Journal Screenshot

International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences

Open Access Journal

ISSN: 2222-6990

Racial Representation in Western Animation: A Media Influenced By History and Society

Nur Liana Mohd Redzuan Roy, Nora Edrina Sahharil

http://dx.doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v10-i12/8355

Open access

In this essay, I explore the history behind racial representation in Western animation and how the flow of time and the people behind these portrayals have brought change into these representations. My argument is that history has influenced the racial representations and perception of society towards people of colour and modern animation and animators have changes these representations drastically. The focus of the argument has been to analyse prior animators’ works in the past that have led to unsavoury representations, changes taken by modern animators to change these representations and the importance behind having both the older portrayals and newer portrayals in western animation history. The method I use in this essay is a close reading of historical agendas in relation to the past’s representations and current representations, and an analysis of these animations’ portrayals of racial characters. I employ historical and sociological criticism as a framework to the analysis. The reading offered in this essay also highlights the importance of having every type of representations as each of them plays an important role in the development of future representations in western animation.

Arnett, J. J. (2007). Encyclopedia of children, adolescents, and the media. SAGE.
Arnold, G. B. (2016). Animation and the American imagination: A brief history. ABC-CLIO.
Banet-Weiser, S. (2007). Kids rule!: Nickelodeon and consumer citizenship. Duke University Press.
Botstein, S., & Novick, L. (2019). Ken Burns Presents: College Behind Bars [Film]. Skiff Mountain Films.
Cohen, K. F. (2013). Forbidden animation: Censored cartoons and blacklisted animators in America. McFarland.
Danesi, M. (2013). Encyclopedia of media and communication. University of Toronto Press.
Dobrow, J., Gidney, C., & Burton, J. (2018). Cartoons and stereotypes. Tufts Now. https://now.tufts.edu/articles/cartoons-and-stereotypes
Dobson, N., Roe, A. H., Ratelle, A., & Ruddell, C. (2018). The animation studies reader. Bloomsbury Publishing USA.
Hodkinson, P. (2017). Media, culture and society: An introduction (2nd ed.). SAGE.
Hoffman, E. (2014). Magic capes, amazing powers. Google Books.
https://books.google.com.my/books?id=IHNFCgAAQBAJ&source=gbs_navli nks_s
Howe, A. N., & Yarbrough, W. (2014). Kidding around: The child in film and media. Bloomsbury Publishing USA.
Iati, M. (2019). Disney Plus warns of 'outdated cultural depictions' in some films. That's not enough, experts say. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/11/13/disney-pluswarns-outdated-cultural-depictions-some-films-thats-not-enough-experts-say/
Ifeanyi, K. (2018). Inside cartoon network’s racially groundbreaking show “Craig of the Creek”. Fast Company. https://www.fastcompany.com/40551963/inside-cartoon-networks-raciallygroundbreaking-show-craig-of-the-creek
King, C. R., Lugo-Lugo, C. R., & Bloodsworth-Lugo, M. K. (2010). Animating difference: Race, gender, and sexuality in contemporary films for children. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
Lehman, C. P. (2009). The colored cartoon: Black representation in American animated short films, 1907-1954. University of Massachusetts Press.
Lehman, C. P. (2014). American animated cartoons of the Vietnam era: A study of social commentary in films and television programs, 1961–1973. McFarland.
Loeber, R., & Farrington, D. P. (2000). Child delinquents: Development, intervention, and service needs. SAGE.
Luther, C. A., Lepre, C. R., & Clark, N. (2017). Diversity in U.S. mass media. John Wiley & Sons.
Mughal, H. A. (2019). Support at Work and its Relationship with Employee Performance: Critical Insights for Early Scholars. Annals of Contemporary Developments in Management & HR (ACDMHR), 1(3), 16-21.
Mask, M. (2012). Contemporary Black American cinema: Race, gender and sexuality at the movies. Routledge.
Maus, D. C., & Donahue, J. J. (2014). Post-soul satire: Black identity after civil rights. Univ. Press of Mississippi.
Mazzarella, S. R. (2007). 20 questions about youth & the media. Peter Lang.
Miller, T. (2003). Television: Critical concepts in media and cultural studies (Vol. 2). Taylor & Francis.
Mittell, J. (2004). Genre and television: From cop shows to cartoons in American culture. Psychology Press.
Roberts, S. (2020). Recasting the Disney princess in an era of new media and social movements. Lexington Books.
Sammond, N. (2015). Birth of an industry: Blackface minstrelsy and the rise of American animation. Duke University Press.
Signorielli, N. (2005). Violence in the media: A reference handbook. ABC-CLIO.
Still, J. M., & Wilkinson, Z. T. (2019). Buffy to Batgirl: Essays on female power, evolving femininity and gender roles in science fiction and fantasy. McFarland.
Topos Partnership. (2011). Media representations and impact on the lives of Black men and boys. The Opportunity Agenda.
https://www.opportunityagenda.org/explore/resources-publications/socialscience-literature-review
Tsipursky, G., & Ward, T. (2020). Pro truth: A practical plan for putting truth back into politics. Changemakers Books.
Wells, P. (2013). Understanding animation. Routledge.
Wilson II, C. C., Gutierrez, F., & Chao, L. (2012). Racism, sexism, and the media. SAGE.

In-Text Citation: (Roy & Sahharil, 2020)
To Cite this Article: Roy, N. L. M. R., & Sahharil, N. E. (2020). Racial Representation in Western Animation: A Media Influenced By History and Society. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 10(12), 558–574.