Her animated domain is devoid of references to social class, labor, or a currency-based economy.īut in reality, Dora is less a global citizen than a global commodity, a marketing dream of multicultural merchandise that simultaneously appeals to Anglo and Latino parents and children. Throughout her adventures, Dora enjoys an unusual geographic mobility, crossing landscapes but never distinct borders, always returning home rather than staying somewhere new. Not only is Dora unthreatening to Anglo audiences because she is a child, her cinnamon complexion and straight hair reflect European ancestry rather than indigenous and African roots. Because Dora is not identified as specifically Mexican or Salvadoran, Puerto Rican or Peruvian, she exists outside of historical and political realities-including the debates about undocumented immigrants that have demonized Latino people in the United States. In an essay titled “Dora the Explorer, Constructing 'Latinidades' and the Politics of Global Citizenship,” she argues that the kids' show creates a monolithic Latino/a identity that appeals to the dominant culture (particularly white parents). Not so, according to Nicole Guidotti-Hernández, assistant professor of women's studies at the University of Arizona. And if she captures a few estrellas along the way, at least they seem happy to aid with her adventure-happier, presumably, than the natives captured by the conquistadors were.īecause Dora's gender and age never deter her from taking on a challenge, she might seem a far better role model than my generation's Barbie. But Dora isn't pillaging, she's only returning toys to their rightful owners.
Her name-a shortened form of exploradora-and her cartographic skills tie her to the era of exploration when indigenous people and their multiracial offspring were subject to foreign rule. Short, broad, brown-skinned, and Spanish-speaking, Dora is phenotypically and culturally a mestiza (racially mixed) revision of the Spanish conquistadors who invaded and pillaged the Americas. She and Boots dance and sing “We Did It!/¡ Lo hicimos!,” the jubilant song of self-affirmation that ends each episode.
She then makes her way through a jungle, eventually arriving at a neo-Mayan Lost City hidden behind a curtain that lifts only when Dora leads the viewer in, calling “ Arriba!”-the Spanish word for “up.” Once inside the Lost City, Dora reclaims Osito and her friends' missing toys. The first landmark Dora reaches on her journey is a Mesoamerican-style pyramid where she must complete basic counting and arithmetic problems.
She's helped along the way by her sidekick (a monkey named Boots), her trusty map, and a group of magical stars she and Boots catch. In “City of Lost Toys,” a typical episode, Dora sets out to find her missing teddy bear, Osito, and other toys her friends have lost. Dora the Explorer, eponymous Latina star of the animated Nickelodeon series, is a bilingual problem solver who confidently traverses unknown territory in every episode.
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