Thursday, October 25, 2012
Adoption Movie Review: Disney's Tarzan
Disney's Tarzan
The Plot (spoilers
ahead)
A young married couple is shipwrecked on an island. They
make a home for themselves and their infant son but are killed by a leopardess.
Around the same time, a female gorilla named Kala loses her child to the
leopardess. Kala hears the infant’s cries and rescues him from the leopardess.
She names him Tarzan and chooses to raise him as her own son.
Kala’s mate, Kershak, is the leader of the family of
gorillas. He does not trust humans. He does allow Tarzan to stay after
ascertaining that Tarzan was alone, but he establishes that Tarzan is not his
son. Tarzan grows into manhood while being raised by gorillas and making
friends with other jungle animals. He first encounters humans when he rescues a
young explorer/biologist named Jane. Jane and her party want to find the
gorillas, but Tarzan says he cannot bring them there; Kershak has forbidden it.
Over time, though, Tarzan falls in love with Jane. He brings her and her party
to his gorilla family. This angers Kershak, and he chases the party away.
Jane is about to leave for England, and Tarzan decides to go
with her. However, as soon as he boards her boat, several of her party capture
Jane and Tarzan, lock them in a cell, and proclaim that they will go and
capture the gorillas for profit. Tarzan is eventually freed and pursues them.
Tarzan is able to save his gorilla family, but Kershak is wounded during the
battle. Before Kershak dies, he apologizes to Tarzan, and says that Tarzan has
been his son all along. Tarzan is given leadership in the tribe. Jane and her
father decide to stay with Tarzan, and is welcomed by the rest of the gorillas.
The Adoption
Connection
Tarzan is found and raised by a member of another species.
Different members of his new family accept him to varying degrees; his mother
accepts him fully, his father does not accept him; some children accept him as
a curiosity, another accepts him as a best friend. Tarzan grows up knowing the
language and culture of his new family and grieves that he is not more like those
raising him. He is eventually introduced to his culture of origin. He meets
another human and quickly learns his birth language. Tarzan’s gorilla mother
shows him a photograph of his birth parents and lets him know that she just
wants him to be happy. Tarzan affirms that the gorilla will always be his
mother. He tries to integrate the two cultures. His initial efforts at
integration are met with fear and rejection, due in part to the gorilla
family’s fear of humans and the impure motives of some of the humans. Eventually,
he is able to integrate his two worlds as two trustworthy humans (Jane and her
father) are accepted by the gorillas.
Tarzan’s story reflects some aspects of intercultural
adoption. Some adopting families are hesitant to acknowledge the culture of
their child’s origin; perhaps they do not know much about that culture, or do
not view the culture as important. Some members of the adopting culture who
have contact with the adoptee may dislike the adoptee’s culture, as Kershak
seems to dislike Tarzan’s. Other members
of the adopting culture may be well-meaning but insensitive, like one young
gorilla who comments about Tarzan’s different appearance and asks about the
whereabouts of his mother. When Kala says that she will be Tarzan’s mother,
concern is evident on the faces of many other gorillas.
Strong Points
A
song which plays frequently during the movie includes the lyrics “two worlds,
one family.” This is Tarzan’s wish and is also a good goal for multicultural
families. Cross-cultural adoptees gain the culture of their adopting parents
when they are adopted; they shouldn’t have to lose their culture of origin.
Kala
adopts Tarzan shortly after the loss of a child that had been born to her.
Kershak cautions Kala that Tarzan “won’t replace the one we lost.” Kala’s
response is excellent: “I know that… but he needs me.”
When
Tarzan questions Kala about the differences in appearance between them, Kala
reminds him that their heartbeats (and hearts) are “exactly the same.” Later,
when Tarzan meets Jane, he listens to her heart and finds that she also has a
heartbeat. A song during the end credits sings, “I know we’re different, but
deep inside us we’re not that different at all.”
Tarzan’s
identification with his adoptive culture is very evident. After Tarzan tries to
leave for England with Jane, he learns of the danger his family is in and
returns to save them. Kershak comments, “You came back.” Tarzan responds, “I
came home.”
