If you happen to’ve ever expressed even a passing need to go to Disneyland in Anaheim or Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., you’ll have had buddies who raised their eyebrows, groaned and even sneered.
The guts of their criticism isn’t simply that they assume Disney is for youths, or that it’s so prohibitively costly. It’s what I name the “authenticity objection” — the idea that there’s one thing essentially improper with visits to theme parks just like the Magic Kingdom as a result of they happen in a completely manufactured atmosphere. The substitute mountains and rivers, the rides that present nothing greater than senseless distraction, the “forged members” dressed up as characters.
It’s all so faux.
Whereas some specific this view in jest, others imagine the false environments border on a cultural abomination. One on-line discussion board explicitly cites the manufactured nature of Disney parks as a purpose to not go, noting that the “smiling employees, the piped-in music, the right landscaping” can really feel “creepy and overly managed.”
Journalist EJ Dickson, herself a Disney fan, admits that visitors to the parks “willingly spend hundreds of {dollars} on an genuine emotional expertise that they know, not less than on some degree, isn’t actually genuine in any respect.” And a popular Trip Advisor review dismisses Disney World as “a sizzling, commercialized, faux expertise.”
But as a philosopher who just lately printed a e-book, “The Magic Kingdom and the Meaning of Life,” I discover criticisms of the parks as faux to be a bit obscure.
Advertising and marketing professors George Newman and Rosanna Smith note that philosophers have tended to consider authenticity by the lens of whether or not “entities are what they’re presupposed to be.” Apply that normal to the worlds of Disney: Do they current themselves as something aside from Disney-themed amusement parks?
There are legitimate reasons to complain concerning the authenticity of some experiences. If you happen to purchase a ticket to a Van Gogh exhibit, you can rightfully complain if you happen to uncover solely reproductions on show. The truth that you hadn’t been in a position to inform the distinction whereas viewing the work wouldn’t matter. Against this, Disney points of interest don’t fake to be something aside from what they’re.
When folks at Disney’s Hollywood Studios journey Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, they know they’re not truly on a runaway prepare being incompetently pushed by a speaking canine named Goofy. If Disney had marketed the attraction as one thing else — say, an Amtrak journey for youths — maybe there could be grounds for complaining.
If the preliminary type of the authenticity objection is comparatively simple to deal with, one other concern lurks within the neighborhood: The concept Disney followers are someway inauthentic, because of their willingness to show themselves over to the trimmings of a synthetic world.
The exact nature of this concern is troublesome to characterize. But it surely entails the idea that individuals who spend a whole lot of time in manufactured environments are likely to delude themselves in ways in which evade understanding and interesting with their true selves. Phrases like “existential authenticity” or “self-authenticity” appear to seize what’s at stake.
This supposed connection between the faux world of Disney and the corruption of 1’s genuine self is on full show in descriptions of so-called “Disney Adults.”
As Dickson characterizes this view in Rolling Stone, “being a Disney fan in maturity is to profess to being nothing lower than an uncritical bubblehead ensconced in a single’s personal privilege, suspended in a state of everlasting adolescence… refusing to acknowledge the grim actuality that desires actually don’t come true.”
However I’d strongly push again on the concept a love of Disney renders folks faux or inauthentic in any significant approach.
As A.J. Wolfe argues in her 2025 e-book, “Disney Adults,” even probably the most passionate devotees resist easy categorization. None of them, she explains, appear to be working from their true selves and even attempting, within the slightest, to reside in an imaginary world.
In her e-book, Wolfe profiles Woman Chappelle, a British tattoo artist who relocates to San Diego, the place she completely inks Disney-themed tattoos. Then there’s Brandon, a Hollywood drag queen who designed a Carousel of Progress-themed kitchen in honor of the attraction that now resides at Disney’s Magic Kingdom in Orlando.
These individuals are consultant of just about all Disney Adults: They’re enthusiastic about Disney, however they’re additionally enthusiastic about tattooing and drag and myriad different pursuits.
For Disney Adults, Wolfe writes, an affection for the parks largely provides “additional coloration and brightness — perhaps definition, motivation, or inspiration if you happen to’re fortunate — to the complicated and evolving masterpiece that’s [their] life.”
And if that complexity applies to probably the most dedicated Disney followers, it’s that a lot tougher to forged informal guests in such a unfavorable mild.
If theme parks aren’t your factor, that’s completely fantastic. You possibly can have an exquisite life with out setting foot in EPCOT or the Animal Kingdom.
However Disney World has quite a lot of virtues that its critics usually miss.
I believe it’s a terrific place for folks of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to create priceless recollections collectively. Once I journey Tiana’s Bayou Adventure with my spouse and our intellectually disabled daughter, there’s a bit one thing for everybody: simply sufficient thrill and storytelling for the adults whereas not being overwhelming for my daughter. It’s a mix that may be troublesome to search out in lots of different locations.
Furthermore, as a result of we’re transported out of our every day routines, the parks can current shocking alternatives for reflection. I’ve thought quite a bit about cultural expectations round happiness whereas at Disney. Ought to I attempt to maximize my pleasure throughout this brief journey? Or just take every day because it comes? I’ve discovered to embrace the latter.
Sure, there are numerous individuals who merely need to use the worlds of Disney — theme park, movies or in any other case — to flee the grind of on a regular basis life. However is looking for such an escape a larger risk to authenticity than testing by enjoying video video games, watching sports, studying smutty novels or utilizing medication and alcohol?
Is it doable for folks to lose themselves in fantasy? After all — simply because it’s doable for anybody to lose themselves of their careers, relationships or hobbies. However in an age of curated social media accounts, influencer advertising and marketing and political doublespeak, the manufactured worlds of Disney may supply extra authenticity than you’d assume.
Adam Kadlac is Educating Professor of Philosophy at Wake Forest College and writer of “The Magic Kingdom and the Meaning of Life.” This text was produced in partnership with the Dialog.
