be examined more closely. It serves as an excellent example of the general
inclination to isolate Disney from critical commentary.
Disney’s caricature of a Jewish peddler stands out for the way it mirrors
the anti-Semitic propaganda coming out of Germany in the same time
period. Disney would not allow a screenshot of the original animation of
the wolf as Jewish peddler to appear in this book (or anywhere else, for
that matter). This refusal to allow reproduction of the image protects their
corporate image, but it also stifles discussion about the role of animated
film in the socialization of children and the history of anti-Semitism in the
U.S.^8
It is likely that many younger readers are not familiar with the visual
stereotypes that were so common prior to World War II. These images
include features which are visual shorthand for Jew, a context that is
provided by the poster in Figure 7.1 The poster was designed to advertise
an exhibition called The Eternal Jew (Der ewige Jude) in Germany in the
late 1930s (Hippler et al. 1940, directors).