Male Dominance and Female Influence on Disneys The Lion King - Movie Review Example

Male Dominance and Female Influence on Disney’s The Lion King The impact of Walt Disney in the lives of children cannot be stressed enough. All of us have grown to these films and have been influenced one way or another by the amazing animations that have formed part of our lives. It cannot be denied that most of us have taken time to invest personal affinity to the characters that we have seen in the big screen. The characters that have of course started with Walt Disney’s creation of Mickey Mouse and the subsequent introduction of other characters that the company had launched whether through film or television. The influence that the company has gained through the decades can be perceived everywhere. It has digressed to almost every kind of media and branched out to merchandising as a lucrative endeavor. One, among the many films produced by Walt Disney Pictures is The Lion King. This animated movie, released in 1994, has captivated children who witnessed the adventures of Simba and his flight of discovering himself in order to reclaim the heir to the kingdom which was rightfully his. The film has catapulted sequels including animated series featuring some of its most endearing characters. It had actually won a number of awards. Something that was unprecedented at the time for animated films. It paved the way for the recognition of animation as a verified form of filmmaking. It won Best Film under the category of Musical or Comedy at the 1994 Golden Globe Awards where it also when Best Score, a category it also bagged in the Academy Awards that same year. The circle of life, this is the most famous song commonly attributed to the Lion King. This is what the film is trying to impart with its audience. The value and the reality that we are all connected. “Everything you see exists together, in a delicate balance. As king, you need to understand that balance, and respect all the creatures -- from the crawling ant to the leaping antelope” (Mufasa, The Lion King). The lions eat the antelopes, as Mufasa had told Simba, but lions die too and when they die, they serve as food to the grass that antelopes then eat. Life is a cycle and a lion may be at the top of the food chain today but he will also become a different part of it the next. But what The Lion King also tells us is that life is also a triangle. The dominance of the male over female characters can be found throughout the film but there are also some that suggest the influence of women on the male’s decision-making. It is a pyramid wherein the pride has a system wherein the alpha lion is the head of the hierarchy. It is very much a patriarchal society wherein the alpha male and the male figure overshadow everyone else. The leader of the tribe must essentially be a male. This is why the birth of Simba was an event. He is the symbol and the realization that the proliferation of their family as the head of the kingdom will continue. Even the forest has a hierarchy. And this leadership is determined by vigor. Strength may only be a trait attributed to a male lion. There is no such thing as a lion queen. The mere idea is just plain absurd. The process of choosing who the alpha male should be is determined by his strength. This is Scar’s resentment. He was subordinated to the throne to Mufasa because of the scar on his face. This means that he was not chosen as king because he had lost a fight. The aesthetic mark is a constant reminder of his weakness. Though he got the ‘lion’s share’ in the brain as to wits and cunning, his brother got the sheer brute force (Scar, The Lion King). This is obviously more important than anything else. The mere roar of Mufasa and his demeanor was regarded with fear and great respect among his people. The very mention of the name of Mufasa sends chills to the hyenas. He ruled admirably and was able to discipline Simba without using an iron fist. He maintained the peace in the kingdom by adhering to the system limited by boundaries that must not be crossed. Everyone has a defined part and everyone must function according to these roles that have been prescribed. It seems that the fate of the entire kingdom rests on the hands of Mufasa and then to Simba by virtue of succession. Even to whom Simba is betrothed with was already pre-determined at a very young age. Samba and Nala are to be future husband and wife as Zazu had pointed out to them. Throughout the film, the plot revolved around three lions, all of them male, Simba, Mufasa and Scar. Thrown in are Timon, Pumba and Zazu for good comedic measure. There was also Nala to complete the humanistic elements of the entire film by adding in the love angle. Majority of the characters, as pointed out, are male figures. This leads us to question where the female characters are and what their contribution in the development of the story is. If we are to sum up the appearances of Nala, her mother and Simba’s mother in the entirety of the film this will only amount to a good minute or two. Despite the fact that when we look at the whole tribe, it composed mostly of women. The thing about lions is that they have a very interesting societal system. They are led by the alpha lion who is regarded as the strongest in the pride. But the most curious in their behavior is that the lion actually stays behind while the lioness hunts. She then brings back the fruits of her hunt to feed her offspring and the male lion. The film had been faithful to this aspect. The first time that Nala and Simba saw each other again after thinking he had already died, Nala was chasing down Pumba. Simba came to Pumba’s rescue and fought with her. Nala was actually able to pin him down, much like when they were younger, when he realized who it was and they were reunited. There was a double standard with regard to gender in the film. In the beginning, when Simba was young and very eager there was a scene where he was awake before everyone else. Sarabi, Simba’s mother was awoken to his ardor when she tried to wake up Mufasa to which Mufasa quips, “Before sunrise, he is your son” (Mufasa, The Lion King). This was an offhand comment that Sarabi has the responsibility over their son. Something that is not only common in the lions. It is not very seldom that in a family there are times when the father would pass the disciplining to the mother or leave to her the task of taking care of the hard part while play is left to him. This is no different to the typical household where the mother changes the baby’s diaper time and again while the father is left alone to watch television of to do anything else that he wants. The most common setup in a traditional family is where the father goes to work to support the family while the mother is left at home to nurture the needs of the family. But what if it is also the mother who feeds them? In the time that we live in today, clearly this is no longer supposed to be true. This is the most astonishing in the dynamics of the lion in The Lion King. Nala was out to hunt when she found Simba. When there was no longer food to eat because the hyenas have already exhausted all the resources because of their greed they went to Scar to raise their complaint. Scar then dismissed them because it is the job of the lionesses to look for food. They of course followed because Scar is the king. This is regardless of the fact that this was objectionable by the simple reason that they do not have the obligation to provide for their food. The male take the dominant led throughout the film. The women, who outnumber the male significantly and they could have easily taken down the dark rule of Scar. But they have taken a backseat and allowed everything to happen. The glimmer of hope was only revived through the reappearance of Simba, the main male protagonist. Nala pleads Simba to return for the aspiration to revive Pride Rock as it once was. When Simba returned, he met again with his mother who was already feeble and aged by the despair of the death of her husband and the disappearance of her son. She was left as a frail woman who was not able to do anything by the circumstances of her life. Seeing Simba again was a highlight in her life and served as the rekindling of the hope in her life. Nala served as the voice of reason that allowed Simba to re-examine his life and look for his identity and reclaim his rightful throne. Though the women had very minute roles, they served as the voice of reason that enabled the coming together of the events as they unfolded. Nala, who was portrayed as stronger than Simba in a number of scenes, was the epitome of the brave woman behind the man. She had kept the hope alive when others haven’t. This role of women, though it may be subservient to that of a man still cannot be dismissed without giving it the credit it deserves. The Lion King may be a film that gravely focuses on the dominance of men in the society but still has the element of the influence of women, however limited, that reverberates within it. Bibliography The Lion King. Dirs. Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff. Walt Disney Picture. 1994. Film. Yahoo. "The Lion King." Yahoo Movies. 23 February 2011 . Read More