Rhetorical Analysis 10 February 2013 In the article The Masks of
Mickey Mouse, Robert Brockway explains how Mickey Mouse was one of
the most important cultural symbols during the twentieth century.
The article discusses how mickey mouse went from being a slap stick
cartoon character like all other animated personalities and grew
into a much more complicated being. He was the sign of hope and
escape during the depression and evolved even more into the
dominating avatar of Disney itself. Brockway begins his article by
describing Walt Disney himself trying to explain the dramatic
success of his simply drawn cartoon character.
It starts the article by showing the reader that even Disney
himself is shocked by the massive popularity the animated mouse
collects during the 1920s and 1930s. This also sets up the first
point the writer pushes which is that Mickey Mouse is no ordinary
cartoon character but a diverse, evolving cultural symbol that
everyone around the world can relate to. As the author puts it, “He
has become an archetypal symbol, not only to Americans but to
people everywhere, especially to the generation that was young
during the thirties. Brockway goes on to reinforce the initial
argument by stating that the entire film industry was shocked by
the torrential success of Disney’s character and saying, “Mickey
was instantly popular not only among ordinary people young and old,
but with intellectuals, artists, and heads of state (Profiles of
Popular Culture 80). ” The author continues to press the point of
the cartoon’s global influence talking about the king, George V, in
England requiring a Mickey Mouse short be watched before every film
performances and the Emperor of Japan wearing a Mickey Mouse watch.
Shortly after proving Mickey’s dominance of international
culture Brockway talks about how complicated the short, round mouse
really is. He claims Disney himself tried to explain the mouse’s
popularity simply on his plainness, saying that everyone could
understand him easily. Brockway counters this statement by stating,
“He is as complex as Disney was himself and as profound in his
symbolic and mythic implications as any mythic or fairy tale
character (Profiles of Popular Culture 80). ” Another point the
author makes about Disney’s character was that it was in the actual
shape of Mickey’s body that was a reason for his dominance. He also
evokes the mysteries of the circular design which some authorities
find profoundly significant as an archetypal figure. Such a
phenomenon can scarcely be dismissed as frivolous,” Brockway
announces in his article. There is a statement later in the essay
that talks about curved shapes having always been a favorite of
people even if they don’t realize it. It states that since there is
no threat in a curved surface we enjoy them more, unlike a sharper
object with points which we see as more of a danger.
For this reason the author deducts that one of the contributing
factors to Mickey’s early competition, Felix the cat, didn’t last
simply because of how sharp his design was. The essay quotes John
Hench, “Mickey has been accepted all over the world, and there is
obviously no problem of people responding to this set of circles.
I’m going to oversimplify this, but circles never cause anybody any
trouble. We have bad experiences with sharp points, with angles,
but circles are things we have fun with- babies, women’s behinds,
breasts. So Mickey was made this way, while a contemporary known as
Felix the Cat didn’t get anywhere.
He has points all over him like a cactus (Profiles of Popular
Culture 87). ” Brockway also quotes Ub Iwerks on the shape of
mickey’s head, “Mickey’s face is a trinity of wafers- and the
circular symbol… always points to the single most vital aspect of
life- its ultimate wholeness (86). ” The other contributing factor
the author lists as to why Felix the Cat doesn’t go anywhere was
that he never evolved from the slapstick comedy that started him
out. Mickey also began his career with a slapstick style as did
many artists in the twenties.
Unlike Felix though, Mickey didn’t remain in the slapstick
genre of comedy. According to Durgnat, slapstick emerges from
childlike impulsiveness, dream fantasy and visual poetry. The
“slapstick comedians are childlike, and… act out impulses which as
adults we suppress (Profiles of Popular Culture 83). ” Disney
evolved Mickey Mouse during the thirties because of the tone that
America had taken. The economic crisis called for a different kind
of comedy a more upbeat type. The bleakness of everyday life called
for a cartoon that displayed sentimental escapism.
Brockway claims that Disney seamlessly changed the style of
his cartoon to relate to the changing times in America with shorts
called Silly Symphonies (84). Brockway writes that this is not the
only evolution Mickey must go through to stay relevant. During the
second world war, Mickey is matured again to fit with the times. He
goes from short films to being the face of the corporate Disney
image. Brockway claims he became the “organized man (86). ”
Brockway’s final point in the text is that Mickey, as many heroes
do, will die out in popularity as the generation that grew up with
him also dies.
He states, “Mickey has some impact on younger people but far
less than upon those born during the inter-war years. That
generation is now senior and it is also diminishing. All gods
eventually die and Mickey is no exception. But, being immortals,
all gods rise. Mickey, too, may be reborn in some future imaginary
character of the popular culture of which he is an avatar… Future
generations will encounter him again (Profiles of Popular Culture
88). ” Works Cited Browne, Ray B. , ed. Profiles of Popular
Culture: A Reader. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin, 2005.
Print.
