In Walt Disney's 1950 film, Cinderella explains, "A dream is a wish your heart makes." Throughout childhood, countless girls dream of becoming Disney princesses in response to their exposure to animated films like Cinderella. This fascination with the princess lifestyle is commonly seen as a phase girls go through and is encouraged by Walt Disney's $4.4 billion line of princess products, which includes toys, clothes and even pink house paint ( Smith). Although princess merchandising, which primarily features the original princesses of Belle, Jasmine, Ariel, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, is often positively perceived as an essential part of a girl's childhood, the marketing of Disney Princesses is actually a detriment for American society's movement toward gender and racial equality. Feminism in today's society holds that women are strong individuals capable of achieving their dreams. A significant problem with Disney Princesses is that, even surrounded by the idea that women have the same inherent dignity as men, they continue to be portrayed as passive women with limited aspirations. For example, in Snow White, the character of Snow White is glorified by her ability to sing beautifully and cook for the seven dwarfs (Hynes). In Beauty and the Beast, Belle is ignored when she tries to make conversation about a book she is reading, which suggests that an educated woman is not worthy of attention (Hynes). And, in The Little Mermaid, Ariel sings about all the wonderful treasures she has, which encourages the appreciation of material possessions (Hynes). These films give rise to the belief that a woman's worth depends on her ability to support a family,...... middle of paper......tian Science Monitor: n/a. 2009. Web.Neal, Kelle. ““Part of Your World”: Disney's Portrayal of Ethnic Minorities.” Tennessee State University, 2010. United States - Tennessee: ProQuest Dissertations and Theses: Humanities and Social Sciences Collection. Network. November 29, 2011.Smith, Ethan. "Corporate News: Disney Product Chief Resigns --- Andy Mooney Credited with Creating $4.4 Billion Princess Toy and Clothes Line." Wall Street Journal: B.7. ProQuest. 07 September 2011. Web. 29 November 2011Tucker, Neely. "A fairytale beginning: Snow White, this is not. Among Disney's royal women, Tiana is a noteworthy first." WashingtonPost.com, April 19, 2009. Web. November 29, 2011. Wohlwend, Karen. “Bridesmaids in Discourse: Girls Consuming and Producing Identity Texts through Disney Princess Play.” Reading Research Quarterly 44.1 (2009): 57-83. ProQuest Research Library. Network. November 29. 2011