Once Upon a Patriarchy

Each episode, fairy tale and media studies scholar Dr. Shannan Palma and award-winning survivor advocate Wanda Swan sit down with a special guest to talk and laugh about all the ways Disney’s versions of fairy tales messed with their heads. They discuss both the pre-Disney literary versions and the changes Disney made to them. They reminisce about jamming to “Kiss the Girl” while asking, with some real concern, “Who is Flounder’s mama?” Does she know where he is? They’re taking an outsider’s approach and looking for the counter-narratives in the stories. They’ll empathize with villains. They’ll add some color back into the mix. They’ll explore who gets to dream of happily ever after and who doesn’t — and what absorbing those messages as children taught them. Sponsored by the graduate program in Writing and Digital Communication at Agnes Scott College.