a safe history. Notably, the last war that is portrayed anywhere in the Magic Kingdom is the American Civil War. Twentieth Century conflicts are mostly missing from the park; this would most likely coincide with Disney’s want for guests to totally remove themselves from the outside world when they entered the gates.

Guests enter the Magic Kingdom via Main Street U.S.A., a mock up of a late Victorian age main street in the heartland. Ideally modeled after Disney’s own memories of Marceline, Main Street U.S.A. is the embodiment of what we look back on as a nation – a time when things were simple, clean, and safe. It is this elaboration on the past that allows guests to flourish in Disney’s history, they obtain enjoyment from the world he created because it is the way their value sets believe things should be. They may not want to go back to a period which lacks the marvels of the present, (and indeed this would be against Disney’s strong personal theme of progress) but the guests are comfortable within the theme; as it acts as a safety net from the outside world.

               As noted above, Disney’s interest in the American as an equal individual in society was a driving part of his ethos. This is evident in the Magic Kingdom in the lands of Liberty Square and Frontierland. The former is made up to look like a town during the American Revolution. The later covers 19^th century American expansionism as popular culture has perceived it over the 20^th century. Both lands embody the “American Spirit” that Disney glorified in his films and projects. Within Liberty Square there are important icons of Disney’s History of American Independence. A liberty bell, a liberty tree like the one the Sons of Liberty reportedly met under, and most importantly the Hall of Presidents.

The Hall is home of 43 audio-animatronic presidents, a marvel descending from a 1964 New York World’s Fair exhibit for the state of Illinois. In its earliest form, the exhibit called Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln featured the 16^th president as a state of the art robot, one that apparently impressed greatly at the 1964 World’s Fair. Disney was a bit of a Lincolnophile, and after his death his pet project morphed into the Hall of Presidents once the Magic Kingdom opened in Orlando.[10] If it was the robots that people came to see, it was Disney’s message about the Constitution that they would have to hear first. The slide show before the presentation of the presidential automatons was and still is about the greatness of the American form of government. It covers three uprisings in American history; the often forgotten Whiskey Rebellion, the Nullification Crisis, and the Civil War. It is made very clear that the president must stick to the Constitution in order for this country to remain great.  The period after the Civil War was dedicated to progress of the American People, with no real mention of the 20^th century. The Hall of Presidents takes a white washed version of American history and presents it to the public in the form of hero worship. This is not necessarily a negative however, as it would be hard to name a society that did not employ hero worship in their national identity.

               Frontierland brings back the ideas of Fredrick Jackson Turner, and his reasoning behind the greatness of the American People. This land was dedicated to the hard working men and women who went out and tamed the wilderness of the American frontier.  Those people who embodied Disney’s “American Spirit” seemed to fuel the creation of Frontierland, or perhaps it could be the success of Davy Crockett that led to the building of a frontier town setting. As in the case of Main Street U.S.A. and Liberty Square, the replica buildings in Frontierland represent something that only exists in the population’s mind as history. There are many instances of Disney influenced history in Frontierland, but other than the basic concept, most of the major examples evolve from corporate Disney after Walt’s time, rather than his own influence.[11]

               Another major historically themed land is Adventureland, which includes the Pirates of the Caribbean and the Jungle Cruise amongst other attractions. Adventureland is set to cover the period of empire and deals with exploration and exploitation by the far flung arms of European nations. Even Fantasyland and Mickey’s Toontown Fair have time periods they represent. The former takes much of its element from medieval architecture and influence. Dark Age tales comes to life within the buildings of Fantasyland. Meanwhile, Toon Town Fair represents Disney’s characters acting out his own lineage, a Midwestern county fair. The last land of the Magic Kingdom represents the future, or at least the popular cultures idea of what the future holds. Ironically, Disney presents us with one more gem of Disney History within the bounds of a land dedicated to the future. The Carousel of Progress shows the audience what it was like for the American family in the years 1900, 1920, 1940 and “tomorrow” in terms of household technology. The Carousel of Progress deserves a whole essay on historical representation itself, so for space limitations this paper will move on to Corporate Disney; however, like the Hall of Presidents the Carousel of Progress is one of the true monuments to the Disney version of History.[12]

              

After Walt

               Corporate Disney has a different take on the presentation of history and in running the business itself.  While Walt supposedly only made movies he wanted to see, the corporation after him seemed to eventually erode from its moral core. Thus today one can see that Corporate Disney is more like Walt’s capitalistic ideals for American society than the authoritarian company Walt ran. Without the patriarch, shareholders and individual’s inhibitions began to surface; making the Walt Disney Company more like other large companies of this era. However, despite the multiple attempts to tear the institution apart there emerged a centralized power that attempted to stick to Walt’s values, for his reputation was the most valuable asset of the company. At the same time they took actions to pursue bigger ventures that would allow them to gain more income. Hence the side projects of the company, for example the purchasing of brands like Miramax to release more adult orientated entertainment to expand the company’s markets.[13]

               The largest example in the change of historical representation and cultural identification was the creation of EPCOT. Epcot, which was originally Walt Disney’s idea for the city of tomorrow, morphed into a permanent World’s Fair by the company after his death; one which showcased countries of the world and modern marvels at the same time.  It was the company’s attempt to capture the older more sophisticated audiences, rather than mostly families as the Magic Kingdo m attracted. Epcot was divided into two lands, Future World and the World Showcase.  In Future World, corporate sponsors helped build attractions that would entertain and educate guests; while in the World Showcase guests would be treated by the tourism boards of various countries to a glimpse of foreign life.

