Mickey Mouse heads East
Posted by Sophie Morris
Top-secret talks have been going on between China and the US for at least a decade now. And they’re nothing to do with trade agreements, environmental policy or political prisoners.
Absolutely not – Beijing has been wrangling with none other than Mickey Mouse, over opening a Walt Disney theme park in mainland China.
Finally it seems that Disney’s been given the go-ahead. Has China finally capitulated to an invasion of US culture? McDonald’s set the precedent back in 1992 and is hugely popular over there, especially among the spoilt only children of China’s massive middle class.
The park is to be built in the Pudong region surrounding Shanghai, a glitzy commercial city which exemplifies the fast-paced consumerism of China’s new-found wealth.
Is Disney poking fun at the ancient country? After all, its characters don’t quite fit the image of Communist China. Back in the ‘50s and ‘60s, plenty of Disney stories were cautionary tales against the dangers of Communism. They don’t call it “Mickey Mouse culture” for nothing.
And now Disney is through the door, the path will be much easier to negotiate for other western entertainment giants.
The news might come as a disappointment to travellers who enjoy visiting spots of the world which have managed to resist wholesale Americanisation, but I suspect China is having the last laugh in turning the tables on its old foe – with the arrival of Disney, it will be the Chinese consuming all the American goods, rather than vice versa.
Will you be visiting China's Disney Theme Park? Or is this yet another example of crass cultural imperialism? Let us know by commenting below
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