Mickey Mouse Character Evolution - Embodiment of Utopia
Overview and History
The signature round black ears, white gloves, red polka dotted shorts: All of these elements have become equivalent of not only a wonderfully iconic character, but also of utopian dreams, aspirations and societal desires. Mickey Mouse, over a large span of time has ceased to simply be a standalone character in the magnificent world of Disney. It has, somewhat ruthlessly, adapted itself to be a beacon of hope and a representation of our consumerist culture.
The way the character of Mickey Mouse was germinated has an interesting history. It all started in 1927 when Walt Disney conceptualised the character Oswald, The Lucky Rabbit. At the time, Disney studios was a part of Universal studios. The year after the conception of Oswald, Universal studios renegotiated contracts and bought out all Disney’s artists and animators while also getting the rights to Oswald.
Despite this hiccup, with the help of Ub Iwerks, the only animator to remain with Disney, Oswald was getting ready to be replaced by an upbeat joyous mouse called Mortimer. By shortening the years, adding some extra flesh in the body, the rabbit transformed into a mouse. Mortimer certainly didn’t have a nice ring to it and this fact was apparently acutely recognized by Walt Disney’s wife and the name was immediately changed to Mickey Mouse. Since then, Mickey Mouse has, without a doubt, been one of the most universally loved characters of all time.
Character Evolution
Mickey Mouse has been a perennially iconic character which has been a part of innumerable films, cartoons, shows, merchandising and what not. His grandiose journey began in 1928 when he featured in the small film Steamboat Willie, the first animation to feature synchronized music and sound effects. The film became an instant success resulting in a release of a series of Mickey Mouse shorts in the successive months. The character, at the time, was a mischievous trouble making rodent who would ensue an abundance of chaos. This was even visible in the way it was sketched out with large impish eyes and an elongated noses, it did not look particularly friendly but rather a mischief maker.
The mouse became a rapid rage within a matter of months and soon enough, Walt Disney was capitalizing on the success by launching a variety of merchandise around it. With its growing popularity, a need to make it more conventionally likeable sprouted. In 1935, Fred Moore, a young animator added certain significant modifications such as giving him a pear shaped body, pupils, white gloves and a shortened nose. These characteristics made the character much cuter, less rat like and ultimately, more likeable.
In the following years, Disney started producing 12 Mickey shorts a year. Mickey adorned the role of a variety of characters ranging from a football hero to a conductor. The light heartedness of the show made it quite suitable for children with the extensive usage of slapstick comedy and puns. Mickey Mouse was gradually developing into an ideal upstanding character with great moral values, slowly losing his initial spark and vivaciousness to become duller and more vanilla. This was even reflected when David Smith, the archives director for Walt Disney Co. said, "Donald (Duck) became easier to write stories around because his personality was more varied. Often in that period, they would start a cartoon with Mickey and it wouldn't work and someone would say 'Use Donald,"'
A simple rodent swiftly became the epitome of congeniality and by the 1950s, Mickey Mouse had a theme park, newspaper comic strip, The Mickey Mouse club and a lot more. Walt Disney had intelligently foreseen his immense popularity and had appropriately capitalised on this golden opportunity. His physical and personality attributes were tweaked, for him to become a character appropriate for family entertainment. He quickly became the symbol of ‘family oriented’ offerings. This was done via a variety of avenues such as animated movies, family films and theme parks established across the world. By 1999, Disney’s corporation revenue was $23.4 billion and continued to grow exponentially over the years.
Dissecting the character
Mickey Mouse had become synonymous with the face of the company and hence, there was an innate necessitate to keep the character sacred and unrealistically positive. He ultimately became an embodiment of happiness, joy and similar utopian ideals. Even in unfortunate and morose times such as The Great Depression, Mickey Mouse had the capability to put a smile on people’s faces and ignite a ray of hope. He consistently evoked positive emotions and has become a part of people’s memorable experiences.
There are interesting theories as to why the character resonated so deeply and universally. One such theory is how it relates to the innate human needs and desires, as expressed in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. It directly relates to the third tier of ‘Love and Belonging’ which is associated with familial connections and friendship. The requirement of the second tier of ‘Safety needs’ could also be met through the environment of love and safety induced in the amusement parks.
Though Mickey Mouse has been the embodiment of utopia for many, it is also representation of the consumerist culture that we have propagated in the last century. It has been very skilfully utilised and ensnared us in the custom of commodification. From Mickey Mouse shaped pancakes to the mouse inhibiting even our pencils or erasers, it is definitely an understatement to say that Mickey Mouse has become, perhaps dangerously, one of the most universally memorable characters. Movie reviewer Leonard Maltin has called Disney the ‘merchandizing king of America’ and commentator Steven Starks says, “By weaving together the worlds of television and movies, programming and advertising, and adult programming and children’s programming, Walt Disney made his TV offerings part of a seamless mesh of entertainment. Today, we are all ensnared in Walt’s web.”
