why is swiss family robinson offensive

You can let your kids have access to the adult profile in your Disney Plus account. "They were able to construct a fascinating tale and build up its potential. Or the time he shoplifted lightbulbs and got away with it? Free delivery for many products. WebThe Swiss Family Robinson recounts the adventures of a father, mother, and four sons marooned on a tropical island. This is a quintessential Disney adventure, the kind of film that absolutely feels right at home in the theme parks. (I'm an avowed fan of the background music of the Disney theme parks, yet I did a double-take when the mother Robinson started playing the "Swisskapolka" on the organ during that dance scene. Viewers of all ages might watch this movie and think, "Hey, if I crashed on a random island, I could totally survive and thrive, just like the Swiss Family Robinson!" WebThe Swiss Family Robinson (German: Der Schweizerische Robinson) is a novel by Johann David Wyss, first published in 1812, about a Swiss family of immigrants whose ship en Other parents will do their own thing. The world has gone mad. WebS01E47 - The Swiss Family Robinson. That's especially true because there's a very obvious element of racist representation that's not accounted for in the more detailed description on the website. I guess we better start burning books and anything else produced before 2020 for fear it may offend someone,,. WebJohann David Wyss ( German: [johan dafd vis]; 28 May 1743 11 January 1818) was a Swiss author, best remembered for his book The Swiss Family Robinson ( Der schweizerische Robinson) (1812). Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. (Even though I strongly dislike The Aristocats, I feel slightly bad for the 1970 animated feature because no one at Disney realizes they have excluded the word "The" from the title.) [1] Other English editions that claim to include the whole of the Wyss-Montolieu narrative are by W. H. Davenport Adams (18691910) and Mrs H. B. Paull (1879). It's not just that there's no Dr. Smith the antagonistic force in Annakin's adaptation is as much the various natural elements working against the Robinson family as they build a massive treehouse and begin exploring the island on which they live, as it is the pirates who attacked their ship and are coming back to get their just desserts. Sixty years on, we may not think much about Swiss Family Robinson, and when you think of Disney live-action fare, this is likely not a title that leaps to your mind. There are all kinds of things wrong and shocking about how the character of Roberta is handled in Swiss Family Robinson. Adults may also notice how none of the Robinsons speak in a Swiss accent, and in fact, their vocal characteristics vary wildly. Furthermore, Candances round eyes are round as a ball, which should offend all white people because no white people have eyes as round as a quarter, its ridiculous. The domesticated animals on the ship are towed back to the island. So, if youre eager to revisit Swiss Family Robinson on Disney+, you may want to reflect on the pirate scene. Most of the titles receiving this treatment are old-school animated classics. [1] It is based on Isabelle de Montolieu's 1814 French adaptation and 1824 continuation (from chapter 37) Le Robinson suisse, ou, Journal d'un pre de famille, naufrag avec ses enfants in which were added further adventures of Fritz, Ernest, Jack, and Franz. Youngest son Francis (Kevin Corcoran) shouts that he wants to follow his mom up there, only for his knowing brothers to gently hold him back from doing so, to give the married people their space. The film, Disney's first shot in Panavision, is a widescreen marvel in no small part because it was actually shot on a tropical island: Tobago. They actually help Dumbo. Their first names are never given because they're never used. Placing a title card in front of this film or, more realistically, in front of a well-known family favorite like The Jungle Book isn't enough. According to Maggetti, The Swiss Family Robinson was rooted in the Swiss tradition and read by the country's youth until the Second World War, after which interest waned, especially among readers in French-speaking Switzerland. Not yet. For later adaptations, see, Frontispiece by John Gilbert from the 1851 American edition, The Swiss Family Robinson (disambiguation), The Swiss Family Robinson: Flone of the Mysterious Island, "A Note on Wyss's Swiss Family Robinson, Montolieu's Le Robinson suisse, and Kingston's 1879 text", "New Switzerland, Jules Verne's Imaginary Shipwreck Sanctuary", "TJ Hoisington Pens the First Swiss Family Robinson Sequel in Over 100 Years", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Swiss_Family_Robinson&oldid=1138717803, Swiss novels adapted into television shows, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 11 February 2023, at 05:58. } A title card is better than those options, and it's better than nothing. Those unique cultural indicators made the final cut of Swiss Family Robinson, and the boys' names stayed as Swiss-German as they were in the original 1840 novel Ernst, Fritz, and Francis. In the novel a minister, his