Blog #328: Why “Song of the South” (1946) Shows Us Why It’s Important to Learn fro
- Jeffrey Snyder
- Apr 20, 2023
- 4 min read
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A lot of you who are reading this may disagree with me about what is being read in this blog, but I think it’s important to talk about. In recent years, I have seen people try to bury difficult, but important facts about various periods of history. While some are justified, given that some of the material is insensitive and offensive, there are others that are somewhat important in terms of teaching life lessons.
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Of course, one film that holds a lot of important lessons but has been held back because of it’s controversy is the 1946 Disney Film, “Song of the South.” Recently, the film has been in the news as the ride inspired from the film, “Splash Mountain,” is being replaced in the United States with “Tiana’s Bayou Adventure,” from the 2009 film, “The Princess and the Frog.”
Now, you might be wondering why I consider the fact that today’s generation sees “Song of the South” when it is full on controversy? I believe that something like “Song of the South” can serve as an exposure to not just the stories of Joel Chandler Harris, but also that the lessons that the film teaches are just as relevant today as it was back then.
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For one thing, “Song of the South” teaches the fact that everyone should have a mentor or parental figure in their lives, such as Uncle Remus. When I look at Uncle Remus, I see a character that is no different than Mister Rogers or Bear in the Big Blue House. He cares about the children who look up to him and tells them stories that they can take into their everyday lives.
The truth is people nowadays are looking at some mentors that don’t have their best interests at heart. Children nowadays would want to look at troubled celebrities and figures as role models and they are more than a bad influence on them such as Justin Bieber.
Uncle Remus is one of those people that can also leave more than an impact on neurodiverse individuals because of his personality. He’s warm, approachable and huggable, which we don’t see a lot of in today’s society. He has good intentions and he has a power among others that can make you feel at great ease.
In fact, the only reason why the protagonist, Johnny, survives at the end is because of him. When Uncle Remus is forbidden from seeing the protagonist, it sets in motion the consequences that the mother faces that ultimately leads to her overall redemption in the end. Had he not returned to Johnny’s side, Johnny would have lost the will to live and died.
Now take that into consideration for a second. If your child or someone has a close connection with someone that you don’t approve off, then you have to take that relationship with a grain of salt and let it play out.
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The other important trait is that “Song of the South,” teaches a variety of life lessons that children today can learn from through the character of Brer Rabbit. A majority of the animated sequences are about Brer Rabbit trying to leave the Briar Patch for a better life and he ends up staying in the Briar Patch because he learns you cannot run away from your troubles. You have to face your troubles head on because pretending like they don’t exist is not good for you. When he ends up being close to being cooked and eaten as an example, he uses his clever ruses to try and get out of the situation culminating in the Laughing Place.
In a way, “Song of the South,” is one of those films that people really should give a chance at least once in their lives. Is it a perfect film? No. Is it a controversial film? Yes. Should it be used as a teaching tool despite it’s controversial past? Yes, because “Song of the South” could serve as a teaching tool to help students explore the way life was like after the Civil War as well open up the barriers to diversity, equality and inclusion.
I mean, I can often compare myself to Uncle Remus because he is wise and has a vivid imagination which he can share with the protagonist and his friends and I am pretty sure many on the Autism Spectrum can feel the same way because people turn to us and we help them with our point of view of life.
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But what is important is that you cannot simply sweep something under the rug because of its controversy. You have to face your fears and troubles because otherwise they will continue, just in any other fact of life. You also need to give some things a chance because otherwise, how can you make judgments on something if you have never experienced them?
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Catch you all later!!
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