Henry 1 Ashley Henry Professor Erin Dietel-McLaughlin Multimedia Writing & Rhetoric 1 March 2013 Once Upon a Time:

Disney Housewives and the Robust Theory of Humor The Magic Kingdom is my playground, and I like to play, sassily spoken by Belle one of the five Disney princesses portrayed in the Saturday Night Live skit The Real Housewives of Disney (Disney Housewives). Like the actual TV series Real Housewives, The Real Housewives of Disney portrays the lives of the princesses from a reality TV perspective. There are many aspects about this comedic skit that shed light on the values and mindset of American culture and society. Through the interpretation of the Robust Theory of Humor, the Saturday Night Live skit The Real Housewives of Disney reveals the materialistic and self-indulgent culture of America through comedic entertainment. With the use of elements of the Robust Theory of Humor such as aspect change, a shared form of relationship or culture, humorous attitude, and an avowal, the Saturday Night Live skit brings to light the self-centered American culture with humor. Before going into the factors that make this Saturday Night Live sketch so funny and effective with its message, it is important to note what is going on within the skit itself. In this skit, the princesses are Belle, Snow White, Jasmine, Rapunzel, and Cinderella. Every princess has developed a personality comparable to the ones seen in the actual TV series Real Housewives. They are self-centered, melodramatic, and like to drink. Compared to their previous personas of kind, loving princesses, they are the complete opposite. Many scenes within the skit contain the princesses using crude language, gossiping about each other, and in one

Henry 2 scene it escalates to a fist fight between Rapunzel and Snow White. In general, the lives and personalities of the princesses have all been forced under one roof to be viewed as a reality TV series. With all of these differing personalities and backgrounds under one roof, the house is always bursting with new drama. Without a doubt, a Disney princess is someone who is seen as compassionate, kind, brave, and independent, creating a large contrast between these expected characteristics to the ones portrayed in the skit which are vulgarity, pettiness, and drunkenness. This immense contrast or aspect change makes the skit even funnier and gives it comedic value. This element of the Robust Theory of Humor is clearly present within the skit. For instance, the radical differences range from a sassy Snow White with a Bronx accent to an alcoholic Cinderella. No longer are they seen as admirable or respectable. Furthermore, people do not expect Disney princesses, to be used in comparison to the original different TV series of Real Housewives, which makes this skit even more effective in its comedic aspect change and its message of the growing self-focused culture in America. As stated by Sophia Stone in her article Why is Stephen Colbert So Funny? , We laugh because we see the worldand then we see it differently, meaning that a sudden alteration to the world around us can create humor by the mere fact that the alteration was unexpected and the greater the change the funnier it is (168). There was originally this perception of immoral women who appeared in the reality TV series Real Housewives but then even the most moral and innocent of women are put into this spotlight, and the audiences past assumptions of them are thrown out the door. Real Housewives already has a negative connotation in terms of cultural quality. So, to combine Disney princesses who are known to have a positive connotation with their names with Real Housewives also shows how our culture has become more self-centered

Henry 3 and why this skit is so humorous. Real Housewives is a show where many of the characters are only concerned with themselves and their own interests, and by taking Disney princesses who had such a family-friendly and respectable reputation and bringing it to the level of Real Housewives, proves how American culture has degraded and become more egocentric. While the numerous aspect changes within the skit assist in making it funny and help to reveal the self-centeredness of American culture, the skit would lose much most of its humor if it were not for the fact that there is a shared form of relationship or culture present. This shared relationship is the idea that the audience is able to unite under some shared principal or cultural aspect to better understand what is going on. For example, most American children have grown up knowing with Disney movies and Disney princesses, especially girls. So, the shared Disney culture allows the audience to understand and discover the humor in the skit. It is a social context that helps us to understand the meaning and intention behind every speech activity (Stone 172). In addition to the skit creating comedy from the concept of a shared culture, it also brings to light further support for the idea that America has a self-indulgent culture. For instance, when Belle shows off her $25,000 shell bra, she talks about the spending of $25,000 as if it were nothing, thus, proving how any desire they have they fulfill it no matter the cost. Also, Cinderellas consistent inebriated state throughout the skit also supports this self-indulgent culture and lifestyle. By poking fun at the shared reality TV culture, it emphasizes this selfindulgent and egocentric state of mind that has taken America by storm. With the comedic reputation of Saturday Night Live being so distinguished, the predisposition to find something funny or the humorous attitude has already been presumed by the audience (Stone 174). Even before the skit begins, everybody knows that whatever is about