Jane
accepts Tarzan’s identification with his adoptive culture, remarking aloud that
Tarzan is “one of them.” At one point, Jane tells Tarzan, “You belong with us.”
Eventually, though, she chooses to join Tarzan in his culture while also
educating him about hers.
The
movie shows strengths and weaknesses in each culture; some gorillas are open to
Tarzan, others aren’t. Some humans are noble, others are ignoble. In any
adoption, no culture is purely good, and no culture is purely bad. One culture
is not better than another, and one shouldn’t be totally forsaken for another.
A Challenge
After
Kala shows Tarzan a photograph of himself with his birth parents, Tarzan asks
Kala, “Why didn’t you tell me that there are creatures that look like me?”
Tarzan has a very valid question, and Kala does not have a satisfactory answer.
A Weak Point
Kershak
is the gorilla least pleased with Tarzan’s inclusion in the family. For much of
the movie, Kershak appears to dislike Tarzan, telling Kala, “He’s not our
kind,” and proclaiming that Tarzan is not his son. At one point, Tarzan relates how he interprets
Kershak’s actions, telling Kala, “Kershak said I don’t belong in the family.”
Although Kershak eventually apologizes and accepts Tarzan, the resolution is
brief. The evident dislike of Tarzan by his adoptive father could be painful
for a child who does not feel close to an adoptive parent. A person adopted
cross-culturally will likely have struggled (or sometimes still struggle) with
feelings of not belonging in their new culture; Tarzan experiences overt
rejection from Kershak and from some peers.
Discussions about belongingness are probably a good idea; even if a
child hasn’t expressed their struggles, they probably have experienced feelings
of not belonging, either internally or through things others have said.
Kershak’s dislike of Tarzan might be too poignant to focus on, but the mild
unacceptance Tarzan experiences from his peers could be a good starting point
for discussion.
Some Recommendations
This
is a musical Disney animated movie and will probably appeal most to children up
to around ten years of age. The fact that the cross-cultural adoption is
actually a cross-species adoption also makes it seem most appropriate for a
younger audience. The movie seems appropriate for grade-school-age children who
have been adopted cross-culturally and who are starting to have questions about
their culture of origin, their place in their current culture, and the
relationship between the two. The movie could be used as a way to begin a
series of discussions with a child about culture; both the culture of their
birth family and the culture of your family. Create a family culture which
combines elements of each original culture.
Parents
watching the movie can try to identify with Kala: What is she feeling at
various points in the movie? What does she do well? What can she do better?
Questions for Discussion After the Movie
è
For Kids:
o
What do you know about where your birth family
is from? What would you like to know?
o
Tarzan sometimes felt like he didn’t fit in with
the gorillas. He tried to fit in by putting mud on his face, and by trying to
get a hair from an elephant. He also fit in without trying because he knew the
same language as the gorillas and because he had a heart exactly like Kala’s.
Do you ever feel like you fit in? Do you ever feel like you don’t fit in?
[Explain “culture” to younger kids before asking this question.]
o
What’s your favorite part about being part of
our culture? What’s your favorite part about being part of your birth family’s
culture? [This question might be easier
to phrase by using the actual names of the cultures, for example, “What’s your
favorite part of being Texan? What’s your favorite part of being Vietnamese?”]
è
For Parents:
o
In the scene where Kala shows Tarzan the
photograph of him with his birth family, how would you have answered Tarzan’s
question: Why haven’t you told me before?
o
How do you imagine Kala felt when Tarzan emerged
in human clothes?
o
If you have adopted cross-culturally or are
considering doing so, how much do you know about the culture of the child? How
can you learn more?
o
Some adoptive parents have expressed that the
child will inherit the culture of the adoptive family and should not need their
own culture. How is this view harmful to the adoptee?
Now that you've checked out Tarzan, it's time to see the surprisingly relevant sequel!
Check out my adoption movie review of Tarzan II!
Now that you've checked out Tarzan, it's time to see the surprisingly relevant sequel!
Check out my adoption movie review of Tarzan II!
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