wife, and their four sons are shipwrecked and become castaways on an island in the East WebThe Robinson family is shipwrecked on a remote island. But being a quintessential Disney adventure means you have to take the good with the bad. And thank goodness the parents dont have to go through the trouble of worrying about such a thing. And yet, of course, it is problematic. These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now, reads an explanation on Disneys Stories Matter website regarding the new advisory notices. The story is about a Swiss family that is marooned on an island and must make the best of their new lives. Thehighest-grossing film of 1960, this adaptation of the classic 19th-century novel by Johann David Wyss is one of the most enduring non-animated Disney films, thanks to home video, reruns on cable TV, and the Disney+ streaming service. This is a story about a lily-white family arriving on a tropical island and colonizing it for themselves. 23:42. It is also a story about family relations. After the shipwreck, the survivors have to rebuild a world in which to live. The song We are Siamese is from Lady and the Tramp. Nothing has been censored, nothing has been cancelled. According to Maggetti, has another dominant theme linked to Swiss history that of exile. Although they have lost almost everything in the shipwreck, they are so resourceful at constructing a life for themselves on the island that, when rescue comes, they decline to leave their refuge and their happy life. It's noticeable then for adult viewers, by the act of omission, that the Robinson parents' names are never revealed. In its explanation for the advisory warnings, Disney+ writes,These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now. The male characters, meanwhile, do take off their shirts, if working in the sun, but they're careful to rarely display their navels. If anything, , it would have to be on the technical side. Whyatt and his friends invited Ernst (played by 60s-era Disney stalwart Tommy Kirk) is a bookish sort, but both he and Fritz end up havinguhlet's call them teenage yearnings for Roberta (Janet Munro), a young woman they rescue from the pirates and invite into their family. The story was a best-seller at home and abroad, attracting an English-speaking readership in particular. Audiences are curious about the Swiss Family Robinson pirate scene in the wake of recent discussion. Curiously, all three kids don't sound like they're from Switzerland or England, braying about in their quintessential mid-century American accents. The Swiss Family Robinson reflects a fascination for the rest of the world, but it also presents the Swiss system as an effective and universally valid model. During a trip in 1877, he landed on the Chilean island that inspired the story of Robinson Crusoe. The possibilities for new stories are endless, which makes it very attractive to audiences". Have Disney+ removed it? At times it is difficult to explained nuance views to adults. No one sees these movies as racist except the racist people who are destroying them. Quite a bit of euphemism-heavy birds and bees talk permeates Swiss Family Robinson. After the Robinson guys build their elaborate, multi-part, pulley-enabled network of treehouses, Father whisks Mother up to show her their literal love nest and bedroom. Like Robinson Crusoe, the survivors are resourceful and have the skills to survive on a desert island, but they retain character traits specific to their national identity. Things are relatively smooth for a while, and the Robinsons get settled until their adopted dogs have to fight off a hungry tiger, and then Ernst (Tommy Kirk) and Fritz (James MacArthur) go on a sailing sojourn to explore the rest of the island and rescue Roberta (Janet Munro) from a gang of bloodthirsty pirates. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Swiss-Family-Robinson, Internet Archive - "The Swiss family Robinson", The Swiss Family Robinson - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). William knows that they must prepare for a long time on the island and his thoughts are as much on provisions for the future as on their immediate wants. Viewed through a sensitive, 21st-century lens, Swiss Family Robinson consists of one harrowing, dangerous, life-threatening, and thus potentially psychologically damaging event after another. An uncomplicated film leaves behind a complicated legacy, and one you can still feel both at the Disney theme parks and in films themselves. Best not to simply pose as the new belief and instead recognize that humans are diverse but also very much alike. He was born and died in Bern. The plucky, crafty Robinsons of Swiss Family Robinson are so good at surviving the harsh conditions of a tropical island (and getting off a sinking ship with plenty of supplies) that they make it look easy. At Disneyland, back when it was open, you may well have trodden on the old Swiss Family Treehouseor Tarzan's Treehouse as it's now named. In the novel a minister, his wife, and their four sons are shipwrecked and become castaways on an island in the East Indies. } On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. And