The Lion King was intended for families and little kids. Disney introduces the topic of death in a softer manner by imitating Hamlet. Children deal with grief differently than the typical adult. For example, in a college article, three students touch on Disney’s portrayal of death and how this is beneficial to a younger audience, “Fairy tales often contain non-threatening references to death, which makes them appropriate for use with children. Fairy tales, many of which have inspired many Disney films, present interesting and somewhat controversial portrayals of death and grieving.” (Dobson, pg.4) Dobson makes a valid argument on how deaths such as Mufasa in The Lion King help give children an understanding of what death really is by basing the movie off of Hamlet without using Shakespeare’s original gruesome …show more content…
“When a child is about 5, he can learn about empathy by talking about hypothetical problems. How would you feel if someone took a toy away from you? How would your friend feel if someone took a toy away from him? By the time a child is 8, he can grapple with more complex moral decisions in which he must realize that someone else’s feelings may be different from his own.”(Kutner, Empathy) This example shows how children who are just learning how to be compassionate are more likely to be forgiving whereas an adolescent may hold a grudge because they've experienced real hurt and betrayal between their families and their peers. Hamlet is an excellent example of someone who isn't willing to be forgiving, and Simba is a character that children can learn empathy and forgiveness