Pleasure Island (Pinocchio)
Encyclopedia
The Land of Toys is a fictional location in the novel The Adventures of Pinocchio. In the Disney film adaptation
of the novel, the land is renamed as Pleasure Island. The size and nature of such location is unclear (the Disney adaptation depicts it as an amusement park, whereas the novel implies it is at least as large as a township); the ambiguity in the original name (paese can mean country or land, but also town or village) adds to the confusion. Its real use for a slave trade.
Located in the fictional land of Cocagne
, Pleasure Island serves as a haven for wayward boys, allowing them to act as they please without recrimination. However, the truer and more sinister purpose of Pleasure Island is eventually revealed as it begins to physically transform the boys into donkey
s, apparently by means of a curse
.
tale with those of social critique. Boys are lured there by the promise of never having to go to school again and being able to spend their whole time having fun. Boys there play hide-and-seek, whistle, watch puppets in canvas theatres, play shuttlecock, bounce on balls, trundle hoops, and ride wooden horses. They never have to do any work or learn anything, and the graffiti on all the walls is proof of that. As a result, almost as a natural consequence, they become donkeys (in Italian culture, the donkey is symbol
ic of ignorance and stupidity).
When framed in the context of the late 1800s, the chapters set in the Land of Toys also serve as social commentary: abandoning school means securing oneself a future with no other chance to make a living but hard labor, and there are plenty of people (like the ruthless coachman) who will try and take advantage of that.
Pleasure Island in the Disney Film
The segment from Pleasure Island in the film version is much more of a morality tale. The boys who are taken to the island go voluntarily with the promise of fun and unlimited freedom, although it is implied that Pleasure Island has some sort of bad reputation despite its name because the Fox and the Cat react in horror at the name when they meet the Coachman at the inn and also the Fox and the Cat mention about a law about that place meaning the country outlaw Pleasure Island. While on the island, the boys are encouraged to commit acts of gluttony
, vandalism
, fight, drink beer
, smoke cigars, and gamble - all things that good little boys are not supposed to do. In short, the park was designed for boys to "make jackasses of themselves". The nature of the Coachman and of Pleasure Island itself is shown as more preternatural and inherently evil. The first real indication of this occurs while the boys indulge themselves; the Coachman orders his henchmen, who are shown as terrifying dark ape
-like silhouettes with no distinguishing features, to close and lock the entrance.
The transformation into a donkey is not instantaneous. When boys arrive on the island, they remain human for some time, as their "jackass" behavior must build up sufficiently for the curse to activate, before showing any signs of the curse changing them. The first indication is braying replacing the boy's normal laughter, followed by the growth of donkey ears and a tail. The head, torso, and extremities come next, after which the boy is then forced into a quadruped
ial stance. The final notable change is losing the ability to speak. Before the donkeys leave Pleasure Island, the Coachman checks them by asking their names to make sure they have lost their ability to vocalize, which signifies they are fully transformed. They probably retain human minds, as the non-vocal donkeys seem to understand the Coachman when he tests them, but most of them most likely have a tendency to go berserk immediately after transforming, indicated when almost all the attractions of Pleasure Island have been completely destroyed by the donkeys' insane behaviour.
When the Coachman tests out the donkeys, he does many things to them. The ones that can no longer vocalize (as in Lampwick's case) are stripped bare of their clothes, chucked into wooden crates and then sent on to salt mines or circus
es. The ones that can still talk (as in the case of one named Alexander) are taken back to a pen where other talking donkeys plead in vain for mercy. It is not clear what happens to them after this; the Coachman probably either has to either keep them on the island until they lose their vocalization or their death. Unlike in the original text, where the transformation would apparently automatically complete itself once it started, Pinocchio is able to get off the island with merely a donkey's ears and tail, lending further weight to the idea that the island itself is cursed.
In movie versions like The Adventures of Pinocchio made in 1996 and Geppetto made in 2000 the boys are turned into donkeys from going on an enchanted Roller Coaster in The Adventures of Pinocchio the roller coaster has a thountain with magical enchanted water that turns the boys into donkeys by drinking it where as in Geppetto the roller coaster is just a small short slow none water roller coaster that just goes through a tunnel and then turns the boys into donkeys
The 1940 Disney Version possibly also turns the bad boys into donkeys from going on roller coasters as there were roller coaster rides in Pleasure Island and other fair ground rides as well so it is possible that some of the boys turned into donkeys from going on the roller coaster and other fair ground rides as well from acting bad Lampwick how ever turns into a donkey after he drinks beer and Pinocchio who did not drink the beer still turned into a donkey from behaving bad
in The 2002 Italian Version and the 2008 British Version like in the original story book the boys turn into donkeys after they all go to sleep then when they wake up they have donkeys ears and tails and then the rest of their body starts to turn into that of a donkey
The name of the evil cursed place where the bad boys go to and get turned into donkeys has different names in The 1940 Disney Version and the 2000 film Geppetto the place is called Pleasure Island in The 1996 film The Adventures of Pinocchio the place is called Terra Magica in the 2002 Italian Version it is called Fun Forever Land and in the 2008 version like in the original book the place is called The Land of Toys
Pinocchio (1940 film)
Pinocchio is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the story The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. It is the second film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, and it was made after the success of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and was released to theaters by...
of the novel, the land is renamed as Pleasure Island. The size and nature of such location is unclear (the Disney adaptation depicts it as an amusement park, whereas the novel implies it is at least as large as a township); the ambiguity in the original name (paese can mean country or land, but also town or village) adds to the confusion. Its real use for a slave trade.
