Walt Disney, from Reader to Storyteller
Essays on the Literary Inspirations
Published on 12. December 2014
Book
Paperback/Softback
236 pages
978-0-7864-7232-1 (ISBN)
Description
Although Walt Disney is best known as a filmmaker, perhaps his greatest skill and influence was as a reader. While many would have regarded Felix Salten's Bambi and Carlo Collodi's Pinocchio as too somber for family-oriented animated films, he saw possibilities in them. He appealed to his audience by selecting familiar stories, but transformed them to suit audience sensibilities. Many of the tales he chose to adapt to film went on to become the most read books in America, eventually becoming literary classics.
Although much published research has addressed his adaptation process - often criticizing his films for being too saccharine or not true to their literary sources - little has been written on him as a reader: what he read, what he liked, his reading experiences, and the books that influenced him. This collection of essays addresses Disney as a reader and shows how his responses to literature fueled his success. Essays discuss the books he read, the ones he adapted to film, and the ways in which he demonstrated his narrative ability. Exploring his literary connections in reference to his animated and live-action films, nature documentaries, theme park creations, and overall creative vision, the contributors provide insight into Walt Disney's relationships with authors, his animation staff, and his audience.
Although much published research has addressed his adaptation process - often criticizing his films for being too saccharine or not true to their literary sources - little has been written on him as a reader: what he read, what he liked, his reading experiences, and the books that influenced him. This collection of essays addresses Disney as a reader and shows how his responses to literature fueled his success. Essays discuss the books he read, the ones he adapted to film, and the ways in which he demonstrated his narrative ability. Exploring his literary connections in reference to his animated and live-action films, nature documentaries, theme park creations, and overall creative vision, the contributors provide insight into Walt Disney's relationships with authors, his animation staff, and his audience.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Jefferson, NC
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 14 mm
Weight
390 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7864-7232-1 (9780786472321)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Kathy Merlock Jackson is a communications professor and coordinator at Virginia Wesleyan College in Norfolk, Virginia, USA. She is the editor of The Journal of American Culture and is a past president of the American Culture Association.
Mark I. West is a professor of English at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, USA teaching children's literature and serving as associate dean for student services. He has written or edited a dozen books on children's literature and culture and is a past president of the Children's Literature Association.
Mark I. West is a professor of English at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, USA teaching children's literature and serving as associate dean for student services. He has written or edited a dozen books on children's literature and culture and is a past president of the Children's Literature Association.
Content
Table of Contents
Introduction
Disney's Reading
Walt Disney's Boyhood Response to Stories: The Origin of His Narrative Playfulness (Mark I. West)
Walt Disney as Reader and Storyteller: The Books in His Library and What They Mean (Kathy Merlock Jackson)
Disney's Narrative Influences: Authors
Snow White, the Grimm Brothers and the Studio the Dwarfs Built (Katie Croxton)
Pinocchio: An American Commedia (Lucy Rollin)
Felix Salten's Stories: The Portrayal of Nature in Bambi, Perri and The Shaggy Dog¿(John Wills)
Song of the South and the Politics of Animation¿(M. Thomas Inge)
The Pleasures and Pains of Texts: Kenneth Grahame, Washington Irving and The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (Walter Squire)
The American Revolution and Disney: Esther Forbes, Johnny Tremain and the Celebration of Liberty (Martin J. Manning)
Old Yeller: From Gipson Tale to Disney Classic¿(Brenda Greene Shue)
Updating Pollyanna for the Space Age (Judy Rosenbaum)
The Sentimental Novel: Community, Power and Femininity (Susan Larkin)
Disney's Europe: Hans Brinker and The Three Lives of Thomasina (Martin J. Manning)
From Page to Screen: Dysfunction, Subtext and Platonic Idealism in Mary Poppins (Sue Matheson)
Hayley Mills and the Constraints of Artifice in That Darn Cat! (Ron DePeter)
The Metafictive Playgrounds of Disney's Winnie the Pooh: The Movie Is a Book (Paula T. Connolly)
Disney's Narrative Influences: Composers
Summit Meetings: Mickey Mouse's Culture Wars (John C. Tibbetts)
Epilogue
Disney and the Tradition of Storytelling (Margaret J. King and J.G. O'Boyle)
About the Contributors
Index
Introduction
Disney's Reading
Walt Disney's Boyhood Response to Stories: The Origin of His Narrative Playfulness (Mark I. West)
Walt Disney as Reader and Storyteller: The Books in His Library and What They Mean (Kathy Merlock Jackson)
Disney's Narrative Influences: Authors
Snow White, the Grimm Brothers and the Studio the Dwarfs Built (Katie Croxton)
Pinocchio: An American Commedia (Lucy Rollin)
Felix Salten's Stories: The Portrayal of Nature in Bambi, Perri and The Shaggy Dog¿(John Wills)
Song of the South and the Politics of Animation¿(M. Thomas Inge)
The Pleasures and Pains of Texts: Kenneth Grahame, Washington Irving and The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (Walter Squire)
The American Revolution and Disney: Esther Forbes, Johnny Tremain and the Celebration of Liberty (Martin J. Manning)
Old Yeller: From Gipson Tale to Disney Classic¿(Brenda Greene Shue)
Updating Pollyanna for the Space Age (Judy Rosenbaum)
The Sentimental Novel: Community, Power and Femininity (Susan Larkin)
Disney's Europe: Hans Brinker and The Three Lives of Thomasina (Martin J. Manning)
From Page to Screen: Dysfunction, Subtext and Platonic Idealism in Mary Poppins (Sue Matheson)
Hayley Mills and the Constraints of Artifice in That Darn Cat! (Ron DePeter)
The Metafictive Playgrounds of Disney's Winnie the Pooh: The Movie Is a Book (Paula T. Connolly)
Disney's Narrative Influences: Composers
Summit Meetings: Mickey Mouse's Culture Wars (John C. Tibbetts)
Epilogue
Disney and the Tradition of Storytelling (Margaret J. King and J.G. O'Boyle)
About the Contributors
Index