The Place of Dream for all Children - Term Paper Example

«CAN DISNEY WORLD BE DESCRIBED AS A POSTMODERN CITY»? Introduction One of the most popular vacation destinations in the world is the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida on a 28, 000 acre property (Herzogenrath, 2001). It consists of four theme parks: Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney-MGM Studios and Animal Kingdom; also two water parks, numerous hotels, and other recreation options, making it a large source of revenue for the Walt Disney Company. The quartet along with California’s Disneyland are the five theme parks with highest attendance, of over fifty million visitors in a year. Besides its larger theme parks, Disney also has an assortment of other venues (Kraus, 2005). Stephen Fjellman (1992) has described the theme parks as the most ideologically significant piece of real estate in America, which create ideologies supporting capitalism and consumerism (Herzogenrath, 2001). Postmodernism in urban analysis may include a variety of criteria, which are applicable to the Disney theme parks. The purpose of this paper is to determine whether Disney World can be described as a postmodern city. Discussion The first theme park to open at Walt Disney World, which is most frequently associated with the resort was the Magic Kingdom which was modeled after Disneyland in Anaheim, California. Epcot, the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, was the second theme park to open on the property, and was originally the focus of Walt Disney’s Florida project. Previously envisioned as a residential community with the perfect environment for people to live, work and play, it was later developed as a theme park (Beard, 1982). At Epcot Center there is a continual re-writing of history: a Distory, as termed by Stephen Fjellman (1992). Although Walt Disney World is unlike any other establishment, globally, it reflects the image of America. In spite of Disney’s fakery and its unique elements, Disney World is the essence of postmodern everyday reality, minus the negative aspects. Disney world is safe and non-threatening, a place where any fright is only for fun. Other than this dimension, Disney and the postmodern American landscape are mutually extendable. The project has been exported to Japan and France, and the Disney reality has spread through the American cultural aesthetics (Bell et al, 1995). Disney Theme Parks and their Relationship with the Real America that Surrounds them Postmodernism is similar to modernism in that it rejects boundaries between high and low forms of art, rejects rigid genre distinctions, emphasizes pastiche or simulation, parody or comic imitation, bricolage or creation using available resources, irony, and playfulness. Postmodernism favours consciousness of the self, reflective thinking, fragmentation and discontinuity especially in narrative structures. An example of postmodern fragmentation is seen in the park’s World Showcase which offers a haphazard arrangement of countries and historical periods. Postmodern thought is also unclear, emphasizing destructured, decentred and dehumanized subject, as was creatively implemented in Disney theme parks. Postmodernism offers alternatives to joining the global culture of consumption where commodities and information are offered by forces far beyond any individual’s control. These alternatives focus on thinking of all action or social struggle as partial though effective, and local though limited (Klages, 2007). Disney World upsets assumptions such as production rather than culture as the motor driving the economy of postmodern society. However, the entertainment provided at Disney World relies on an extensive work force and an extremely large network of material resources. These in turn contribute to the urban development of the surrounding towns and counties, ensuring regional growth that create opportunities for more employment, more migrants and expansion of housing facilities. Disney World has become a platform for combining forces with other areas of a service economy. The visual coherence and landscape plan of the theme parks creates a public culture of civility and security that is a reminder of past ages. There is none of the negative side of contemporary society, no guns, no illegal drink or drugs, no homeless people. Disney World makes social diversity less threatening and public space more secure. The public culture of the theme parks is such that Americans can enjoy the participation without embarassment, which is what that they most require from a public space. Their methods of establishing collective identity are based entirely on the market or capitalism (Carmona & Tiesdell, 2007). The expansive size and functional interdependence of Disney World help in presenting it as a functional representation of a real city, built for people from the middle classes that have escaped from cities to the suburbs and outskirts. It is enhanced urban landscape built with its own Disney money, offering squeaky clean entertainment, without