本論文審視米老鼠為一卡通角色及一卡通系列，從一九二八年米老鼠誕生之際到四零年代初期，形象轉變較趨於固定之時，這段期間的轉型，來呈現不單單早期米老鼠角色形象與今日我們所熟悉的有所不同，而且前後卡通系列也因不同的本質訴求和魅力所在而有明顯的差異，我也呈現這種轉型來自數個原因及影響。在第一章我舉例說明米老鼠外表上、與其他卡通角色的關係，及與他所處的卡通世界之間的關係此三方面顯著的改變，來論證早期米老鼠以佛洛依德的概念來講，是「享樂原則」(pleasure principle)的化身；而於三零年代後期與四零年代初期所出現的「成熟的」米老鼠，卻是佛洛依德所說的「現實原則」(reality principle)的化身，也就是成為一個執行紀律的力量，企圖壓抑那些原本及曾經表現在米老鼠身上的慾望。
在第二章中引述Norman Klein以及Steven Watts各自對迪士尼動畫美學風格改變的研究，我指出迪士尼從視覺上的變形與即興玩樂，變成如Steven Watts所說的「維多利亞風的感情寫實主義」(Victorian sentimental realism)，這樣的轉變是一個逐步的過程，需要捨棄歌舞雜耍表演那樣的下半身玩笑與幽默、以及爵士樂那樣的即興玩樂，而改偏好有組織、有系統的體育活動與演奏音樂這樣的文化形式與行為，來強調紀律為一社會化的力量。
在第三章中，我描述並舉例說明各種促使迪士尼及他的動畫師們改變這個卡通角色及卡通風格的原因及背後的影響。其中最主要的原因是，華特迪士尼本身希望提升其動畫公司的地位，並與好萊塢中其他一流的電影公司競爭，以及一九三四年所推行的電影審查法規Hays Code的重要影響，雖然此法規的訂定不是直接針對動畫產業，其嚴格的規定仍然對給予米老鼠卡通廣大魅力的特色多所規範；在我的結論裡，顯示迪士尼與其動畫師們不是盲目地遵守法規，而是試圖以角色調換、掩飾及情節架構等數種策略方式，來保留卡通中Hays Code所欲審查的部分。

In this thesis, I investigate Mickey Mouse as both a character and a cartoon series during the period of his birth in 1928 through the early 40s, when his character became relatively fixed, to show that not only was the early Mickey Mouse a very different character from the one we are familiar with today but that the cartoons themselves were quite different in the nature of their appeal and that there were a number of causes and underlying forces for this transformation. In Chapter One, I exemplify the dramatic changes in Mickey’s physical appearance, relationship to other characters and to the world in which he lives. I argue that while the early Mickey was essentially a cartoon embodiment of what Freud terms the “pleasure principle,” the “mature” Mickey who emerged in the late 30s and early 40s is a virtual caricature of what Freud calls the “reality principle,” that is to say, a disciplinarian force that seeks to repress the very desires it once embodied.
Drawing on Norman Klein’s and Steven Watts’ respective studies of the transformations in Disney’s animation aesthetics, in Chapter Two I show that the Disney Studio’s turn from visual metamorphoses and improvisational play to what Watts calls “Victorian sentimental realism” was a gradual process that entailed the relinquishment of vaudeville-based lower-body jokes and Jazz-based improvisational play in favor of cultural forms and practices such as organized sports and concert music that emphasized discipline as a socializing force.
In my third chapter, I describe and exemplify the various causes and underlying forces that encouraged Disney and his animators to transform both the character and the cartoon. Chief among these were Disney’s desire to promote his studio and compete with other major film studios in Hollywood and the enforcement, in 1934, of the Hays Code, whose draconian provisions, while not directly targeting at the animation industry, sought to censor the very characteristics that had given the Mickey Mouse cartoons such wide appeal. In my conclusion chapter, I show that Disney and his animators did not blindly comply with the Code, but sought to retain aspects of the cartoon the Hays Code was designed to censor by deploying various strategies of transposition, disguise and framing.

Abstract…………………………………………………………………………..i
Chinese Abstract………………………………………………………………...iii
Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………...iv
Introduction……………………………………………………………………...1
Chapter One: Recovering the Early Mickey………………………………..……4
Chapter Two: From Vaudeville and Verfremdung to Victorian Sentimental Realism: Mickey Mouse Grows Old…………………………....20
Chapter Three: The Formative Influences Underlying the Post-Modernist Mickey…………………………………………...…………….40
Conclusion………………………………………………………………………58
Works Cited……………………………………………………………………..63
Selective Mickey Mouse Filmography…………………………………………66
Other Selective Filmography…………………………………………………...67
Appendix………………………………………………………………………..68

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Selective Mickey Mouse Filmography
Barnyard Olympics. Dir. Wilfred Jackson. Columbia Pictures, 1932.
Fantasia. Dir. Ben Sharpsteen, Bill Roberts, Ford Beebe, Hamilton Luske, James
Algar, Jim Handley, Norman Ferguson, Paul Satterfield, Samuel Armstrong, T. Hee, and Wilfred Jackson. RKO Radio Pictures, 1940.
Gallopin’ Gaucho. Dir. Walt Disney. Celebrity Productions, 1928.
Lend A Paw. Dir. Clyde Geronomi. RKO Radio Pictures, 1941.
Mickey in Arabia. Dir. Wilfred Jackson. United Artists Pictures, 1932.
Mickey’s Birthday Party. Dir. Riley Thompson. RKO Radio Pictures, 1942.
Mickey’s Man Friday. Dir. Dave Hand. United Artists Pictures, 1935.
Orphan’s Benefit. Dir. Bert Gillett. United Artists Pictures, 1934.
Plane Crazy. Dir. Walt Disney. Celebrity Productions, 1928.
Society Dog Show. Dir. Bill Roberts. RKO Radio Pictures, 1939.
Steamboat Willie. Dir. Walt Disney. Celebrity Productions, 1928.
The Band Concert. Dir. Wilfred Jackson. United Artists Pictures, 1935.
The Barn Dance. Dir. Walt Disney. Celebrity Productions, 1928.
The Birthday Party. Dir. Bert Gillett. Columbia Pictures, 1931.
The Jazz Fool. Dir. Walt Disney. Celebrity Productions, 1929.
The Little Whirlwind. Dir. Riley Thompson. RKO Radio Pictures, 1941.
When The Cat’s Away. Dir. Walt Disney. Celebrity Productions, 1929.
Other Selective Filmography
A Day At The Races. Dir. Sam Wood. Perf. Chico Marx, Groucho Marx, and
Harpo Marx. MGM, 1937.
Betty Boop’s Bamboo Isle. Dir. Dave Fleischer. Paramount Pictures, 1932.
Flowers and Trees. Dir. Burt Gillett. United Artists Pictures, 1932.
House Cleaning Blues. Dir. Dave Fleischer. Paramount Pictures, 1937.
Pinocchio. Dir. Ben Sharpsteen, Bill Roberts, Hamilton Luske, Jack Kinney,
Norman Ferguson, T. Hee, and Wilfred Jackson. RKO Radio Pictures, 1940.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Dir. Ben Sharpsteen, David Hand, Larry
Morey, Perce Pearce, Wilfred Jackson, and William Cottrell. RKO Radio Pictures, 1937.
The Three Cabelleros. Dir. Norman Ferguson. RKO Radio Pictures, 1944.
Top Hat. Dir. Mark Sandrich. Perf. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. RKO
Radio Pictures, 1935.