The Sword in the Stone

Episode SummaryJourney back to the Middle Ages for a discussion of The Sword in the Stone (1963), a film beset with sexism and classism befitting its medieval setting. The last fully animated film before Walt Disney’s death in 1966, this story of Arthurian legend leaves a lot to be desired in terms of plot and songwriting as well. Erin and Rachel try to make up for the latter with some singing of their own, and for that, they sincerely apologize. Episode BibliographyGriffin, M., Harding, N., & Learmonth, M. (2017). Whistle while you work? Disney animation, organizational readiness and gendered subjugation. Organization Studies, 38(7), 869-894. Hovdestad, W. E., Hubka, D., & Tonmyr, L. (2009). Unwanted personal contact and risky situations in ten Disney animated feature films. Child Abuse Review, 18, 111-126. Lawson, A., & Fouts, G. (2004). Mental illness in Disney animated films. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 49(5), 310-314. Ness, M. (2015, August 6). In Need of a Villain: Disney's The Sword in the Stone. Tor.com. Retrieved October 14, 2020, from https://www.tor.com/2015/08/06/in-need-of-a-villain-disneys-the-sword-in-the-stone/Pugh, T., & Aronstein, S. (Eds.). (2012).  The Disney middle ages: A fairy tale and fantasy past. Palgrave.[redmorgankidd]. (2014, January 2). Music Magic: The Sherman Brothers. Youtube. Retrieved October 21, 2020, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZDV8bQdga8Reitherman, W. (Directors). (1963). The Sword in the Stone [Film]. Walt Disney Animation Studios.Robinson, T., Callister, M., Magoffin, D., & Moore, J. (2007). The portrayal of older characters in Disney animated films. Journal of Aging Studies, 21, 203-213. Stock, L.K. (2015). Reinventing an iconic Arthurian moment: The sword in the stone in films and television. Arthuriana, 25(4), 66-83. The Sword in the Stone (1963 film). (n.d.). Wikipedia. Retrieved October 18, 2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sword_in_the_Stone_(1963_film)Torlina, J. (2011). Working class: Challenging myths about blue-collar labor. Lynne Rienner Publishers. Torregrossa, M. (1999). Merlin goes to the movies: The changing role of Merlin in Cinema Arthuriana. Film & History, 29(3-4), 54-65.Variety Staff. (1962, December 31). The Sword in the Stone. Variety. Retrieved October 13, 2020, from https://variety.com/1962/film/reviews/the-sword-in-the-stone-1200420275/Was King Arthur a real person? (2018, August 29). History.com. Retrieved October 22, 2020, from https://www.history.com/news/was-king-arthur-a-real-personWeir, M. (2002). The American middle class and the politics of education.  In O. Zunz, L. Schoppa, & N. Hiwatari (Eds.), Social contracts under stress: The middle classes of America, Europe, and Japan at the turn of the century (pp. 178-203). Russell Sage Foundation. Zurcher, J. D., Brubaker, P. J., Webb, S.M., & Robinson, T. (2020). Parental roles in “The Circle of Life”: Representations of parents and parenting in Disney animated films from 1937 to 2017. Mass Communication and Society, 23, 128-150.