that includes viewers who have no survival training or experience roughing it in the wilderness just like the Swiss Family Robinson. The world does not need the magical nonsense of Disney. Though other adaptations may complicate the matter somewhat , obviously sets its action far away from a tropical island, and also features the nefarious Dr. Smith the Disney version of. The message imparted there is broad and non-specific. Those movies are still on Disney Plus in their original uncensored form. (There are no doubt some viewers who may genuinely wonder, for good or ill, why there's a warning in front of, at all, in spite of its own colonizer background.). The movie opens with the Robinson family which includes two teenagers and a little kid trapped in a tiny room on a ship as it fills with water. The new notices have been implemented with the assistance of an advisory council composed of various organizations including GLAAD, the African American Film Critics Association, Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment, IllumiNative, National Association of Latino Independent Producers, and RespectAbility, among others. The Robinson family's epic journey was born of the imagination of the Bernese pastor Johann David Wyss. The Swiss Family Robinson, novel for children completed and edited by Johann Rudolf Wyss, published in German as Der schweizerische Robinson (181227). (In that way, you could argue that it's a perfect template for some of the attractions of Adventureland, which even now traffics in stereotyping, as when showcasing a group of ravaging natives in the Jungle Cruise.) )Swiss Family Robinson is by no means the only troublesome film the Walt Disney Company ever released. To learn life lessons. More specifically, the news focused on the dark side of where and how Disney began, acknowledging its racially and sexually insensitive material in films like, If you're a Disney+ subscriber and play those titles now, you'll see a generic message letting you know that the film you're about to see has something offensive that was treated as unproblematic upon release but is now correctly seen as Not Great, Bob! It's an attractive premise which appeals to readers. There has recently been discussion about the pirates in Swiss Family Robinson, with some audiences arguing that their inclusion means the film is likely to offend. To wdwnt, question for you. Swiss Family Robinson s1 e06 Cave Tiger. Get our latest storiesin the feed of your favorite networks. Super Why. If anything was challenging about Swiss Family Robinson, it would have to be on the technical side. Old movies shows be grandpa-ed in and not subject to new standards. So, you can understand why the film has persisted over time, if gradually less so in the last few decades. Why is Andi the only unattractive one with stereotypical Asian short hair? The film portrays Native people in a stereotypical manner that reflects neither the diversity of Native peoples nor their authentic cultural traditions. Disney is making it worse by trying to hide. callback: cb Technically, Swiss Family Robinson is a beach movie. In The Song of the Roustabouts, faceless Black workers toil away to offensive lyrics like When we get our pay, we throw our money all away.. It's a handsomely mounted production. There's no point excusing any of these choices, and you can contextualize it all you like. But it's not enough. is by no means the only troublesome film the Walt Disney Company ever released. and "Swiss Family By the story's end, it's implied that William may become the island's governor, with no consideration for whether or not anyone lived there before he and his family arrived. Rather than remove this content, we want to acknowledge its harmful impact, learn from it and spark conversation to create a more inclusive future together., Continued: Disney is committed to creating stories with inspirational and aspirational themes that reflect the rich diversity of the human experience around the globe.. Parents are still able to continue deciding what their children should and shouldnt see, even with the new changes being implemented. That sense of simplicity works both for and against the 1960 film. Every other Disney show main female character has long flowing hair, such Jessie, Candace, Bree, Mabel, Star, KC, even Avery, who is a studious and jumpy nerd. Today, the island bears the name 'Robinson Crusoe' and about forty descendants of the von Rodt family still live there, observes Stphane Gol, Swiss director and author of, Swiss technology tackles the climate crisis, The Rorschach test, invented by a Swiss psychiatrist, turns 100, The Swiss Family Robinson, Crusoe's Swiss cousins. Shame on Disney for bowing to a minority of lunatics that will ruin what the majority of us have loved all of our lives. They could say nothing at all, or refuse to make these films viewable. I would really love to hear why you think that. 23:42. During a trip in 1877, he landed on the Chilean island that inspired the story of Robinson Crusoe. They have to be seen and understood in the cultural context in which they were made several decades ago. William and his oldest son Fritz spend the