Zootopia tells the story of a bunny named Judy Hopps, a police officer at Zootopia. Once upon a time, ZPD—Zootopia Police Department was tasked with finding missing animals. However, she only got the job of being a meter maid. In carrying out her job as a meter maid, Judy gets information that there has been a robbery. Eager to prove herself, Judy chases a ferret across Zootopia. Distracted by the pursuit, Judy's duty as a meter maid was abandoned, and Chief Bogo reprimanded her. Suddenly, Mrs. Otterton came in, begging for help finding her husband. Judy offered her services. After that, she feels that Nick Wilde knows a lot about Mr. Otterton's disappearance, and Judy invites him to join the investigation. Judy and Nick launch their action and find all the missing animals that have gone wild, including Mr. Otterton. A chase ensues, which leads them to a museum. Ms. Bellwether reveals herself to be the true antagonist of Zootopia, calling for the imprisonment of all predators. Her confession was recorded, and she was arrested.
The protagonist of this film is Judy Hopps. She is an enthusiastic optimistic bunny who wants nothing more than to be a member of the ZPD. Together with Nick Wilde, they solve the case of savaged animals in Zootopia. Meanwhile, the antagonist of this film is Dawn Bellwether, the assistant mayor of Zootopia. Bellwether is a hidden antagonist because, at the beginning of the story, she looks friendly and supports the protagonist in eradicating the case of savaged animals. After all, she is the mastermind behind the case.
Zootopia reflects the problems of sexism and racism in society by using the contrast between female and male animals, especially in the field of work. Despite the fact that female animals are given the same amount of work as male animals, they are constantly dismissed and mistreated. An example that can be taken is Judy Hopps, the main character. When Judy fulfills her dream in Zootopia and becomes a member of the police force, she looks like a dwarf who has fallen into a world of giants. All of the other cops in the office were huge, powerful predators, and they were all male. Judy's outward appearance as a female prey gave her boss the impression that she was too small, too weak, and too emotional to be a real cop, even though she had proven her worth by graduating as the top student of the police academy. Because of that, Chief Bogo only let her work as a meter maid. This can be seen from the quotation below:
HOPPS: So I can handle one. You probably forgot, but I was top of my class at the academy.
BOGO: Didn’t forget. Just don’t care.
HOPPS: Sir, I’m not just some “token” bunny.
BOGO: Well, then writing a hundred tickets a day should be easy.
The above statement is very sexist and discriminatory at the same time. To achieve the same level of acceptance, Judy has to work harder than the predatory male cops. This describes the real-life experiences of women in the field of work. At the end of the film, the plot shows that as the first female cop, Judy is finally accepted by society. Her experience demonstrates both the sexism and racism that exist in contemporary society and the ideal social conditions that all women desire.
In addition to racism and sexism, there is a relationship between minority rights and power. According to Foucault (1991), the right and the power of speech are inextricably linked. Without rights, a person lacks the ability to speak. They could only obtain knowledge determined by those with the ability to speak; however, because they lack the ability to define themselves, they are forced to live by others’ definitions. Thus, rights and power are inextricably linked.
Assistant Mayor Bellwether is the best embodiment of Foucault's words in this film. As a female prey, she is marginalized and discriminated against by the mayor, a lion named Lionheart. She performed the duties of Lionheart's secretary, and her words lacked authority. However, after stealing Lionheart's job as mayor through a conspiracy, Bellwether gains power for prey despite the fact that he must discriminate against all predators. Bellwether demonstrates that power and rights are inextricably linked. Due to the fact that she did not have equal rights in her previous employment, she lacked the ability to defend her rights. Bellwether's experience demonstrates that the process of generating social problems is a paradox in real life. It is critical to identify the connections between various social problems in order to solve them holistically.
For the end conclusion, Zootopia has a happy ending. The city’s harmony has been restored, and discrimination has been reduced. The film ends with Juddy’s monologue, “Real life is messy. We all have limitations. We all make mistakes. Which means? Hey, glass half full!? we all have a lot in common… Try to make the world a better place. Look inside yourself and recognize that change starts with you. It starts with me. It starts with all of us.” In Zootopia, Disney not only employs allegory to foreshadow real-life issues but also to propose solutions to these issues. Disney concluded that solving sexism or racism is not tricky if everyone has an open mind; the paradox will be broken, and the world will be better.
REFERENCES
Foucault, M. (1995). Discipline and Punish. Vintage. https://doi.org/10.1604/9780679752554 Zootopia Movie Script. (2016). Retrieved April 15, 2022, from http://www.cinefile.biz/script/zootropolis.pd
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