Disneology 2: Imagine that You Were God

ASSIGNMENT #2: VISIT THE ATTRACTION “WALT DISNEY: ONE MAN’S DREAM” AT DISNEY’S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS THEME PARK. MAKE A LIST OF THE INVENTIONS, INNOVATIONS, AND “CREATIONS” OF WALT DISNEY. WHAT, DO YOU THINK, IS THE DRIVING MOTIVATION FOR THE MAN WHO CREATED THE DISNEY EMPIRE? WHAT IS THE GLUE THAT HOLDS TOGETHER EVERYTHING HE BUILT IN HIS LIFETIME? WHY DID HE DO ALL THESE THINGS?

What would you DO, if you were God?
• If you were unrestricted in terms of resources (you owned everything),
• If you were unrestricted in terms of power (you were omnipotent),
• If you were unrestricted by time (you were eternal),
• If you were unrestricted by knowledge (you knew everything; you were omniscient),
What would you do?

In this commentary series, I am using Walt Disney as my representative anecdote. Walt had restrictions in resources; he was nearly bankrupt several times. He had restrictions in power, time, and knowledge; yet, he DID something. What did he do and why did he do it? Kenneth Burke offers a way of analyzing Walt Disney’s motives: Burke’s Pentad. I devote a chapter of my book Implicit Rhetoric: Kenneth Burke’s Extension of Aristotle’s Concept of Entelechy to explaining how the Pentad works, but (very simply) it proposes that human behavior be viewed as Drama. Every drama requires ACTS that must be performed within SCENES. The acts are performed by AGENTS who use certain tools or methods (AGENCIES) to perform the acts. These four terms are easily remembered by thinking of the game “Clue.” The ACT in Clue is given; it was the “killing of Mr. Body.” Players must determine the AGENT. Was it Colonel Mustard, Miss Peacock, Professor Plum? They must determine what AGENCY was used by the agent—a knife, lead pipe, rope, revolver, wrench, etc. The players must also determine the SCENE in which the killing takes place. Was Mr. Body killed in the kitchen, conservatory, ballroom, study, or library? What is not included in the game of Clue is the PURPOSE. Why did Colonel Mustard kill Mr. Body in the kitchen with the knife? Was Mrs. Mustard cheating on her husband with Mr. Body? Was Mr. Body stealing from or blackmailing Colonel Mustard? Did Mr. Body attack Colonel Mustard, thus forcing Mustard to kill Body in self-defense? Consistency demands an answer. Drama demands that, in the final analysis, we understand how all parts of the drama fit together.

Consider the accomplishments of Walt’s life as one primary ACT. Walt’s consummate act was the production of the most successful family entertainment entity in the world. You listed the elements of this consummate act-- his inventions, innovations, and “creations”—in your completion of Assignment #2. What do all of these elements have in common?

In what SCENE did Walt’s act take place? The answer to this question is two-fold. There was Scene 1—the circumstances that prompted Walt to produce his empire. This scene included personal, family, and national hardships described in the film you viewed at the conclusion of your visit to “Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream.” Scene 2 is the scene Walt personally produced—Disneyland, Walt Disney World, the various motion pictures, etc. Producing Scene 2 involved, technically, several of Walt’s individual ACTS.

What sort of AGENT was Walt? While his theme parks prohibited drinking, Walt personally drank too much. While his movies are usually rated G, his own language would have often earned him an R rating. While his Pinocchio character eschewed drinking and smoking, whiskey and chain-smoking are the agencies that killed Walt. He once remarked, "I know drinking and smoking are sins because you aren't taking care of the body God gave you." Nevertheless, he never changed his behavior. Walt, however, should not be reduced (as an agent) to his vices or his virtues. Consider what his unique character was like (as in a drama). Our goal is not to view Walt as a god, but only to consider how elaborate and consistent God’s creation would be by comparing it with the elaborate-yet-consistent inventions and innovations of the genius Walt Disney. We should consider what type of human would do the things that Walt did. There is an AGENT-ACT ratio to consider. What kinds of agents perform what kinds of acts?

Technology was the AGENCY used most by Walt. Other primary agencies were classical music and classic literature. Motion pictures had been around for awhile, but no one had used high quality artistry and combined it with motion pictures and classic literature to produce something like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. While the technology always seemed to be cutting edge, Walt did not pursue technology for technology’s sake.

So, why did Walt do what he did? What was his PURPOSE? According to Walt Disney, his dream of Disneyland was prompted by his social nature (a nature which, incidentally, biblical texts also impute to God). Walt cites as his motive for creating Disneyland his experience with his own children. He found himself taking the children to a park, and then sitting idly on the sidelines while his children played. He thought it would be wonderful if there were a Scene in which adults and children (Agents) could do things together (Act). He therefore used technology, money, and Imagineering (Agencies) to create Disneyland—his new Scene. Why? He (Agent) created (Act) Disneyland (Scene) with money, technology, and Imagineering (Agencies) in order that families could socialize (Purpose). He wanted adults and children to do happy things together.

The point of this commentary, however, is to imagine what would motivate God, not Walt Disney. The first chapter of Genesis indicates the prime Agent WHO was acting—God/Elohim. The same chapter states WHAT the Judeo-Christian God DID (Act). He created the heavens and the Earth and all that dwell on Earth. Chapter 1 indicates HOW God did what He did. He used spoken Word (Agency). Chapter 1 describes the WHERE, the Scene into which God brought order—formlessness and void (the Tohu and Bohu of the Hebrew text). The second chapter of Genesis offers a glimpse into WHY God did this act. Apparently, it was his social nature (Purpose). We see a picture of God walking with Adam and Eve in the cool of the evening. We see God asking Adam to be his collaborator. Adam is invited to name the animals God created. We see God understanding that Adam, himself, was lonely. He needed a companion, Eve. We see God as a parent figure, setting limitations. We see Him disappointed when his newly-formed creatures-in-His-own-image distrust Him and violate the limitations He set. Much later in the Bible, John expresses God’s purpose in one of the most famous verses in the New Testament—John 3:16. “For God so LOVED the world, that He gave his only begotten son . . .”

So, that’s the Biblical account. What kind of Agent does what kind of Act? Imagine that you were God. What would you DO?