If you\u2019ve ever expressed even a passing desire to visit Disneyland in Anaheim or Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., you may have had friends who raised their eyebrows, groaned or even sneered.<\/p>\n
The heart of their criticism isn\u2019t just that they think Disney is for kids, or that it\u2019s so prohibitively expensive. It\u2019s what I call the \u201cauthenticity objection\u201d \u2014 the belief that there\u2019s something fundamentally wrong with visits to theme parks like the Magic Kingdom because they occur in a wholly manufactured environment. The artificial mountains and rivers, the rides that provide nothing more than mindless distraction, the \u201ccast members\u201d dressed up as characters.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s all so fake.<\/p>\n
While some express this view in jest<\/a>, others believe the false environments border on a cultural abomination. One online forum explicitly cites<\/a> the manufactured nature of Disney parks as a reason not to go, noting that the \u201csmiling staff, the piped-in music, the perfect landscaping\u201d can feel \u201ccreepy and overly controlled.\u201d<\/p>\n Journalist EJ Dickson, herself a Disney fan, admits that visitors to the parks<\/a> \u201cwillingly spend thousands of dollars on an authentic emotional experience that they know, at least on some level, isn\u2019t really authentic at all.\u201d And a popular Trip Advisor review<\/a> dismisses Disney World as \u201ca hot, commercialized, fake experience.\u201d<\/p>\n But as a philosopher<\/a> who recently published a book, \u201cThe Magic Kingdom and the Meaning of Life<\/a>,\u201d I find criticisms of the parks as fake to be a bit difficult to understand.<\/p>\n Marketing professors George Newman and Rosanna Smith note<\/a> that philosophers have tended to think about authenticity through the lens of whether \u201centities are what they are purported to be.\u201d Apply that standard to the worlds of Disney: Do they present themselves as anything other than Disney-themed amusement parks?<\/p>\n There are legitimate reasons to complain<\/a> about the authenticity of some experiences. If you buy a ticket to a Van Gogh exhibit, you could rightfully complain if you discover only reproductions on display. The fact that you hadn\u2019t been able to tell the difference while viewing the paintings wouldn\u2019t matter. By contrast, Disney attractions don\u2019t pretend to be anything other than what they are.<\/p>\n When people at Disney\u2019s Hollywood Studios ride Mickey and Minnie\u2019s Runaway Railway<\/a>, they know they\u2019re not actually on a runaway train being incompetently driven by a talking canine named Goofy. If Disney had marketed the attraction as something else \u2014 say, an Amtrak trip for kids \u2014 perhaps there would be grounds for complaining.<\/p>\n If the initial form of the authenticity objection is relatively easy to handle, another concern lurks in the vicinity: The idea that Disney fans are somehow inauthentic, due to their willingness to turn themselves over to the trappings of an artificial world.<\/p>\n The precise nature of this concern is difficult to characterize. But it involves the belief that people who spend a lot of time in manufactured environments tend to delude themselves in ways that evade understanding and engaging with their true selves. Terms like \u201cexistential authenticity<\/a>\u201d or \u201cself-authenticity<\/a>\u201d seem to capture what\u2019s at stake.<\/p>\n This supposed connection between the fake world of Disney and the corruption of one\u2019s authentic self is on full display in descriptions of so-called \u201cDisney Adults.\u201d<\/p>\n As Dickson characterizes this view in Rolling Stone<\/a>, \u201cbeing a Disney fan in adulthood is to profess to being nothing less than an uncritical bubblehead ensconced in one\u2019s own privilege, suspended in a state of permanent adolescence\u2026 refusing to acknowledge the grim reality that dreams really don\u2019t come true.\u201d<\/p>\n But I would strongly push back on the idea that a love of Disney renders people fake or inauthentic in any meaningful way.<\/p>\n As A.J. Wolfe argues in her 2025 book, \u201cDisney Adults<\/a>,\u201d even the most passionate devotees resist simple categorization. None of them, she explains, seem to be running from their true selves or even trying, in the slightest, to live in an imaginary world.<\/p>\n In her book, Wolfe profiles Lady Chappelle, a British tattoo artist who relocates to San Diego, where she exclusively inks Disney-themed tattoos. Then there\u2019s Brandon, a Hollywood drag queen who designed a Carousel of Progress-themed kitchen in honor of the attraction that now resides<\/a> at Disney\u2019s Magic Kingdom in Orlando.<\/p>\n These people are representative of pretty much all Disney Adults: They\u2019re passionate about Disney, but they\u2019re also passionate about tattooing and drag and myriad other pursuits.<\/p>\n For Disney Adults, Wolfe writes, an affection for the parks mostly adds \u201cextra color and brightness \u2014 maybe definition, motivation, or inspiration if you\u2019re lucky \u2014 to the complex and evolving masterpiece that is [their] life.\u201d<\/p>\n And if that complexity applies to the most committed Disney fans, it\u2019s that much harder to cast casual visitors in such a negative light.<\/p>\n If theme parks aren\u2019t your thing, that\u2019s perfectly fine. You can have a wonderful life without setting foot in EPCOT or the Animal Kingdom.<\/p>\n But Disney World has a number of virtues that its critics often miss.<\/p>\n I think it\u2019s a great place for people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities<\/a> to create valuable memories together. When I ride Tiana\u2019s Bayou Adventure<\/a> with my wife and our intellectually disabled daughter, there\u2019s a little something for everyone: just enough thrill and storytelling for the adults while not being overwhelming for my daughter. It\u2019s a combination that can be difficult to find in many other places.<\/p>\n Moreover, because we are transported out of our daily routines, the parks can present surprising opportunities for reflection. I\u2019ve thought a lot about cultural expectations around happiness while at Disney. Should I try to maximize my pleasure during this short trip? Or simply take each day as it comes? I\u2019ve learned to embrace the latter.<\/p>\n Yes, there are many people who simply want to use the worlds of Disney \u2014 theme park, films or otherwise \u2014 to escape the grind of everyday life. But is seeking such an escape a greater threat to authenticity than checking out by playing video games, watching sports<\/a>, reading smutty novels or using drugs and alcohol?<\/p>\n Is it possible for people to lose themselves in fantasy? Of course \u2014 just as it\u2019s possible for anyone to lose themselves in their careers, relationships or hobbies. But in an age of curated social media accounts, influencer marketing and political doublespeak, the manufactured worlds of Disney might offer more authenticity than you\u2019d think.<\/p>\n