The child’s imagination can be endless – most of us can remember the fantastical thoughts we used to create for ourselves. The adult, knowing what the child’s mind is capable of, has created an unimaginable amount of toys for children to become lost with within their own imagination. There is a toy that appears to be a great source of adult desire in chilren: the air gun, also known as a BB gun.
I think the adult is able to find a hint of happiness by watching the freedom these children have when playing with a BB gun. Maybe they think it would look dangerous if an adult played with them. I think it would look dangerous and suspicious if a 30 year-old were to be running around with a gun that looks very real while pointing it at someone. This gun sparks an imagination ignition in the child’s brain that would make the child believe whatever he’s doing is real, and it is this belief that makes the adult happy. It’s what makes the adult desire be reflected with a child.
As a kid, I liked watching The Jungle Book because it was a production where the main character Mowgli would interact with animals typically found in the jungle. It was fun and entertaining but I didn’t find a hint of racism (not that I knew what is was back then) when I watched it.
There’s this particular scene where King Louie, who has met with Mowgli, is singing the jazz song “I wan’na be like you.” As he is singing the lyrics of the song, he also sings “Doo-Doot-Doot-Doo-Doot-Deel.” But in jazz music, this type of singing has a term: Scat Singing. Scat singing is vocal improvisation with wordless vocables and nonsense syllables. Jazz music is an African-American classical music genre. Has the writer done this on purpose considering that King Louie is an ape? I believe there’s a subliminal association made between African Americans and apes.
In the subsequent scene, King Louie offers and gives Mowgli two bananas while displaying three fingers on his left hand. I wonder if this was also done on purpose to deliver the notion that African-Americans are ignorant or uneducated.
Throughout the clip, there are a few more scenes that appear to be racist but are hidden within the acceptable norms of society. King Louie sings “I wan’na be like you” maybe because he wants to be looked as a man; as someone normal, and not someone who is sub-human.
Wolfgang Reitherman, Walt Disney. “The Jungle Book.” Walt Disney Productions. October 18, 1967.
The main character in the story “The Impatient Little Girl,” Julia, can be characterized as a girl who has some trouble keeping calm and tolerant. This problem affects her relationship with her friends, but she only wishes that their relationship could be the best possible. When Julia, who should be no older than ten years old, plays with her friends, but they end up being unhappy at Julia because she has trouble being patient and tolerant of others. She wants to play games her way and not any other way. She wants them to play the game she wants to play without taking into consideration what everyone else desires to do. In the end, after her friends have left her as result of her behavior, she asks her mom for help concerning her patience issues. She realizes that she has become a misfit within her circle of friends, and that is something she wishes to change.
Reading “The Impatient Little Girl” has reminded me of the 2003 Walt Disney Pictures Pixar movie “Finding Nemo.” In “Finding Nemo,” the son, Nemo, ventures into the open sea and becomes captured by a scuba diver despite warning from his father, Marlin. Although the story and the movie are in many ways different, I’ve found a child-parent theme that make them, in essence, two very similar works. In both works, the parent warns the child about their respective dangers, and in both stories, the child disobeys the parent and ends up hurt. In “The Impatient Little Girl,” Julia ignores her mother’s guidance by continuing to be impatient and intolerant. In “Finding Nemo,” Nemo also ignores his father’s guidance by swimming too far from their home and into a dangerous area. Eventually, both children realize that what they did was wrong. Nemo is extremely happy he’s back with his father from what could have been a fatal experience, while Julia is now certain that she will not ignore her mother’s advice when it comes to being patient, calm, and friendly.
LYDIAMARIACHILD, “The Impatient Little Girl,” inFlowers for Children,II, New York:C.S.Francis, 1844 (Pages 29-35)http://www.bostonliteraryhistory.com/chapter-4/lydia-maria-child-%E2%80%9C-new-england-boy%E2%80%99s-song-about-thanksgiving-day%E2%80%9D-flowers-children-ii
Graham Walters, Andrew Stanton, May 30th, 2003, “Finding Nemo.” Walt Disney Pictures Pixar.
An Ass once found a Lion’s skin which the hunters had left out in the sun to dry. He put it on and went towards his native village. All fled at his approach, both men and animals, and he was a proud Ass that day. In his delight, he lifted up his voice and brayed, but then everyone knew him, and his owner came up and gave him a sound cudgeling for the fright he had caused. And shortly afterwards, a Fox came up to him and said: “Ah, I knew you by your voice.”
Fine clothes may disguise, but silly words will disclose a fool.
Text and media found at: http://www.ivyjoy.com/fables/lionskin.html
