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Vaniver comments on January 2016 Media Thread - Less Wrong Discussion

5 Post author: ArisKatsaris 01 January 2016 03:16PM

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Comment author: Vaniver 05 January 2016 08:28:42PM 2 points [-]

Yes, if one takes the setting seriously. I think one of the reasons why I'm so disappointed with it is that it gets the causality wrong on an important story--the move from collectivist duty to individual autonomy did not happen because people asked for it, but because people became wealthy enough to afford it.

Comment author: Lumifer 05 January 2016 08:38:19PM 1 point [-]

I must have lower expectations than you -- it's a Hollywood cartoon movie aimed at small kids, probably not even preteens. "Getting causality right on an important story" is nowhere near its goals.

I didn't like it much, but that's just because it wasn't particularly emotionally engaging or funny (e.g. in the way Shrek has a lot of for-adults jokes liberally sprinkled through the whole thing).

Comment author: Vaniver 06 January 2016 12:26:56AM 3 points [-]

I must have lower expectations than you -- it's a Hollywood cartoon movie aimed at small kids, probably not even preteens. "Getting causality right on an important story" is nowhere near its goals.

I'm a Copybook Headings kind of guy when it comes to stories for children.

Comment author: Lumifer 06 January 2016 01:19:34AM 0 points [-]

How NRx of you :-)

Comment author: polymathwannabe 05 January 2016 08:50:57PM 0 points [-]

The problem with Shrek is that its jokes are too pop-culture-conscious, and will soon become dated. Your grandkids will miss most of the jokes in it.

It had never occurred to me to see Brave as a collectivism vs. individualism story; to me it was obviously a woman-as-object vs. woman-as-subject story.

Comment author: Vaniver 06 January 2016 12:01:50AM 1 point [-]

It had never occurred to me to see Brave as a collectivism vs. individualism story; to me it was obviously a woman-as-object vs. woman-as-subject story.

Collectivism vs. individualism seems very similar to person-as-object vs. person-as-subject. It's magnified here because it's specifically queen/princess instead of simply mother/daughter. The analogous story that drops the princess/queen dynamic is making the family the exact same people, except they're all peasants. Merida's betrothal has been bought by a neighboring peasant man through gifts to her family, but she doesn't want to marry him. She runs away to Paisley, earns enough money working in a textile mill to pay the man back (obviating her social obligation to marry him), and then she's free to live her life as an Independent Career Woman.

Comment author: Lumifer 05 January 2016 08:56:43PM 1 point [-]

The problem with Shrek is that its jokes are too pop-culture-conscious, and will soon become dated

That's OK, I'm not putting it up as a classic that will survive the ages. I'm sure my grandkids will have better things to watch.

it was obviously a woman-as-object vs. woman-as-subject story.

Wasn't it obviously a woman-as-bear story? :-P

Comment author: username2 06 January 2016 12:48:05PM 0 points [-]

Kids still watch Disney movies from 1940s and Disney still profits from them. Making a timeless story can be done in animation, Dreamworks simply chooses not to for the sake of short term profitability.