Normal hero(ine)s and deviant villains: musical representation of moral archetypes in a selection of Disney films
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Date
2023
Authors
Lozano Velasquez, Camilo Andrés
Journal Title
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Publisher
University College Cork
Published Version
Abstract
In this dissertation, I examine the musical representation of hero(ine)s and villains in selected Disney animated films: The Little Mermaid (1989), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), The Lion King (1994). While existing scholarship extensively scrutinizes Disney characters, this study provides a musicological approach to elucidate how music complements and underscores insights into the representation of the characters’ particular dimensions. Specifically, this research reveals connections between well-established traits associated with character portrayals, such as morality, gender, and sexuality, and the musical-performative elements within their musical numbers. Notably, the scenes featuring love ballads and villain songs provide intriguing opportunities to identify and assess these aspects, shedding light on the depiction and perception of the hero(ine)s as normal and the villains as deviant.
The analytical framework of this research centers on musical elements related to lyrical content, musical performance, and contextual considerations such as genre and style. These musical components play a pivotal role in shaping the processes of representation, supporting and advancing conventionally used musical codes of character portrayal.
Throughout this dissertation, I delineate the perceived normality of the protagonists, characterized by virtues, gender conformity, and heterosexuality, in stark contrast to the deviance embodied by the villains, depicted as evil and queer-coded. This dichotomy is musically reinforced by elements that resonate with Western cultural ideals of identity and alterity. Specifically, I discern dualities pertaining to the musical representation of the natural and the artificial, the familiar and the exotic, as well as the conventional and the unconventional.
This study, then, provides a comprehensive examination of the intricate relationship between music and character representation in Disney animated films. However, this research goes beyond character analysis to unveil cultural intersections between beauty, gender, and sexuality, which serve as markers of morality in popular culture, and elements related to the musical texture of the songs.
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Keywords
Disney , Heroes , Heroines , Villains , Normality , Deviance , Music , Songs , Love ballads , Villains songs , Disney style
Citation
Lozano Velasquez, C. A. 2023. Normal hero(ine)s and deviant villains: musical representation of moral archetypes in a selection of Disney films. MRes Thesis, University College Cork.