I am interested by Rick Gibbs' question about powerful/wimpy women in Hollywood/Disney films. As a member of the Sesame Street Generation (which I prefer to any other label as long as people insist on labels), I grew up in the middle of a revisionism in children's literature/entertainment. I saw all the Disney classics like Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, etc., and I would gladly show these films to my children someday. I enjoyed Sondheim's Into The Woods immensely, but how could I have enjoyed or even understood his work without knowing the basis for his parody? At the same time, I had "Free to Be You and Me", which contained little stories and songs from Marlo Thomas, Alan Alda, Bobby Morse, Carol Channing, Diana Ross, etc. When I listened to it recently, I found it so heavy-handed, didactic, overstated, (your adjective here). They spend so much time saying "women CAN do anything and you should be ashamed of yourself for thinking otherwise" that one almost begins to think "gee, who ever said we couldn't?!" After all, the opposite of anything is inherently tied to its converse, isn't it? To be fair, FTBYAM also said that men could be nurturing (ref. "William Has a Doll" - ask if you'd like the text of this poem), but the majority of the album, especially "Atalanta" in which a young princess objects to two princes running a race for her hand in marriage and insists that she be allowed to race too, is presented with an almost angry undertone. BTW, Atalanta demands that if she wins, she be allowed to choose whether to marry at all, then which prince she might like. I guess what I'm trying to say to this father who posted his question is: A) I have not been psychologically damaged by watching a beautiful cartoon depicting a young girl keeping house for seven "little people"; B) Neither have I been so empowered by overblown attempts to re-educate my views of gender roles; C) Real-life examples of male/female roles teach children more than those on television/in movies; and most importantly D) GIVE CHILDREN CREDIT FOR HAVING BRAINS AND BEING ABLE TO UNDERSTAND THAT THERE ARE DIFFERENT IDEAS ABOUT MEN AND WOMEN AND THAT ABOVE ALL THEY MUST DECIDE WHO THEY ARE AND WHAT THEY THINK, and that you'll be there for them. Yes, my chromosomes are XX, but you have my permission to tell your spouse to lighten up (in a nice way). I am really tired of all the emphasis placed on things that don't really hurt kids, when there are still so many things that do. Snow White is not our enemy! Respectfully, Andi-O [log in to unmask]