Located in the fictional land of Cocagne
Cockaigne
Cockaigne or Cockayne is a medieval mythical land of plenty, an imaginary place of extreme luxury and ease where physical comforts and pleasures are always immediately at hand and where the harshness of medieval peasant life does not exist...
, Pleasure Island serves as a haven for wayward boys, allowing them to act as they please without recrimination. However, the truer and more sinister purpose of Pleasure Island is eventually revealed as it begins to physically transform the boys into donkey
Donkey
The donkey or ass, Equus africanus asinus, is a domesticated member of the Equidae or horse family. The wild ancestor of the donkey is the African Wild Ass, E...
s, apparently by means of a curse
Curse
A curse is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to some other entity—one or more persons, a place, or an object...
.
The Land of Toys in the Novel
The original take to the Land of Toys mixes the aspects of a moralityMorality
Morality is the differentiation among intentions, decisions, and actions between those that are good and bad . A moral code is a system of morality and a moral is any one practice or teaching within a moral code...
tale with those of social critique. Boys are lured there by the promise of never having to go to school again and being able to spend their whole time having fun. Boys there play hide-and-seek, whistle, watch puppets in canvas theatres, play shuttlecock, bounce on balls, trundle hoops, and ride wooden horses. They never have to do any work or learn anything, and the graffiti on all the walls is proof of that. As a result, almost as a natural consequence, they become donkeys (in Italian culture, the donkey is symbol
Symbol
A symbol is something which represents an idea, a physical entity or a process but is distinct from it. The purpose of a symbol is to communicate meaning. For example, a red octagon may be a symbol for "STOP". On a map, a picture of a tent might represent a campsite. Numerals are symbols for...
ic of ignorance and stupidity).
When framed in the context of the late 1800s, the chapters set in the Land of Toys also serve as social commentary: abandoning school means securing oneself a future with no other chance to make a living but hard labor, and there are plenty of people (like the ruthless coachman) who will try and take advantage of that.
Pleasure Island in the Disney FilmPinocchio (1940 film)Pinocchio is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the story The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. It is the second film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, and it was made after the success of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and was released to theaters by...
The segment from Pleasure Island in the film version is much more of a morality tale. The boys who are taken to the island go voluntarily with the promise of fun and unlimited freedom, although it is implied that Pleasure Island has some sort of bad reputation despite its name because the Fox and the Cat react in horror at the name when they meet the Coachman at the inn and also the Fox and the Cat mention about a law about that place meaning the country outlaw Pleasure Island. While on the island, the boys are encouraged to commit acts of gluttonyGluttony
Gluttony, derived from the Latin gluttire meaning to gulp down or swallow, means over-indulgence and over-consumption of food, drink, intoxicants or wealth items to the point of extravagance or waste...
, vandalism
Vandalism
Vandalism is the behaviour attributed originally to the Vandals, by the Romans, in respect of culture: ruthless destruction or spoiling of anything beautiful or venerable...
, fight, drink beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
, smoke cigars, and gamble - all things that good little boys are not supposed to do. In short, the park was designed for boys to "make jackasses of themselves". The nature of the Coachman and of Pleasure Island itself is shown as more preternatural and inherently evil. The first real indication of this occurs while the boys indulge themselves; the Coachman orders his henchmen, who are shown as terrifying dark ape
Ape
Apes are Old World anthropoid mammals, more specifically a clade of tailless catarrhine primates, belonging to the biological superfamily Hominoidea. The apes are native to Africa and South-east Asia, although in relatively recent times humans have spread all over the world...
-like silhouettes with no distinguishing features, to close and lock the entrance.
The transformation into a donkey is not instantaneous. When boys arrive on the island, they remain human for some time, as their "jackass" behavior must build up sufficiently for the curse to activate, before showing any signs of the curse changing them. The first indication is braying replacing the boy's normal laughter, followed by the growth of donkey ears and a tail. The head, torso, and extremities come next, after which the boy is then forced into a quadruped
Quadruped
Quadrupedalism is a form of land animal locomotion using four limbs or legs. An animal or machine that usually moves in a quadrupedal manner is known as a quadruped, meaning "four feet"...
ial stance. The final notable change is losing the ability to speak. Before the donkeys leave Pleasure Island, the Coachman checks them by asking their names to make sure they have lost their ability to vocalize, which signifies they are fully transformed. They probably retain human minds, as the non-vocal donkeys seem to understand the Coachman when he tests them, but most of them most likely have a tendency to go berserk immediately after transforming, indicated when almost all the attractions of Pleasure Island have been completely destroyed by the donkeys' insane behaviour.
