An Essay Worth Fighting For:
A Structural Analysis of Mulan directed by Tony Bancroft and Barry Cook In the film Mulan directed by Tony Bancroft and Barry Cook, irony and symbolism are used to create a theme of hope and change. Irony is shown in the way that at the beginning of the movie Mulan deceives many officers and impersonates a soldier when she joins the army, but in the end is celebrated and honoured for saving all of China. Symbolism is used in the cherry blossoms that symbolize feminine strength and the celebration of life. Structural theory examines how an author or director builds a film or book in and why this matters (Kennedy). It is important to examine this film with a structural lens because it reveals hidden meanings and symbols that would not have been shown otherwise.…show more content… This is ironic because in the beginning of the movie women were not allowed to join the army and when they found out that Mulan was a woman and that she had impersonated an officer and lied to them they were very angry with her. She was sentenced to death, but spared by one of her commanding officers and banished to her home instead. When the emperor meets Mulan he says “You stole your father's armor, ran away from home, impersonated a soldier, deceived your commanding officer, dishonored the Chinese Army, destroyed my palace, and... you have saved us all,” (Bancroft & Cook). This quote sums up the irony in this movie because it describes all the things that Mulan has done wrong and the ends with “you have saved us all,” (Bancroft & Cook). This shows a theme of change because it points to acceptance of the female warrior as opposed to the originally all-male