next day exploring the island. Send us a tip using our annonymous form. Is that the purpose of a Disney movie? In a very formal and outdated way, all the Robinson boys call their mother "Mother" and their father "Father." [1], Wyss presents adventures as lessons in natural history and physical science. Yall need to get over yourselves and leave the choice of viewing materials to the parents. But if you adjust for inflation, Swiss Family Robinson grossed over $500 million domestically, which means it outgrossed films like Frozen II and Avengers: Age of Ultron. Perhaps the best-known English version is by William H. G. Kingston, first published in 1879. Also in The Hunchback of Norte Dame 1996 depicts Quasimodo who has disabilities with a deformed body being made fun of and getting jeered and tortured by the crowd which scene made me upset. But another film getting this title card is our column's subject: the 1960 adventure adaptation. The history of the Uncle Remus stories provide should not be lost to the world, and having a roundtable discussion regarding it and the film, and the performances in this film would be perfect on TCM. "When The Swiss Family Robinson had the potential to gain a wider readership, that is after the Second World War and also in the 1960s, the Swiss were more interested in promoting their sense of belonging to the homeland," says Daniel Maggetti. Since you canceled your subscription, its not even an issue that affects you directly, so are you just taking it upon yourself to complain on behalf of other parents, as if they need you to speak for them? "The Heidi model is the opposite of The Swiss Family Robinson. No, Dumbo is about a character that is different than the other elephants. Oh wait never mind. Listen, I am as liberal as the come. But if you adjust for inflation, grossed over $500 million domestically, which means it outgrossed films like. Theyre just making sure that anyone who watches understands that some of the content that was considered appropriate at the time the movies were made is now viewed through a different lens just giving everyone some context. Though other adaptations may complicate the matter somewhat Lost in Space obviously sets its action far away from a tropical island, and also features the nefarious Dr. Smith the Disney version of Swiss Family Robinson is exceedingly uncomplicated. As such, they read 18th century natural history textbooks and encyclopaedias. Again, the word for this movie, in good and bad ways, is "simple." The movie Robinsons, however, aren't real people, and they just roll with the scary and don't seem much worse for the wear. It's got a decent enough cast among the family. But it's impossible to ignore, and correct to acknowledge. Father even gives the guys a look that definitely says, "Hey, back off, I'm going to see where this goes," as he follows Mother into the treehouse, where they reminisce about their honeymoon, and everyone but the most little of little kids knows what happens on a honeymoon. It's an attractive premise which appeals to readers. Although movie and television adaptations typically name the family "Robinson", it is not a Swiss name. So sad were going down this road to appease the woke cancel culture rather than appreciating (and learning from) historical art for what it is based upon when it was produced. "The fact that it was translated so quickly was proof of its potential in Switzerland. "The protagonists are characterised primarily by the Protestant ethics espoused by the father and pastor: the family, which venerates its homeland, is pious and believes in the virtues of hard work and religious obedience.". The book is the most successful of a large number of "Robinsonade" novels that were written in response to the success of Defoe's Robinson Crusoe (1719). Initially, they construct a treehouse, but as time passes (and after Elizabeth is injured climbing the stairs down from it), they settle in a more permanent dwelling in part of a cave. By using our Services, you agree to our use of cookies. Such ridiculous hypocrites! In this sense I can appreciate the desire to have children raised in an environment where biases are not learned at an early age. Another offensive show is Bunkd, in which an Asian girl studies super hard, and when her friend told her to take it easy a bit, she said if she let up, she would disappoint her mother, who would then die, and does her friend want her mother to die??? While the Robinsons endure numerous frightening encounters with the sea, pirates, and vicious animals, they don't seem too worried about the things most likely to harm or kill them which are precisely the things an alert, concerned parent watching Swiss Family Robinson would most certainly notice or think about when assessing how they'd fare on an island, post-shipwreck. More specifically, the news focused on the dark side of where and how Disney began, acknowledging its racially and sexually insensitive material in films like The Aristocats, Dumbo, and The Jungle Book. The story was first adapted in French in 1814 by the Lausanne novelist and translator Isabelle de Montolieu. Grow up!!!! The first piece of the puzzle that is this film's legacy is its box-office success. Ill send them a copy of Birth of a Nation, so they can learn to be even more racist. 