Sign in or register
for additional privileges

Birth of An Industry: Blackface Minstrelsy and the Rise of American Animation

Nicholas Sammond, Author
Labor, page 17 of 21
Previous page on path     Next page on path

 

You appear to be using an older verion of Internet Explorer. For the best experience please upgrade your IE version or switch to a another web browser.

Labor, Page 128

As it industrialized, the American animation industry shifted from performing labor onscreen, to performing it as entertainment in public relations. In the 1930s and 40s, Disney extended this logic by offering back-stage studio tours which touted the wonders and magic of animation production. 

In the press, animation workers seemed to perform the joy of work without a care about the final product or about getting credit for their work—much like the seven dwarfs in Disney's "Heigh Ho" sequence from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). 

This scene features  the dwarves digging, carting, analyzing and storing their gems, yet they do this work almost entirely for its own sake. Their song reinforces this: "we don't know what we dig 'em for." Produced in the midst of the Great Depression, this sequence suggests a call to regain joy in work without immediate material reward.
Comment on this page
  • Local Discussion
    •
  • Popout
    •
 

Discussion of "Labor, Page 128"

Add your voice to this discussion.

Checking your signed in status ...

Previous page on path Labor, page 17 of 21 Next page on path
1930s    Cartoons    Moving Image    Sound    Color    Walt Disney

Related:  Race, Page 253,  Conclusion, Page 278,  Space, Page 188,  Race, Page 224,  Space, Page 172,  Space, Page 194,  Race, Page 225,  Race, Page 239,  Introduction, Page 6,  Space, Page 137,  Race, Page 230,  Space, Page 190,  Labor, Page 123,  Conclusion, Page 289,  Conclusion, Page 273,  Labor, Page 119,  Performance, Page 47,  Conclusion, Page 302,  Conclusion, Page 292,  Race, Page 229,  Space, Page 181,  Labor, Page 102,  Performance, Page 54,  Race, Page 261,  Labor, Page 122,  Introduction, Page 1,  Space, Page 177,  Labor, Page 132,  Race, Page 206,  Race, Page 231,  Introduction, Page 21,  Conclusion, Page 298,  Space, Page 182,  Race, Page 258,  Space, Page 197,  Space, Page 183,  Space, Page 163,  Race, Page 220,  Race, Page 204,  Introduction, Page 30,  Performance, Page 72,  Race, Page 219,  Introduction, Page 2,  Performance, Page 46,  Race, Page 232,  Performance, Page 41,  Space, Page 146,  Introduction, Page 29,  Space, Page 165,  Space, Page 175,  Introduction, Page 23,  Performance, Page 82,  Race, Page 251,  Labor, Page 133,  Labor, Page 88,  Performance, Page 35,  Space, Page 141,  Space, Page 152,  Labor, Page 112,  Conclusion, Page 286,  Race, Page 221,  Labor, Page 98,  Race, Page 254,  Conclusion, Page 291,  Conclusion, Page 284,  Conclusion, Page 300,  Space, Page 155,  Conclusion, Page 296,  Labor, Page 109,  Space, Page 148,  Space, Page 178,  Labor, Page 101,  Race, Page 235,  Space, Page 195,  Performance, Page 77,  Race, Page 248,  Conclusion, Page 275,  Performance, Page 43,  Labor, Page 113,  Space, Page 162,  Space, Page 189,  Introduction, Page 4,  Race, Page 252,  Performance, Page 60,  Performance, Page 70,  Space, Page 184,  Space, Page 187,  Race, Page 213,  Performance, Page 84,  Conclusion, Page 304,  Labor, Page 129,  Performance, Page 34,  Space, Page 191,  Space, Page 193,  Labor, Page 110,  Race, Page 247,  Space, Page 138,  Space, Page 143,  Performance, Page 50,  Introduction, Page 14,  Space, Page 150,  Space, Page 170,  Performance, Page 52,  Performance, Page 45,  Labor, Page 131,  Conclusion, Page 290,  Conclusion, Page 303,  Performance, Page 74,  Space, Page 171,  Performance, Page 42