Examining Parallels Between Disney’s Portrayal of Deception in Pinocchio and Deceptive Behavior in Children

Abstract

For decades, parents have been using Disney’s Pinocchio as a parenting tool to teach children to never lie and in doing so, it has now become a cultural monolith. Despite this, experts reveal that stories like Pinocchio that punish dishonesty are rather ineffective at instilling honesty in children when compared to stories that praise truth-telling. This paper examines the reasoning behind this finding, delving deeper into the specific actions of each character by comparing behaviors exhibited by dishonest characters and behaviors exhibited by real-life children. Through a film analysis method based on a pre-made criteria compiled with visual, auditory, and narration centered indicators of deceptive behavior, three total watches were completed, with each watch holding a different purpose. Though the paper’s initial hypothesis is that children were imitating the exact behaviors that they saw in the animation, the results pointed to a different conclusion: Pinocchio introduces children to the idea of vulnerability to outside influences and thus, children are learning to become more observative of the deceptive behaviors occurring in their surroundings. When they begin to notice adults telling lies without any negative consequences, they imitate these actions and their moral compasses are overridden. This paper serves as an introduction into the relationship between dishonesty and children and spearheads future research on the effectiveness of the methods parents employ to teach children life lessons.