Member-only story
Disney & Body-Image Lies
We are intentionally not meant to see ourselves and our bodies in our favorite characters for a reason!
While the hourglass shape is considered to be the most feminine shape, the truth is that the majority of women on this planet do not have this shape where the size of their breasts match the size of their hips with a small defined waist to complete the rare body type. However, this is the gold standard by which most cartoon women are portrayed; that, or these animated women have extreme pear shapes with stomachs so nonexistent one can wonder if they would have organs in real life.
I can admit that even animated male characters receive some deviation from the olympic bodybuilder physique from time to time and they still get the girl of their dreams. But the standards for women remain binary:
Tall and slender women, or women with “curves in the right places” get whatever they want. Short and fat women don’t.
In the future we may see changes in our media and how women are portrayed. Or we may not. I rarely watch any new shows and movies because I am tired of the “thin white female” trope that’s been shoved down my throat since childhood. For entertainment I try to support small, independent creators and their projects through YouTube or indie movies. But I can certainly say with confidence that the best course of action…
