Response to, "All's Not Well in Land of 'The Lion King' "

In America, Disney movies are typically very popular with young children and their parents. While this is usually the case, there are obviously exceptions to this idea. In the essay, “All’s Not Well in Land of ‘The Lion King’”, which can be found on page 418 of The Prentice Hall Guide for College Writers, the author, Margaret Lazarus, discusses the issues that she has with a popular Disney movie. The movie she delves into is the well-known, “The Lion King”, which is basically about the circle of life. Personally, I believe the movie sent a positive message to children, but apparently the author of this essay doesn’t agree.
    The biggest issue that Margaret found in, “The Lion King”, was that she believed it promoted stereotypes. A few of the stereotypes that she mentioned were about homosexuals, as well as African Americans. Personally, I just don’t see where she came up with any of the specific ideas about stereotypes in this movie. Out of the probably 100 times that I have watched this movie from beginning to end, I have never once thought that anything in this movie promoted stereotypes. It’s truly incredible and unbelievable that this woman came up with such specific ideas about each character in the movie. To specifically call out each character and attach a stereotype to them takes some serious thought. Apparently, the author is good at attaching stereotypes to people and characters because she basically labeled everything in the movie!
    The author took my disgust for her lame opinions to new heights when she resorted to stereotyping the voices to each character as well. She claimed that Whoopie Goldberg, who voiced a dark hyena character, had a voice that was ,“…clearly inner-city dialect.”(418). She then went on to say that Disney used her voice because they wanted to create a “ghetto” image. Personally, if I were Whoopie Goldberg, I would be offended that someone called my voice “ghetto”. I just don’t understand how the author can label people or characters, by not only their physical appearance, but also their voices. Deep down, I think Margaret Lazarus has some serious issues that she needs to work through! Disney movies are meant to be enjoyed, not be to picked apart until there is nothing left to say.
    In conclusion, I found this essay to be annoying and an overanalyzed view of the movie. “The Lion King” is a story that teaches children about the life cycle, not about stereotypes and false labels. As a child, I always enjoyed this movie, and subconsciously, I never thought of the characters as stereotypical people. The easiest way to describe this essay, is to say that the author obviously had a lot of free time on her hands. To put it bluntly, I think that Margaret Lazarus should put down her “label gun” and focus on things of higher importance.