Henry 4 to happen is going to be funny because of Saturday Night Lives reputation. Along with this anticipation of laughter because of Saturday Night Lives comedic predisposition, there is also an anticipation of laughter at Lindsay Lohan. Lindsay is famous for her bad reputation and public wild antics. Therefore, her being in the skit only adds to that predisposed ability to laugh. People are so used to mocking her and pointing out her wild ways that they are already prepared to laugh at her expense. Moreover, Lindsays addition to the skit continues to underline this belief that American culture and society has become more egocentric and indulgent. The fact that she was included in the skit provides insight into the values that people look for in their entertainment. Her portrayal sheds light on the ideals of American culture Her infamous public reputation only adds humor to the skit but also highlights these American cultural qualities of drama, self-indulgence, and self-centeredness. Indisputably, the smile is the first form of positive communication (Ziv 27). In addition to the many aspects of the Robust Theory of Humor, the avowal or an endorsement to what we see through physical signs such as smiling or laughter is one of the most important factors in understanding the humor of this skit (Stone 175). Without an avowal or even a negative avowal, it causes the humor, comedy, and message of a comedic skit to fall at the wayside. The avowal is one of the clearest and most obvious signs that something is humorous. As the audience laughs along with the skit, this laughter also shows how the audience is able to laugh at the ridiculousness of their own culture. With every joke, it is made clearer how selfindulgent the American culture is, and what they truly value and see as important. However, every time this idea is revealed that is when the audience laughs the loudest. For instance, when Cinderella shows clear signs of intoxication and comments insensitively on the other princesses, this is when the audiences laughter is the loudest. They know that what she is saying is wrong

Henry 5 and self-centered. With the approval of the audiences laughter, the skit is able to delve even deeper into the distorted values of American society and culture. In refute of this idea of a cultural revelation, many suggest that this take on The Real Housewives of Disney is an overstatement. They believe that the skit is purely comedic and has no deeper relevance and insight. Popular pop culture websites, such as The Hollywood Reporter, have focused their attention on the comedic aspects of the skit, while overlooking the cultural insight. The article focused on how humorous the skit was and how it was so funny, instead of the why it was so funny and relevant (Real Housewives). However, There are many factors of the skit that have more meaning to it than just comedy. Those who oppose this interpretation of the skit would have to explain why the choice of Disney princesses was used over any other characters or groups. While giving the skit a more comedic effect, the use of the princesses also showed how the culture of American society has changed. For instance, you have once highly regarded and beloved princesses who were known for their kindness, generosity, and spirit, but they have now morphed into the pettiness, drunkenness, and self-indulgent lifestyles that are often seen within the actual TV series Real Housewives. Such a change promotes humor while also revealing how American culture prefers its entertainment. The choice for the lives of the Disney princesses to be portrayed in a reality TV perspective shows how American culture has become shallow. It also shows how the culture is more focused on the self-centeredness, self-indulgence, and other negative qualities of the characters instead the more positive and wholesome qualities they might have to offer. By choosing to reflect the Disney princesses lives off of Real Housewives, it reflects the attitudes and values of the American culture today. In the end, this skit is very humorous and is

Henry 6 dominated by many comedic aspects but to overlook the revelation into the state of the American culture is to ignore the key message of the skit. Overall, the four aspects of the Robust Theory of Humor are able to successfully entertain the audience with comedy while also enlightening them on the evident indulgence and materialistic American culture. If this type of culture continues to spread, the issue comes to the conclusion of how are future generations going to be affected. Although many may see this skit as a useless joke, it is anything but that as it shows and highlights the values of the American culture. If this is the future of the Disney princesses that many have come to know and love, then what will happen with the future generations to come? As indulgence and pettiness continue to run rampant and make up a large portion of the American culture, this sadly is the future that they have to look forward for their children and for future generations.

Henry 7 Works Cited "Disney Housewives." Hulu. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2013. "'Real Housewives of Disney' Deleted Scenes From 'SNL' Released to Web (Video)." The Hollywood Reporter. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Mar. 2013. Stone, Sophia. "Why Is Stephen Colbert So Funny?" N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. Print. Ziv, Avner. "The Social Function of Humor." Personality and Sense of Humor. N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. Print.