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How to Read Donald Duck: Imperialist Ideology in the Disney Comic by Armand Mattelart, Ariel Dorfman
snowcrash's review against another edition
4.0
I love OR Books. They publish a great number thought provoking books across a wide variety of topics. With _How to Read Donald Duck_, they have grabbed onto a book banned in the US for nearly 50 years. It was written by academics in Chile, exposing the their culture was being subverted by Disney comics. It is an excellent portrail of how the use of subtle propaganda can harm a society decades in the future.
If you believe Disney represents good wholesome stories, you don't understand Uncle Walt or the root of his many films. Due to his childhood, he had issues with family. Especially mothers and fathers. He wanted to take public domain stories, tweak them to his warped view of the world and call it better. (To counter this, I've read the original source material with my kids & those stories are not pretty or have songs - Little Mermaid is an excellent example). Disney was an American propagandist, first for the US government then for himself out to the world. Be skeptical of the Mouse and Duck.
It is here the academics dive into the Donald Duck comics, as found in Chile. There are source notes for each issue. This is a well done breakdown of story themes & how it influences young minds. One point about families: No moms or dads, just uncles and cousins. Donald Duck's nephews are front and center, able to twist around bumbling adults. Except that McScrouge is their favorite uncle, one that pushes a western capitalist point of view. Here we learn that the comics make every non-white dumb and the pursuit of wealth absolute (this sent to a country that at the time of the book's writing was deeply socialist, before the overthrow of the government with help of the USA). This is propaganda in the guise of a kid's comic.
The overall theme is how Disney comics were used to place western culture's values into the heart of Chile and other South American countries. This was used to teach kids that only the white people had the knowledge or ability to do anything useful. That when western companies came to 3rd world countries, they should be overjoyed & not worry about the exploitation. As we continue to move through the 21st century, we will continue to learn that what we held dear or thought innocent actually wasn't. That it was, and still is, a way to have people turn their backs on their own history & culture, taking up the homogenized perspective of a company started by a man who really didn't care much for kids.
If you believe Disney represents good wholesome stories, you don't understand Uncle Walt or the root of his many films. Due to his childhood, he had issues with family. Especially mothers and fathers. He wanted to take public domain stories, tweak them to his warped view of the world and call it better. (To counter this, I've read the original source material with my kids & those stories are not pretty or have songs - Little Mermaid is an excellent example). Disney was an American propagandist, first for the US government then for himself out to the world. Be skeptical of the Mouse and Duck.
It is here the academics dive into the Donald Duck comics, as found in Chile. There are source notes for each issue. This is a well done breakdown of story themes & how it influences young minds. One point about families: No moms or dads, just uncles and cousins. Donald Duck's nephews are front and center, able to twist around bumbling adults. Except that McScrouge is their favorite uncle, one that pushes a western capitalist point of view. Here we learn that the comics make every non-white dumb and the pursuit of wealth absolute (this sent to a country that at the time of the book's writing was deeply socialist, before the overthrow of the government with help of the USA). This is propaganda in the guise of a kid's comic.
The overall theme is how Disney comics were used to place western culture's values into the heart of Chile and other South American countries. This was used to teach kids that only the white people had the knowledge or ability to do anything useful. That when western companies came to 3rd world countries, they should be overjoyed & not worry about the exploitation. As we continue to move through the 21st century, we will continue to learn that what we held dear or thought innocent actually wasn't. That it was, and still is, a way to have people turn their backs on their own history & culture, taking up the homogenized perspective of a company started by a man who really didn't care much for kids.
sookieskipper's review against another edition
4.0
Child fantasy, although created by adults, becomes the exclusive reserve of children.
There is another way of infantalizing others and exonerating one's own larcenous behavior. Imperialism likes to promote an image of itself as being the impartial judge of the interests of the people, and their liberating angel.
Since the child identifies with his counterpart in the magazine, he contributes to his own colonization. The rebellion of the little folk i the comics is sensed as a model for the child's ow real rebellion against injustice; but by rebelling in the name of adult values, the readers are in fact internalizing them.
The good foreigners, under their ethical cloak, win with the native's confidence, the right to decide the proper distribution of wealth in the land. the villains; course, vulgar, repulsive, out-and-out thieves, are there purely and simply to reveal the ducks as defenders of justice, law, and food for the hungry, and to serve as a whitewash for any further action.
Carl Barks, for what its worth, made an effort to steer readers to recognize the blatant problems in the stories with satire. However, it is difficult for a child to understand nuances of language and recognize satire. Disney may not be outright agents of American imperialism but their treatment or different culture is cringe worthy.
There is another way of infantalizing others and exonerating one's own larcenous behavior. Imperialism likes to promote an image of itself as being the impartial judge of the interests of the people, and their liberating angel.
Since the child identifies with his counterpart in the magazine, he contributes to his own colonization. The rebellion of the little folk i the comics is sensed as a model for the child's ow real rebellion against injustice; but by rebelling in the name of adult values, the readers are in fact internalizing them.
The good foreigners, under their ethical cloak, win with the native's confidence, the right to decide the proper distribution of wealth in the land. the villains; course, vulgar, repulsive, out-and-out thieves, are there purely and simply to reveal the ducks as defenders of justice, law, and food for the hungry, and to serve as a whitewash for any further action.
Carl Barks, for what its worth, made an effort to steer readers to recognize the blatant problems in the stories with satire. However, it is difficult for a child to understand nuances of language and recognize satire. Disney may not be outright agents of American imperialism but their treatment or different culture is cringe worthy.
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