2023 Deadline Hollywood, LLC. Super WHY! The book has inspired films, series and even theme parks. Revisiting 'Swiss Family Robinson,' Disney's Problematic Box Office Smash From 1960, As they're sometimes wont to do, Disney made news a couple weeks ago. As Carpenter and Prichard write in The Oxford Companion to Children's Literature (Oxford, 1995), "with all the expansions and contractions over the past two centuries (this includes a long history of abridgments, condensations, Christianizing, and Disney products), Wyss's original narrative has long since been obscured. The ship survives the night, and the family finds themselves within sight of a tropical desert island. He married a woman from the island, started a family and reigned over his 'small kingdom' until his death in 1905. William and the older boys explore various environments and develop homes and gardens at various sites about the island. We dont need YOU to decide what our children watch or dont watch, based on your political views and attitudes. WebThe father believes the dogs to be useless because they are both heavy (hard to transport on a raft) and because they eat too much while not providing any specific help. The gun he gets thrown in by Sheldon Blake proves disabled, and for a sinister reason: near Borneo, Blake's men turn up to capture them. In truth, what Disney+ really needs is context. We say that children are impressionable. But that's not the case with Swiss Family Robinson, which will amuse and mildly startle adult viewers. Below is a Stories Matter video more about The Walt Disney Companys current diversity efforts. The Swiss Family Robinson (German: Der Schweizerische Robinson) is a novel by Johann David Wyss, first published in 1812, about a Swiss family of immigrants whose ship en route to Port Jackson, Australia, goes off course and is shipwrecked in the East Indies. Over the years, there have been many versions of the story with episodes added, changed, or deleted. Own it, teach it, let people learn, and move on it wont be taboo anymore. I hope the Disney censors never get access to the Sistine Chapel! Has nothing to do with systemic racism at all. After the initial publication of an incomplete version, which was translated into French (with additions) and English (also slightly altered), Johann Rudolf published a four-volume final version in 1827. The two latest are I wouldnt be surprised! It's easy to imagine why a studio might want to remake. Swiss Family Robinson s1 e16 return paradise. The first two of the four volumes were published in 1812 and 1813, and the second two in 1826 and 1827. Lady and the Tramp, from 1955, receives a similar warning for its Siamese cat characters Si and Am (voiced by Peggy Lee, who sings the films The Siamese Cat Song, a musical number that was cut from the 2019 live-action remake), as well as secondary canine characters each depicted with exaggerated ethnic stereotypes. Super Why. However, at the time, Roberta isn't Roberta she's just some lowly cabin boy. In the 1940 film, theres more background as to why the Robinsons want to emigrate (Australia, on this occasion), which is to escape The only divide being created by giving a damn about hurting others is the one between people with empathy and those without. { The life of a well-to-do group from snowy, landlocked Switzerland doesn't suggest there would be much opportunity to learn the expert-level abilities the Robinsons demonstrate in their tropical paradise. The first two of the four volumes were published in 1812 and 1813, and the second two in 1826 and 1827. They were sailing from Europe to the Indonesia-adjacent island of New Guinea in southeastern Asia. Disney Plus did not make that impossible with this move. (There are no doubt some viewers who may genuinely wonder, for good or ill, why there's a warning in front of The Jungle Book at all, in spite of its own colonizer background. The larger point is one I've repeated before, both on, a host. This is a story about a lily-white family arriving on a tropical island and colonizing it for themselves. Eventually, a British ship that is in search of Jenny Montrose anchors near the island and is discovered by the family. Alternate titles: Der schweizerische Robinson. Indeed, the Mickey Mouse house has become synonymous with entertainment perfect for the whole family. Add in the drowning and flailing zebra, Francis attempting to violently trap an elephant, and two dogs brutally fighting off a tiger in a scene that goes on for way too long, and Swiss Family Robinson isn't the cute and innocuous movie adult watchers remember from their childhood. It is no accident that The Swiss Family Robinson was made into a film by Walt Disney in 1960," says Claire Jaquier, a specialist in literature and cultural history of the Swiss Enlightenment at the University of Neuchtel. When adapting Johann David Wyss' classic novel, Disney filmmakers didn't worry about toning down any of the Swiss references and historical markers.

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