Absent Parents in Disney Movies?

[hepcat]

Why is it in Disney movies that the family always seems to be messed up? A single parent, other parent is dead, an orphan, whatever. It's Disney's calling card. I can't even name ONE movie where the main character had a normally functioning family besides Hercules, and they weren't even his real parents.

Here's a great list I found on Yahoo Answers (http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080607052634AAwZKl5):

Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs (Absent parents, evil stepmother)

Pinocchio (No mother)

Dumbo (Absent Father)

Bambi (Mother killed in film)

Cinderella (Absent parents, evil stepmother. Prince, absent mother)

Peter Pan (Absent parents for Peter and Lost Boys...kinda the point!)

The Sword In The Stone (Absent parents)

The Jungle Book (Absent parents)

The Aristocats (Absent father)

The Many Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh (Did Christopher Robin have parents?)

The Rescuers (Orphan girl, absent parents)

The Fox And The Hound (Mother dies)

The Great Mouse Detective (Absent mother)

Oliver & Company (Absent parents)

The Little Mermaid (Absent mother, Ariel. Absent parents, Eric)

The Rescuers Down Under (Absent father)

Beauty And The Beast (Absent mother)

Aladdin (Aladdin had absent parents, though his mom was originally in the story. Jasmine, absent mother)

The Lion King (Father dies)

Pocahontas (Absent mother)

The Hunchback Of Notre Dame (Mother, maybe both parents? die right at the beginning)

Tarzan (Dead parents)

Lilo And Stitch (Dead parents)

Treasure Planet (Absent parents)

Fox and the Hound (mother fox was killed)

A Goofy Movie (Max, PJ and Roxanne had an absent mother)

Pixar:

Toy Story, TS2 (Absent father)

A Bug's Life (Dot: absent father)

Finding Nemo (Dead mother)

[Hawk]

ummm....reality maybe?!!!!

[Captroop]

Why does every Disney movie end at the wedding?

Doesn't a princess story include marital bliss? Or do the princesses all gain weight, bicker nonstop with their husbands, and the prince starts diddling the hand-maidens on the side.

[GritsRgreat]

Song of the South had both parents but the dad was away most of the movie.

[PanthaSan]

meh, parents are overrated....

[Epistaxis]

Everybody loves an underdog, don't get much under-er than an orphan or an evil stepsomething.

Rocky in a prom dress.

[charlotte49er]

I think in the more recent movies, it is the sign of the times. After all most of Disney's movies are aimed at kids. Buena Vista movies (Still Disney Studios) are aimed at adults.

some of the more ancient ones depend on the written fairy tales themselves. Pinnocio was made by a toy maker who always wanted a son. Gepeto, I don't remember if he was a widower or bachelor.

Also remember in the case of the old fairy tales, women often died during child birth. Or either parents just didn't live as long as people do now. (Unless you believe the Old Testament where people lived for 600-700 years!)

Disney also owns the film rights to all the follow on stories from "The Wizard of Oz" but has never done anything with them. Dorothy actually returns to Oz and encounter all new characters, including Pumpkin Head. Sorry, I strayed off of the subject.

Plus, you can't have a love story between 2 "people" if one of them is married. Disney is all about the "Happy Ending" and the "Lived Happily Ever After!" (Even thought it rarely happens in real if.)

[Starscream]

Zack and Cody, and Hannah Montana are also raised by single parents.

[ItsNotGonnaBeAlright]

You left off Up. The kid's home situation becomes a central theme to the movie towards the center of the storyline.

[GritsRgreat]

Hiccup didn't have a mom in How To Train Your Dragon

[Wither]

Because it makes them more touching and the great movies they are.