when you wish upon a star....

So at the, ahem, gentle urging of Miss Sara, I suppose it's time for me to blog again. Today's blog is devoted to the question posted by La Bona: As a conservative Christian, do I feel that Disney and Santa Claus are evil? I'll address the Santa issue later, perhaps in a special holiday edition, but as far Disney, my response is yes and no.
There are several different aspects of Disney that one must examine to determine the extent of its evilness. Disney as a cultural phenomenon is one particular aspect. It includes the characters, the films, and the parks. I believe this aspect of Disney, though not particularly Christian, is not evil. I think that Christians should view this part of Disney through the same lens with which they view the rest of the secular world. We know that common grace (the notion that God can work through non-Christians to reach people) exists, and we know that we can use many of the themes and moral messages from the films in a positive way. Most of the films seem to address some sort of simple ethical truth. For example, Aladdin teaches us not to lie, Beauty and the Beast teaches us about looking past exteriors and loving unconditionally, The Lion King teaches us about self sacrifice and responsibility, and so on. With a bit of analysis, Christians can take pretty much any Disney film and find a Biblical principal in it. I actually had my 10th grade students watch Pinocchio, read the parable of the prodigal son, and then compare and contrast the two. It worked out quite well. I also feel that the parks can serve as a place where families can bond, and some of the Disney characters can serve as role models for kids.
On the other hand, if one views Disney (the cultural aspect) through a Christian lens, he or she will obviously find many flaws. The parks provide a fun place for families to visit together; however, taking the whole family to Disneyland or Disney World is a very costly and disposable purchase. You could buy several heifers for poor villages in Somalia for the cost of a one day family pass. Also, though the movies do contain positive moral messages, I've never been really impressed by their portrayal of families or male/female relationships. Disney rarely portrays a "traditional" family with both a mother and father present. I don't think Disney has any sort of hidden agenda- perhaps animating both parents is simply too time consuming- but I do think it paints a single parent family as "normal" rather than as a sad consequence of living in a sinful, fallen world. I also really hate the way kids treat their parents in quite a few of the Disney films. Rather than adhering to the 5th commandment, Disney kids seem to adhere to the "Honor thy father and mother as long as they let you do whatever you want" policy. For example, poor Triton just wants to keep Ariel safe when he tells her not to go to the surface and not to ogle Eric. Ariel responds with "Screw you, Dad; I do what I want" (Insert neck roll here). Then, at the end of the movie, the audience comes to learn that Dad was unreasonable and Ariel was right about the surface not being so bad. That sort of plot seems to be prevalent in a lot of Disney films, and I feel that they affirm the rebellious urges that kids sometimes experience. Disney also seems to embrace the cultural belief that marriage should be based on feelings of love. In just about every Disney film the love relationship seems to spawn out of an erotic attraction to the physical appearance of the opposite sex, and the relationship continues to be based on emotion. There is always majestic music and swirling wind and spinning camera angles as the protagonists share their first "romantic" moments. I think that all of that stuff reinforces society's unrealistic ideas that marriages should be based on romance and feeling "in love". Kids learn from an early age that if you don't feel like you are in love, then there is a problem with your relationship. All Christians know that love is a decision and that all of that romantic stuff will fade over time. When it does, we need the sustaining love of Christ to keep us going, not a musical number about how smitten we are. Finally, why can't a Disney parent ever be involved in his/her child's quest to find a mate? Rather than it being a family affair, it is portrayed as either clandestine and rebellious or just an individual choice. Now, these particular qualms could be said of all secular film companies, so I don't think that these problems make Disney evil. The real problems with Disney should be directed towards the corporate aspect.
We all know that Disney has used very shady labor practices in the past and doesn't seem very apologetic about the whole ordeal. It is a massive global empire, and it embraces values that run in direct opposition to Jesus' teachings about service, sacrifice, and shunning material gain. Again, these criticisms could be said of any other large corporation, but I just see something inconsistent about the fact that Disney markets itself towards children, yet would unabashedly employ child labor to make its hats and T-shirts.
So those are my thoughts regarding the evil nature of Disney. My conundrum now lies in how I should respond. I know that Disney (the corporation) is corrupt, so do I simply boycott apparel and stuffed animals and other merchandise, or should I include movies in that list as well? Can I go to Disneyland or buy movie tickets even though I know that my purchase supports a potentially evil enterprise? Can I ever justify the cost of visiting any of the theme parks? As a Christian, am I being too nice to Disney the cultural phenomenon? I'd love to hear comments or entire essays on the topic.
Off topic blurb- Thanks for all of the music suggestions. I'm going to pay closer attention to Wilco and Nickel Creek, and I'm going to check out Sufjan Stevens.

Currently playing: "Kathy's Song"- Simon and Garfunkel