How are the leading female characters portrayed in feature-length traditional animated films with a theme of conflict, and what are their roles in such conflict?

Abstract

This study was done in order to find out the observed portrayal of four female leading characters Mulan, Pocahontas, Nausicaa and San, in the animated feature-length movies: Mulan and Pocahontas by Disney Studios, and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind and Princess Mononoke by the Japanese Studio Ghibli. These films have similar themes and common aspects in their narrative, and their female leads all have active roles within the story. This is a break from traditional roles given to women in films, who are usually stereotypically feminized in both their appearance and character. This study analyzes the physical appearance, personality traits and the roles which these leading characters have in the films. It was carried out through a content analysis by observing their behaviour in a sample of three sequences from each film. The results have confirmed that these characters have non-traditional, high involvement roles and are not as typically feminine as many female leads usually are. Their appearance, however, is still stereotypically feminine. On the whole, they show mixed (masculine and feminine) personality traits and roles, although not all to the same extent. Other studies aimed at different films with female leads, especially of more recent films, may be able to show how women have been represented in the last decade in other films and different film genres.