many of cities’ negative components. A public culture of consumerism is established through the relinquishment of consumers’ identity to the corporate giant, based on the theme parks’ own rules, own vocabulary, and own scrip or currency. Since Disney World provides its own security force and sanitation workers, the areas are cleaner and safer than real city streets. Further, the mass transportation system, outdoor lighting, street furniture and other conveniences work much better than public facilities. Hence, the theme parks may be conceptualized as a coherent argument for privatizing public space. A number of separate agendas constitute the key concepts of the theme parks: development, urban planning, service industries and the symbolic economy as a whole (Carmona & Tiesdell, 2007). There are some downsides such as a fictitious narrative of social identity is created by the parks. Unidemensional nature and history are developed behind a facade. ‘This is corporate, not alternative global culture, created in California and replicated in turnkey “plants” in Florida, Japan and France’ (Carmona & Tiesdell, 2007: 132). Parts of Disney World have been used in several other places. There are visual and spatial elements of the theme parks in urban festival market places and shopping malls, museum displays and other public spaces. Besides fictitious social identity, Disney theme parks such as the American Adventure, promote a false sense of empowerment, about Americans coming a long way in their first century, and that they were still in the process of speaking out. But it is common knowledge that contemporary Americans are not fighting for their rights, do not take an active role in the decisions of the government, do not vote in elections and are willing to accept a passive role. ‘Yet, Disney wishes to hide the fact that today there is an underlying ambivalence towards the American government and the consumerism it supports’ (Kuenz, 1995: 66). The reason for masking American passivity is that corporations rely on this passivity, use it to control public thoughts and opinions, thus helping to promote the domination of corporate America. Simultaneously, visitors are induced into feeling empowered, that they too can overcome obstacles, and make a difference in the future of the country (Kuenz, 1995). Disneyland’s Legacy in American Popular Culture, its Export and Disneyization of Public Space At Disney World, Epcot park most focuses on the promise of the future, with each ride at Future World offering its own optimistic outlook that promotes visitors’ trust towards sponsoring corporations (Storey, 2001). The aim of postmodern urban analysis is to understand how reality is interpreted and how identities are influenced. Postmodernism can also refer to the time period that post dates modernity, and is characterized by great transformations in social, political and economic paradigms. It can also relate to the importance of urban space which may include physical, discursive, public or civic space (Croucher, 1997). Postmodernism celebrates fragmentation and incoherence, as seen in the Disney theme parks where historic events and future visions are presented to visitors in disjointed segments. Postmodernism also discusses the importance of simulation or creation of copies; there are no originals and reality is created by simulation, which is seen throughout the Disney theme parks (Okrasinski, 2006). According to Okarasinski (2006), postmodernistic creation of reality by simulation is exemplified at Epcot. All the pavilions in World Showcase embody certain time periods and geographical locales of the representative countries. As a result, in the public’s minds, the pavilions become reality, and the representations become authentic originals. This is evident in the way visitors to the different pavilions in World Showcase speak of the China pavilion as China, thus blurring the difference between the Disney version and the authentic version. This may be one of the many reasons Disney is so successful in convincing the public that World Showcase offers cultural exchange, when in reality this part of the park also puts consumerism into action. Fjellman (1992) states that there is an overwhelming drive for consumption, and visitors constantly encounter the presence of corporate America. This is supported by Kuenz (1995) and Wasko (2001), who add that Disney promotes a corporate-dominated future. In America, the democratic culture views children as a social investment whose worth cannot be evaluated on purely commercial terms. A democratic culture provides the resources required by young people to develop their capabilities towards critical thought, power relations and policy decisions that influence their lives, transforming inequalities that terminate democratic social relations. The requirements of citizenship necessitate participation in public affairs, critical evaluation of public officials and corporate interests, involvement in political decision making for the purpose of increased equal