The ever-evolving concept of hegemony has been stretched to uniform a wide range of historical facets. At its onset, the term was applied to the political dominance in ancient Greece. Most notably, however, hegemony’s most widespread definition came from Antonio Gramsci, a Marxist philosopher who emphasized the aspect of culture, saying that “A culturally diverse society can be ruled or dominated by one of its social classes.” Henceforth, the idea of hegemonic masculinity is not a far stretch from the initial ideologies Gramsci first outlined. The concept, though worded unfamiliarly, lies within something generation X was reared on: the magical world of Disney.
According to the online encyclopedia, hegemonic masculinity is “the dominant form of masculinity within the gender hierarchy." The term is typically associated with whiteness, heterosexuality, marriage, authority, and physical toughness. The term was first coined by RW Connell, a transsexual Australian sociologist decorated in the contemporary world of intellectuals. She states that three elements comprise hegemonic masculinity: “the connecting of masculinity to toughness and competitiveness, the subordination of women, and the marginalization of gay men." The concept becomes hegemonic, in layman’s terms, when a culture accepts it and allows it to resonate in its gender ideologies.
According to Nick Trujillo, author of “Hegemonic Masculinity on the Mound,” in which he analyzes the concept within the American sports culture, there are five particular dimensions. That the stereotypical male exercise physical force and control is first and foremost. Occupational achievement is followed by familial patriarchy. Frontiersmanship is the fourth, meaning the outdoorsy daredevil who can survive for a week with just a cane and some chicken wire. Heterosexuality completes the list, and dually serves to eliminate any progressive room for change. Basically, it sounds like Connell had a bad experience with Paul Bunyan.
Paul isn’t the only one fitting the profile for hegemonic masculinity, however. Consider the roles men play in such Disney classics as Snow White, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and The Lion King. After establishing that Mom is somehow tragically out of the picture, each irresistibly beautiful princess (yes, even Nala) is saved by a swarthy man/lion dripping with testosterone. Additionally, the other male characters in these films share the same qualities. Arial’s father in The Little Mermaid is depicted as the almighty king of the sea, Doc is the more subtle father figure in Snow White, Scar is the cleverly evil, though nonetheless powerful, dictator in The Lion King, and who forgets Gaston in The Beauty and the Beast?
Gaston embodies all that is honorable and highest in the ways of hegemonic masculinity. His character traits align with those pinpointed by Connell: aggressiveness, strength, drive, ambition, lack of emotion, and (an abundance of) self-reliance. Disney artists crafted him to be larger than many of his fellow characters, with the exception of the beast. His muscles bulged from his shirt, his feet were the length of Belle’s left leg, and his protruding jaw line complimented his dominating grimace in the “anything you can do, I can do better” way.
Let it be known that each male Disney character underwent some sort of strength training on the path to save the day. Though the focus typically remains on the submissive picture of a “real woman,” any memory of a final scene ending with “If only he’d won the fight…” is lacking in me. Each protagonist is drawn to hold the same bodily strength as a character from 300. If Walt Disney liked one thing, it was definitely not sissies.
Occupational achievement is hazy in regard of Disney, as putting “Prince” on a resume will shoot someone straight back to Mom’s basement to play World of Warcraft nowadays. How times have changed. By the same token, it can be assumed that Aladdin achieved the American dream by going from “street rat” to marrying into money. (This was probably a calculated move by his monkey companion.) As well, the end credits of The Lion King left Simba as king of the jungle, so that’s big.
As previously mentioned, a rampant theme in Disney movies is a strong sense of family, or as Connell identifies it as familial patriarchy. Such element is practically required in the bylaws of Walt’s masterpiece formula. Belle acts dually as homemaker and daughter in The Beauty and the Beast, and traces of paternal assimilations can be seen in the beast. He saves her from the wolves, makes sure she has food to eat, reprimands her for snooping (the trippy rose in the glass) and even surprises her with an entire library of books. Additionally, the whole purpose of Simba’s journey to the throne, better known as Pride Rock, is to continue the dynasty his father left behind and frequently discusses with him via the sky.
Frontiersmanship narrows down the archetype of hegemonic masculinity. Connell defines this role as “the daring, romantic frontiersman of yester-year, and the present day outdoorsman” (Trujillo 1991). While maintaining that tough guy image, the frontiersman is synonymous with the cowboy, “a white male with working-class values” (Trujillo 1991). Although these macho Disney characters project their tough guy, devoid-of-any-sensitivity images, they each seem to know a thing or two about the element of surprise and sweet talking the women who keep them going. Ironically, each time a prince experiences love at first sight, he is in the midst of doing some mundane manly-man chore. In Sleeping Beauty, the prince is simply doing his daily gallop through the treacherous backwoods when he spots Aurora, and without losing his masculine air, becomes captivated by her voice. Aladdin is no exception as he becomes mystically entranced by Jasmine while doing street rat things with his friend, the monkey wearing a monkey-sized Aladdin outfit.
The loudest and most pungent element of the hegemonic masculine figure is heterosexuality. One may conclude that at the various release dates of said Disney classics were surrounding the release of RW Connell’s thesis. Although the 90s saw somewhat of an advance for the homosexual community, present day children’s cinema still lacks any suggestion of same-sex romance. The men of Disney maintain a strictly heterosexual taste, perhaps, based on social convention, but also based on tradition. Most of the movies touched on are derived from folk tales originating in many different countries, so maybe it really isn’t Disney’s fault that the beast turned into a man, and not a hot husky girlfriend for Belle to ride away with on the white horse.
The concept of hegemonic masculinity proves to be a conceivable ideology easily grasped by adults and children alike. Though its long journey from Greek city-states to Marxist communism led to the small-scale analysis of cartoons, it remains a dominating force in virtually every aspect of human life today.
