Tiana's Bayou Adventure: Disneyland Watch & Discussion

[Kate F]

“No one here wants to see Splash go, they have simply accepted Disney’s decision.”

El_super, Rich T and MisterPenguin all beg to differ.

 

[Californian Elitist]

Y'know, call me crazy, but I highly doubt that when Disney decided to adapt African-American folktales, their intention was to base the characters from those folktales on minstrel show performers.

If the Brers didn't appear in Song of the South and simply originated in the ride, I doubt that people would be dubbing them stereotypes or comparing them to minstrel show characters.

Technically Disney didn’t adapt the folktales. They adapted the Uncle Remus stories, which were written by a white man.

 

[October82]

Technically Disney didn’t adapt the folktales. They adapted the Uncle Remus stories, which were written by a white man.

Which (incidentally) also answers the questions from a few pages back about dialect and accents.

 

[el_super]

El_super, Rich T and MisterPenguin all beg to differ.

It's not as if these ideas I am spouting are wholly original to me. This is only an issue for Disney because there are enough people out there that think like I do. Disney needs those people to feel comfortable in their parks, if not today then definitely in the future.

 

[Inspired Figment]

Which (incidentally) also answers the questions from a few pages back about dialect and accents.

They changed the dialects & accents for the ride though. They talk in a more western, typical southern accent than the way they spoke in the film.

 

[Kate F]

It's not as if these ideas I am spouting are wholly original to me. This is only an issue for Disney because there are enough people out there that think like I do. Disney needs those people to feel comfortable in their parks, if not today then definitely in the future.

So you’re saying I should be ashamed if I like this ride because I like something that other people take issue with?

 

[SplashGhost]

Splash Mountain has the best music and sound design of any Disney Parks attraction ever IMO. The score is a symphony of brilliance from beginning to end that takes you through all the emotions you are supposed to feel on the ride. Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah is my personal favorite Disney song. The only song that I kind of remember from Princess and the Frog is "Friends from the Other Side," and I can't name one single other song from that movie.

 

[October82]

They changed the dialects & accents for the ride though. They talk in a more western, typical southern accent than the way they spoke in the film.

I meant more that it explains why this is an issue that people are concerned with.

 

[October82]

So you’re saying I should be ashamed if I like this ride because I like something that other people take issue with?

One of the things that makes this conversation hard is that people misunderstand "this ride has a racialized history" to mean "you should feel bad if you like it". Those aren't the same things. No one thinks you should be ashamed of liking Splash Mountain.

I both like Splash Mountain and I understand why it is problematic.

 

[el_super]

So you’re saying I should be ashamed if I like this ride because I like something that other people take issue with?

You can like the ride all you want, but what's the point of trying to deny how other people feel at this point? What's the point of arguing against what Disney has already decided?

 

[el_super]

I both like Splash Mountain and I understand why it is problematic.

I don't think I've seen anyone in this thread suggest they don't like Splash Mountain.

 

[Kate F]

I don't think I've seen anyone in this thread suggest they don't like Splash Mountain.

Roger

 

[Kate F]

You can like the ride all you want, but what's the point of trying to deny how other people feel at this point? What's the point of arguing against what Disney has already decided?

So if Disney does anything, we have to comply with it no matter what? Even if it doesn’t change anything, I’m still allowed to speak my mind if I disagree with something they are doing. There doesn’t have to be a “point” to it.

 

[Californian Elitist]

Is it wrong for a person of a particular race to adapt a story from a different race? Are we to be equally outraged when a European fairy tale is adopted by Americans, such as in the case of Princess and the Frog?

Yes, it’s wrong if the person of the other race adapting the story is profiting from the stories and those who are of the race in which the stories belong to are not. That’s what Joel Chandler Harris did.

Nowhere near the same as Princess and the Frog.

 

[Californian Elitist]

Which (incidentally) also answers the questions from a few pages back about dialect and accents.

The slave dialect in the Uncle Remus stories is nearly unbearable to read. I hate it.

 

[Californian Elitist]

So long as you are consistent when it happens in reverse, I respect your objections.

I will go ahead and make it clear, however, that I could not care less if Japan made a film adaptation of Snow White and not a single European saw a dime for it, so I'm not particularly offended by what Joel Chandler Harris did, unless there's more to your point that I'm not fully seeing, which I admit is possible. I just don't think it's a problem for cultures to be influenced by other cultures, but I know not everybody agrees with that.

Considering that Harris was stealing these stories from slaves, people who weren’t making any money from the work they were doing, let alone their stories, yeah, I’d say it was wrong of him. This country has a history of taking things from black people, profiting from them, and black people either never receiving credit, money, or both. Context must be considered here.

 

[el_super]

So if Disney does anything, we have to comply with it no matter what? Even if it doesn’t change anything, I’m still allowed to speak my mind if I disagree with something they are doing. There doesn’t have to be a “point” to it.

Sure, but if you are trying to dismiss concerns over racism and exclusion in order to justify ykur like of a theme park ride, you might be missing the broader point here. Especially since no one is tying your like of the ride to accepting some of those premises.

 

[Kate F]

Sure, but if you are trying to dismiss concerns over racism and exclusion in order to justify ykur like of a theme park ride, you might be missing the broader point here. Especially since no one is tying your like of the ride to accepting some of those premises.

So you’re saying if I want to like the ride, I have to accept its given “problematic” status? How is that supposed to not make me feel guilty?

“Yeah I’m a big fan of this ride that is considered controversial.”

 

[Rich T]

I wonder if they will name it: Splash Mountain: A New Legacy

I’m thinking it’ll open as “Tiana’s Magical Dream Wish Adventure through Splash Mountain” and eventually just be called “Splash Mountain” a couple of years later. When half the animatronics are no longer working.

 

[el_super]

So you’re saying if I want to like the ride, I have to accept its given “problematic” status? How is that supposed to not make me feel guilty?

You should accept its problematic status regardless of whether you like the ride or not. The two are not tied together.

You shouldn't feel guilty for liking the ride. I like Splash Mountain and count it among my favorites. I am also in favor of changing it out because my enjoyment shouldn't come at the expense of others. Splash was a product of its time, and so am I. But those times are changing.