               Future World’s original attractions were mostly paid for by large corporations like AT&T and General Motors. Each one had a ride through a pavilion which educated guests on the history of their field and the possible futures for mankind in that field, primarily by advertising what they were working on or had done. For Example, AT&T’s Spaceship Earth went through the history of human communication. In the world’s largest geodesic sphere, the guests were transported in a slow vehicle up the sphere while being shown scenes from history staring audio-animatronics. The scenes each showed how man evolved from cave paintings to AT&T’s global network. On the descent, the guests are shown glimpses of possible future achievements of mankind, almost all happening in space.

               The World Showcase featured pavilions by multiple countries; each presented their county’s heritage differently. This like the future world pavilions were a step away from Walt’s heavily influenced attractions. Whereas Disney had done sponsored exhibits like the ones at the 1964 worlds fair, it was always Walt’s way or nothing. In these new pavilions corporations and tourist boards were aloud input into the attractions. This of course makes Future World seem like a commercial at some points.

               Notably, it is in the World Showcase at the United State’s pavilion that one is presented with a new version of Disney History. In the American Adventure, the tones of history are no longer reminiscent of the absolutist statements of Abraham Lincoln and the Hall of Presidents. Disney History becomes more flawed. Guests learn that there are many struggles in American History. Disney bills the conflicts of American history as struggles in a long road to freedom. Interestingly enough, the Company has seemed to taken a step back from “Uncle” Walt’s appreciation of Native Americans.  Although Chief Joseph of the Nez Pierce does make an appearance in the show, it is only to surrender to the might of the American empire moving west. Women and African Americans find their way into this version of American History, if only for a brief moment. The whole presentation seems to be an attempt to give a nod to everyone while still telling a story of the Great American Culture, which of course is impossible to do.  As the show ends, one is left in awe at this Cold War era propaganda piece.

               A final example of the Disney Company’s rendering of history can be seen in their latest franchise, Pirates of the Caribbean. This glorification of some of the most ruthless villains and terrorists of history stems back to the ride of the same name. However, Walt’s version of the ride did not put names onto the pirates faces, audiences were distanced from their entertainment by the stream of water their boat floated upon. Even though piratical themes were as popular as westerns as topics for fiction novels and movies at the time, in the end Walt’s pirates were robots that sung funny songs while performing stereotypical piratical duties. The movie version puts names to pirates, and makes them out to be not such a bad bunch of hooligans. The theme at Walt Disney World in the spring of 2007 was Pirates and Princesses; it encourages children and adults to dress up and act as pirates, but leaves out the part that pirates were actually quite nasty. The pirate would not be a logical hero for Walt Disney as they do not meet the standards of his ethos. This is just another example of how different the Walt Disney Company treats historical subjects compared to their founder. Of course, perhaps the exploitation of history for fun is not such a bad thing.

 

 

Conclusions

There are positives to Disney and company being sub-par historians. Perhaps the fact that many of these attractions are relics and are outdated today makes them important to the study of American Culture and History. Even though the American Adventure feels like a Cold War propaganda exhibit, historians can take from it a few things. First, historians have an example of how the subject was treated in 1982. It can be studied in context with other exhibits, and we can look into how such themes in American history are represented to mass audiences over time. This can be done with a number of attractions at Walt Disney World, spanning more than 35 years, there is a good deal of cultural representation data available to the researcher. It is a mirror into ourselves, how our youth has learned and played over the years. It is the earliest forms of edutainment.

More importantly, it is edutainment. With arguably more tourists visiting Walt Disney World than the Smithsonian each year, perhaps one must look at the overall advantages of Disney at least attempting to present history. If Disney’s presentations spark interest in new students, then presumably those students will go out and learn more on their own. As a gateway to learning, Disney serves as a beginning for some children. Perhaps it should not be called learning at all, but a form of discovery.  In an age where people can sit in the comfort of their own home and Google something they see on TV for more information, is Disney’s discovery process not a good thing to get these people interested in events of American history? By no means is it higher education, or even high school education, but the Disney version of history can be used as a tool for children to begin to learn new themes.

Finally, as the history being written has come from a non historian in some cases, we may be critical. However, our history is written every day by non-historians on TV by the media, or on the internet via social groups; and even when a historian has the pen in hand they may take a slanted or bias view on things. For examples one just has to pick up any three books on Walt Disney; there is a good chance that they will cover the whole spectrum; from overly bias for to extremely against the man. Just because edutainment is the process does not mean that there is no value in Disney’s presentation.

This essay has just scratched the surface of how Disney has influenced our perceptions of history. When it comes to cultural impact and historical presentation, there are also many other examples in the realm of Disney that can and need to be explored further; some scholars have touched on a few, but still many open opportunities await.