Collodi, Disney, and the Question of Poverty in 'Pinocchio': Adding Richness to a Fairy Tale Anonymous 9th Grade

The original text of Pinocchio, written by Carlo Collodi, is a propaganda filled, politically polarizing, piece of prose. Walt Disney’s 1940 film adaptation, is an Americanized story of a silly little puppet who exhibits questionable moral judgement but, with the help of his conscious, saves his father, learns his lesson, and is magically transformed into a flesh and blood boy. One of the crucial differences between adaptations is that Collodi’s Pinocchio is permeated by poverty. Pinocchio was written as unifying propaganda at a time of unrest in Italy. The Disney adaption has a similar feeling but in response to a different event. America was still feeling the effects of the Great Depression when the movie came out and the feel-good story, full of positive messages was what the people needed. In this context, Disney’s removal of poverty from the narrative makes sense, however, by removing poverty Disney also removed a great many intrinsic parts of the classic. In the original, the hardships experienced by the characters, especially Geppetto and Pinocchio himself, are what make Pinocchio’s selfish actions all the more deplorable, adding another layer of depth to the narrative. His poverty is also a large part of Pinocchio’s...