A Parent's Guide to Disney's Mulan

            Young children may be frightened of the Huns, the villains of the film. They’re evil and fairly grotesque looking. The film does a good job of making them convincingly villainous. They are always accompanied with ominous music and dark colors, so children should easily understand that they’re the bad guys. If your children are scared by the Huns and their scary nature, just try and assure them that they are not real and cannot hurt them, as young children often have trouble understanding the reality and fantasy of media.

            Mulan’s friends and the other heroes stand in contrast to the Huns. All of them, her dragon sidekick Mushu specifically, are fun and silly. They represent a change of pace from the serious and grave nature of the Huns, and children should really enjoy their antics. In addition to entertainment value, this juxtaposition to the Huns helps avoid any confusion as to who the children should root for. As far as Mulan goes, she is a convincing and enjoyable hero. Her journey is emotional and rewarding for children and adults alike. Though young children may not understand all of the underlying themes and elements of her struggles, such as living in a strict patriarchal society and not feeling as though one has a place in the world, they will be able to understand that she is sad in the beginning of the film and gains happiness through her achievements.   

           Due to the polarity of the gender norms presented in Mulan, children most likely won’t have any trouble identifying male and female characters, what their roles are, and what they’re “supposed to do.” Instead, children under the age of seven may have a hard time discerning whether or not these gender roles are accurate reflections of their own life and the society at large. The ultimate goal of a woman in the film is to work toward acting favorably in a manner that will get her a man. If a woman doesn’t accomplish this, she is seen as dishonorable to her family and therefore worthless. If a child, regardless of biological sex or gender, sees the film without any idea of how the real world operates, they may begin to believe that women are supposed to be all of the things that the film celebrates as being “a real woman.” Although they may pick up on the fact that Mulan is an intelligent, strong, brave young woman, the more preferred gender roles in the film's society are the ones that are emphasized.

       Male body image and expectations are also presented in a dichotomous nature. Take Li Shang for example. As the captain of the division Mulan fights in he is required by the nature of the job to be physically and mentally strong, brave, and fierce. He exerts his physical strength and dominance throughout the film, which highlights the benefits of looking and behaving as he does. Li Shang can be seen as the physical manifestation of everything considered manly and masculine in Western society. His rippling muscles and professional success make him a desirable yet toxic model for young children. Much like with female representations in the film, Li Shang creates an unrealistic expectation for how boys and men should act around each other, toward women, and gives them aggressive goals to try and attain.

       

 In contrast to the success and fit nature of Li Shang’s character, the weak characters are often shown as being either extremely thin and bony or heavier and uncoordinated. There are no middle ground body types in the film. Either a man is thin or fat and weak or muscular and successful. This could also contribute to a negative idea of what men should be like for children, especially those in the process of developing their ideas about gender and the roles that accompany them.

                 In order to diminish the effects of these binary roles on children while they watch the film, it is recommended that parents watch the film with their children and discuss the gender roles presented as they appear.  Explaining to children that one's gender doesn't dictate their worth and promoting healthy emotional expression can facilitate early emotional education. In addition, having a parent express immediate discontent with a problematic component of the film is the best way for a child to learn what is or what is not appropriate. Since children have limited memory capacity, sitting down with a child after a film has ended will not be as beneficial because there is a high chance they have already forgotten the specifics of the scenes or events in question.

Due to Mulan being a story about a young woman in war, it is obvious that you are going to be exposed to countless scenes that involve violence. As a parent you may find the fantasy and sanitized violence in a cartoon film to be harmless, however a child may interpret what they are seeing much differently. Their lack of real world experience is going to give them a different developmental perspective on certain scenes in this film. 

In the start of one specific scene, the viewer is given a high energy and comical performance about each soldier’s perfect women and how they are fighting for these ideal women. They then abruptly stop singing and you are shown a piercing red and black devastated, scorched village left over from the Huns. As the scene continues on it shows a wide-screen shot of a field covered in black dots, ultimately representing the bodies of fallen soldiers. Although the characters don't discuss the sight they're seeing, their sad demeanor portrays to children that what has happened is not positive. As their journey continues, Mulan and her fellow soldiers are attacked in the snowy mountains. During the brawl Mulan is sliced by the enemy’s sword and pulls her hand away to find blood. A child could understand that Mulan is hurt but may not understand the damage a sword could do to an individual. As a parent, sitting with your child and partaking in social co-viewing would be beneficial to help a child understand these powerful scenes. Explaining that violence in the real world and violence in cartoons is different can help them understand that the film's messages about violence aren't realistic or acceptable.