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Aesthetic Evolution of Female Characters in Animated Films

Author(s)

Zirong Song*, Wenjing Deng

Affiliation(s)

Department of Foreign Language, Sichuan University of Media and Communications, Chengdu, Sichuan, China *Corresponding author

Abstract

Human aesthetic ideas on beauty are the result of long-time sexual selection. These aesthetic ideas are not only determined by human instinctive preferences, but also by social factors. The social, cultural, and historical differences between China and the United States lead to the differences in female characters portrayed in animated films. By examining the female characters presented in animated films in China and the United States since, this paper reveals the aesthetic evolution of female characters in Chinese and American animated films from the perspective of feminism, and discusses the social, cultural, and historical reasons. Our findings suggest that although both China and America tended to categorize their female animated figures simply into “demon” or “angel” groups before 1990, the improvement of women’s social, economic and political status has made female characters more diverse and dominant in the films. In comparison, American animated films is universal and adopts a stronger feminist approach, presenting us female characters of diverse races and ethnicities.

Keywords

Aesthetic Evolution; Feminism; Animated Film

References

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