Cole Gilbert

Waggoner 9:30TR

English 20803

27 March 2014

101 Dalmatians Clichés

            Today, it is very common for animated films to include implies thesis’s. They have been overused and acquired the term of cliché. These clichés are most prevalent in almost every single animated film made by Disney, as seen in 101 Dalmatians. There are many films that utilize an implied thesis, however; 101 Dalmatians is a great representation of clichés directed towards a villainous character. Throughout the film the villain, Cruella Deville, is constantly victimized by clichés common to many other Disney films.

            One of the most apparent uses of cliché in terms of Cruella Deville is with the use of her evil depiction and name. Her name is cliché in itself. The effects of this implied thesis draw upon the audience’s sense of logos because they can logically infer that “Cruella Deville” includes the word “devil” literally in her name. Another appeal to logos is depicted in the meme below. Cruella’s overall appearance screams villain and her overcoat and makeup depict the evilness that Disney desires. The meme incorporates another villainous person to draw upon the appearance of Cruella Deville.

            Another important cliché that is common with the film 101 Dalmatians is seen by the stupidity of the villain’s henchmen. In most of Disney’s animated films the villain is accompanied by a couple of henchmen that are supposed to help the villain carry out the villainous plan. In the case of this film the villains are helping Cruella steal enough puppies to make her a Dalmatian skin fur coat but are cliché characters that seem to mess everything up. This is very cliché in Disney films because the villain is never supposed to win and with the help of their henchmen they are always pitted to fail. The sense of humor and relief that these characters bring to the film appeals to the audience’s sense of pathos.  Another appeal of pathos within the film is with the colors used in depicting the villain. The primary use of white, black, and red help to identify the evil colors of Cruella.

            The appeal of ethos is significant simply because the film is an animated film produced by Disney. It follows many of the same clichés prevalent in their films and includes many implied messages that kids pick up on to influence them about specific characters. In this film, Cruella Deville is depicted as a bad person, someone that children should not want to be when they grow up. When the film ends the villain is overcome by good. This is a common message throughout Disney films and is implies that good overcomes evil and that children should strive to be good. They should not be attracted to the appearance of the villain and in fact should be scared of their appearance. The clichés that are depicted throughout this film are a good representation of the ones common to all Disney films. Overall, these clichés are a good reinforcement for children to appreciate that good conquers evil.