Disney Techno-Nature

A detailed Summary of Disney Techno-Nature

Research Paper

Like most Disney material, nature themes were incorporated into the earliest parks, including Adventureland, Frontierland, Nature's Wonderland, and the newest, Animal Kingdom. Disney carefully edited these "natural" settings that show the less wild side of the wilderness. However, how does the tourist comprehend the illusions? How are the plants and animals adapting to reflect the illusion, and how are they accented by the interactions with both human nature and Disney's technological nature? These questions and more will be answered within the following sections: Definitions, Technological Nature, Kilamanjaro Safari, and The Final Answer.

The Animal Kingdom is a modern exhibit designed to follow the "natural pattern" of an African community. The most eye-popping attraction, the Kilamanjaro Safari, is an open-air, nearly barrier-free animal reserve at Florida's Walt Disney World. It was a major shift from a cow playground to a zone of care for other wise caged animals. Here, African animals freely roam through acres of savanna, rivers, and rocky hills. The rider is advised to be aware, "You never know what could happen in the wilderness" (Tate

Corliss, Richard. "Beauty and the Beasts." Time Magazine; 20 April 1998:

In the beginning, nature was a competitor, a harsh environment to be subdued. Once under control, it no longer posed a threat but an opportunity for aesthetic and recreational exploration (King 60). Disney pioneered, engineered and directed a contradiction of sorts, and further accentuates the mental and emotional confusion of the average park sightseer. Disney has created what some critics call an "artful contradiction" and "Disnification" of nature (Corliss 66; King 64). Everything is real and almost completely authentic, but not real or authentic to the Florida mainland. Chairman and CEO Michael Eisner says, "This park is all about magic and illusion." The magic, in all its glory, separates the technological nature from the true nature from the tourist. The manufactured "magic moments" are what make it real and separate it from the dangerous possibilities of nature. It is not to say that Disney's Kilamanjaro Safari is naturalistically correct or incorrect; it is a !

in a developed pasture area (King 67). The plants must continually be nurtured with nutrients found in African soils. A synthetic fuel is added to the eighteen inches of Florida sand in order for the foreign plants to propagate and live. The animals must readapt from a zoo surrounding to one more similar to where they were taken from, as well as adapt to the artificial hormones and antibiotics lacing the feed. (Mongeau) To the tourist, the plants and animals only make for the Disney illusion for the tourist's enjoyment. The sightseers must remember that the safari is a modern zoo terrarium and that the creatures are real and are living in a realistic environment, not just a theme park. The creatures, in perspective, are interesting and entertaining because of human interest (King 65).

In Literary Ecology. Eds. Cheryl Glotfelty and Harold Fromm.

I briefly reproduce the setting of the Kilamanjaro Safari to place the reader inside the park. Now take a look at the tourists around you. Sometimes the tourist falls into a certain category, one particularly in the English sightseer. Y

Some common words found in the essay are:
Animal Kingdom, Kilamanjaro Safari, Florida Technology, Final Answer, Kingdom Disney, Disney World, Safari Ride, Michael Eisner, Bali Disney, Asia Disney, technological nature, animal kingdom, kilamanjaro safari, african animals, native african, theme park, rivers rocky hills, wilderness tate, tate 1, happen wilderness, happen wilderness tate, gazelles elephants, animal kingdom disney, acres savanna rivers, savanna rivers rocky,

Approximate Word count = 1456
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Technology