opportunities. These activities are in opposition to corporations’ privatizing measures, ‘which attempt to overshadow the demands of citizenship with the demands of commerce’ (Giroux, 2001: 20). In serving the entertainment and educational needs of children, the corporation has used children and their parents as capital to achieve a highly successful commercial empire. ‘Disneyland and Disney World are two of the most significant public spaces of the late 20th century’ (Carmona & Tiesdell, 2007: 130). They reach above ethnic, class and regional identities to offer a national public culture built on aestheticizing differences and controlling fear. The theme parks are the alter ego and the collective fantasy of American society, they underline the American self esteem and identity; and are a source of many myths. With the replacement of public culture with commercial culture, and the language of democracy with the language of the market, democratic identities are being replaced by consuming patterns and corporatism; and the good life is based on what an individual buys. Hence, the removal of childhood innocence is seen to be related to the decline of democracy, and the increasing market culture which replaces those public spheres that are critical for developing critical citizenship in young people (Giroux, 2001). Hence, it is stated that Disneyland’s legacy adds to the growing consumerism of American popular culture. Commodification of Childhood, Disney’s Marketing of Theme Parks and Development of Media Disney’s view of innocence was constructed within particular frameworks of meaning in which children and adults identified themselves through a lively and enjoyable cultural language that offered them both pleasure as well as a clear sense of identity. Disney associated entertainment not only with leisure but also with educational value. By combining entertainment and education, Disney blurred the boundaries between public culture and commercial interests. His concepts were represented in the attractions constituting the theme parks of Disneyland and Disney World, and also in the extensive range of media and cultural outlets in everyday life. ‘Hollywood films, radio programs, television networks, sports franchises, book publishing, and daily newspapers’ (Giroux, 2001: 18) provided the Disney company with appropriate platforms from which to promote its cultural teaching and entertaining of children. Walt Disney’s key insight was that pedagogy through which children could learn, make affective investments and reconstruct their identities was possible through the mastery of new methods for leisure, new electronic technologies, and new global markets. Disney company wields an enormous influence on the cultural life of the nation. The company’s commercial success is testimony to the crucial role that culture and entertainment play in the structure and organization of postmodern society, in the development of the global environment, and in the use of its economic and material resources. Disney’s success represents the power of culture industries to impact on every aspect of contemporary life. However, Disney’s development into a new entertainment monopoly also indicates the methods by which corporate culture uses its powers as an educational force (Giroux, 2001: 20). Holding Disney responsible for shaping children’s desires and identities is essential, because the corporation presents itself not only as a creator of entertainment, but also as a political force that develops theories of education for public schools which traditionally support the critical and intellectual development of children unhampered by consumer culture (Girous, 2001). Disney is one of the most powerful and well-known corporations in the world, hence the influence of its global markets affects people all over the world. Showcasing American industry is an important part of Epcot, through its two distinctive sections: Future World and World Showcase. Future World is represented in eight buildings, each pavilion dealing with specific aspects of human life. World Showcase is a community of nations portraying the diversity of the world’s people from a great number of nations, with extensive detailing (Birnbaum: 2004). Although Disney World blends education, cultural exchange and entertainment through harmless fun, the blatant promotion of consumer capitalism that occurs in all sections of the theme parks underlines the functioning of the theme park. The consumer endorsement begins in the American Adventure attraction, which is not only the most developed, but also geographically and thematically significant, where the triumph of corporate America are highlighted. Here Disney presents visitors with information that is not always accurate, but appears to be truthful and honest. This section of the park supports consumer capitalism by inspiring trust in the Walt Disney Corporation. By promoting a false sense of participation, evoking patriotism and empowerment, Epcot visitors are blinded to the overwhelming presence of corporations throughout the