Published
Jun 27, 2023Page count
256 pagesISBN
978-1529222098Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University PressPublished
Jun 27, 2023Page count
256 pagesISBN
978-1529222104Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University PressPublished
Jun 27, 2023Page count
256 pagesISBN
978-1529222104Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University Press
The Disney Princess Phenomenon
In the media:
Disney's Snow White: Has the fairy tale already gone sour? in BBC News
Disney has turned 100 – but how well has the princess franchise aged? in the Radio Times
The Disney Princess Phenomenon with the New Books Network podcast
The Disney Princesses are a billion-dollar industry, known and loved by children across the globe.
Robyn Muir provides an exploratory and holistic examination of this worldwide commercial and cultural phenomenon in its key representations: films, merchandising and marketing, and park experiences. Muir highlights the messages and images of femininity found within the Disney Princess canon and provides a rigorous and innovative methodology for analysing gender in media.
Including an in-depth examination of each princess film from the last 83 years, the book provides a lens through which to view and understand how Disney Princesses have contributed to the depiction of femininity within popular culture.
“This engaging and thought-provoking book will intrigue not only scholars but also anyone who has ever been, or is the parent of, a child infatuated with Disney princesses.” Rainbow Murray, Queen Mary University of London
“An excellent study of the Disney Princess Phenomenon and its merchandising machine – a must-read for anyone wondering why it has been so important to so many over the last 30-plus years.” Amy Davis, University of Hull
Robyn Muir is Lecturer of Media and Communication at the University of Surrey. She has researched and published on the images of femininity within the Disney Princess Phenomenon, using facet methodology to explore the different areas of the wide ranging facets of the princesses. She is the founder and leader of the Disney, Culture and Society Research Network.
Introduction: Once Upon a Time
Part 1: The Films
Introducing the Film Analysis Framework
1. ‘Passive Dreamers’: The Beginning of the Disney Princess Phenomenon
2. ‘Lost Dreamers’: A Narrative Shift in the Princess Phenomenon
3. ‘Active Leaders’: Transgressive Princesses
4. ‘Sacrificing Dreamers’: A Regression in the Disney Princess Phenomenon
5. ‘Innovative Leaders’: A Progressive Era of Princesses
Part 2: The Consumer Experiences
6. Playing Dress Up: Disney Princess Merchandising and Marketing
7. Playing in the Parks: Meeting ‘Real Life’ Princesses
Conclusion: Happily Ever After?