When the Coachman tests out the donkeys, he does many things to them. The ones that can no longer vocalize (as in Lampwick's case) are stripped bare of their clothes, chucked into wooden crates and then sent on to salt mines or circus
Circus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
es. The ones that can still talk (as in the case of one named Alexander) are taken back to a pen where other talking donkeys plead in vain for mercy. It is not clear what happens to them after this; the Coachman probably either has to either keep them on the island until they lose their vocalization or their death. Unlike in the original text, where the transformation would apparently automatically complete itself once it started, Pinocchio is able to get off the island with merely a donkey's ears and tail, lending further weight to the idea that the island itself is cursed.
Trivia
- The Pleasure Island theme was taken up again by science fictionScience fictionScience fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
author Cory DoctorowCory DoctorowCory Efram Doctorow is a Canadian-British blogger, journalist, and science fiction author who serves as co-editor of the blog Boing Boing. He is an activist in favour of liberalising copyright laws and a proponent of the Creative Commons organization, using some of their licences for his books...
in his short story "Return to Pleasure Island", where it is told from the perspective of cotton-candy-vending GolemGolemIn Jewish folklore, a golem is an animated anthropomorphic being, created entirely from inanimate matter. The word was used to mean an amorphous, unformed material in Psalms and medieval writing....
s. - The 1990 film Teenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (film)Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is a 1990 American live-action film adaptation of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise directed by Steve Barron. The film was followed by three sequels: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze in 1991, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III in 1993, and...
appears to pay tribute to Pleasure Island by showing an underground lair with drinking, smoking, gamblingGamblingGambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...
, and showing wayward teenagers engaging in more modern forms of fun such as blasting offensive music and playing video games. The only skills that are taught are martial arts and how to move stolen goods. The Shredder's lieutenant, Tatsu, is ruthless in his martial arts classes, but otherwise not bothering the teenagers when they are not learning fighting and crime. When one kid bumped into him, Tatsu clearly brushed it off as an honest mistake and simply said to the boy "Go, play." - Pleasure Island is featured in the 2000 TV musical GeppettoGeppetto (TV musical)Geppetto is a 2000 made-for-television remake of the popular children’s book The Adventures of Pinocchio starring Drew Carey and Julia Louis-Dreyfus...
. After Pinocchio escapes from Stromboli's cruelty he hitches a ride on a stagecoach full of boys to Pleasure Island. In Pleasure Island boys are seen breaking windows, eating cakes, pies, and candy, playing in the mud, and running wildly. Some can even be seen gambling. In this version Pleasure Island is not cursed and doesn't cause the boys to turn into donkeys like the Disney film's version. Instead a roller coaster, the island's main attraction, is what causes the boys to transform into donkeys.
- Pleasure Island is shown once more in The Adventures of Pinocchio. After Pinocchio's initial adventures, he ends up wandering in the woods where he encounters Volpe and Felinet who trick him out of his money. After this betrayal, he begins to wonder if he will ever become a "real boy," but he is then lured onto a coach driven by a sinister-looking coachman, who takes him to Pleasure Island with a load of other boys (including Lampwick, Pinocchio's friend). The Island is named Terra Magica. Here, Terra Magica is owned by the evil Lorenzini, who is luring the boys to the place with promises of fun and then turning them into donkeys through the Island's cursed water. Lorenzini knows all about the curse and is using it for his own profit. Lorenzini's evil schemes are thwarted when Pinocchio reveals Lorenzini's plans and encourages Lampwick (turned into a donkey) to knock Lorenzini into the Island's cursed water.
In movie versions like The Adventures of Pinocchio made in 1996 and Geppetto made in 2000 the boys are turned into donkeys from going on an enchanted Roller Coaster in The Adventures of Pinocchio the roller coaster has a thountain with magical enchanted water that turns the boys into donkeys by drinking it where as in Geppetto the roller coaster is just a small short slow none water roller coaster that just goes through a tunnel and then turns the boys into donkeys
The 1940 Disney Version possibly also turns the bad boys into donkeys from going on roller coasters as there were roller coaster rides in Pleasure Island and other fair ground rides as well so it is possible that some of the boys turned into donkeys from going on the roller coaster and other fair ground rides as well from acting bad Lampwick how ever turns into a donkey after he drinks beer and Pinocchio who did not drink the beer still turned into a donkey from behaving bad
in The 2002 Italian Version and the 2008 British Version like in the original story book the boys turn into donkeys after they all go to sleep then when they wake up they have donkeys ears and tails and then the rest of their body starts to turn into that of a donkey
The name of the evil cursed place where the bad boys go to and get turned into donkeys has different names in The 1940 Disney Version and the 2000 film Geppetto the place is called Pleasure Island in The 1996 film The Adventures of Pinocchio the place is called Terra Magica in the 2002 Italian Version it is called Fun Forever Land and in the 2008 version like in the original book the place is called The Land of Toys