rest of the theme park. A firm connection is established between American identity and consumerism, thereby preparing visitors to accept information presented in Future World and World Showcase (Okarasinski, 2006). The American Adventure show presents several inaccuracies related to American history, to the visitors. Starting with reasons for the European pilgrims’ voyage to America, false depiction of history is also seen by erasure of the indigenous American Indians, the total lack of reference to slavery and to the harsh treatment and exclusion that African Americans were subjected to (Zibart, 2002). Similarly, the Great Depression which was a terrible time in the historical reality of the 1930s, is misrepresented as a time of renewed optimism for the country. The main purpose of Disney World is to make Americans feel good about their country (Kuenz, 1995). The consumerism continues in Future World, where the rides and attractions support the overwhelming presence of corporate sponsors and each corporation is presented positively as a partner in the betterment of human life. Similarly, World Showcase is meant to promote cultural exchange, but is found to be little more than restaurants and shopping facilities thus further increasing consumerism among visitors (Okarasinski, 2006). Because of constant exposure to consumeristic culture, society has become immune to the materialistic influences. Various sources of media such as television, movies, and magazines emphasize corporate values and interests everyday. Through watching commercials and advertisements, people get influenced into buying goods according to the information presented to them. This is a matter of concern since the implication is that corporations are literally conditioning people into becoming good consumers (Okarasinski, 2006). The public unawareness of Disney’s consumerist motives and biases is the most disturbing aspect of the promotion of consumer capitalism. The misleading information can lead to a distorted view of the country’s history, the world, the environment, contemporary American society, corporate America and other important concepts. There can be increasing acceptance of consumerist ideas presented elsewhere in everyday American life. The consequences of public ignorance of consumer promotion in Disney World would be significant (Okarasinski, 2006). Conclusion This paper has highlighted and critically assessed the phenomenon of Walt Disney World. The Disney theme parks and their relationship with the real America that they are situated in have been critically analysed. The legacy of Disneyland in America’s popular culture, its international export to develop new parks, and the Disneyization of public space have been investigated. Further, the commodification of childhood, Disney’s marketing of its theme parks and its consequent influence on the development of the modern media have been discussed. Disney World complies with all the criteria that contribute to postmodernism: the formation of identity, time period post-dating modernity, urban space, fragmentation as in presentation of information, and the importance of simulation or imitation. Thus, by critically understanding the theme parks as postmodern urban spaces, the ways by which reality is created by simulation, and how capitalististic identities are formed, have become clear. Word Count: 2767 words. References Beard, R. 1982. Walt Disney’s Epcot Center: Creating the New World of Tomorrow. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc. Publishers. Bell, E., Haas, L. & Sells, L. 1995. From mouse to mermaid. The United States of America: Indiana University Press. Croucher, S.L. 1997. Urban ethnic politics in the postmodern city: comparing Miami and Toronto. Space & Polity, 1(1): 9-35. Birnbaum, S. (Ed.). 2004. Walt Disney World: expert advice from the inside source. New York: Disney Editions. Carmona, M. & Tiesdell, S. 2007. Urban design reader. The United States of America: Architectural Press. Fjellman, S. 1992. Vinyl leaves: Walt Disney World and America. Boulder: Westview Press. Giroux, H.A. 2001. The mouse that roared. The United States of America: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. Herzogenrath, B. 2001. From virgin land to Disney World. New York: Rodopi Publishers. Klages, M. 2007. Postmodermism. Retrieved on 4th December, 2008 from: http://www.colorado.edu/English/courses/ENGL2012Klages/pomo.html Kraus, N.P. 2005. Frommer’s USA. New Jersey: Wiley Publishing, Inc. Kuenz, J. 1995. It’s a Small World After All’. In The Project on Disney (Ed.). Inside the Mouse: Work and Play at Disney World. Durham: Duke University Press. Okarasinski, R. 2005-2006. ‘Consumer capitalism in Walt Disney World’s Epcot’. Scientia. pp.107-153. Storey, J. 2001. Cultural theory and popular culture. London: Pearson Eductional Ltd. Wasko, J. 2001. Understanding Disney. Cambridge: Polity Press. Zibart, E. 2002. Inside Disney: the incredible story of Walt Disney World and the man behind the mouse. 2nd Edition. New York: Wiley Publishing, Inc. Read More