Headscratchers / Dumbo

• How come no one felt the need to press charges against the circus for the numerous disasters that happened there? (Like Mrs Jumbo getting angry, the pyramid of pachyderm’s collapsing, Dumbo being made into a clown, etc.)
  • The workers probably signed a liability waiver that prevented them from suing for any injuries sustained during a performance (it was the 1940s, after all), elephants can't sue, and it didn't seem like any of the civilians got hurt seriously enough to where it warranted legal action. Either that or the insurance company covered everything to avoid such suits.

• During the otherwise sad scene of “Baby Mine” why didn’t Timothy take Dumbo there sooner? Furthermore, why didn’t Dumbo go there by HIMSELF to see his mother? It’s not like the place was guarded 24/7.
  • Dumbo had to go out and perform. Like it or not, he had to stay on the Ringmaster's good side if he had any chance of letting his mother out, even if it was humiliating. Besides, the Big Top collapse incident likely destroyed that chance, and he needed to get it back (not to mention Timothy wanted to clean up Dumbo so he can wash off the grime and wear of the day—he still has to take care of himself. Since Dumbo's too depressed to do anything, Timothy, being his guardian of sorts, steps up to help where he can).
• So all baby animals came from storks here. Does this mean the whole circus animal, Mrs Jumbo included... are actually infertile? That they must depend on storks to get children!?
  • More likely, the film is just using an old myth to introduce Dumbo's "birth" in a way that would have seemed appropriate for children at the time (and by many folks today) - often, the only other method typically used is to just show the mother and baby lying together after a fade-in or similar transition. Helps that having the stork make a literal delivery added an opportunity for a little humor.
• Wouldn't a talking mouse that was intelligent enough to negotiate contracts be more impressive than a flying elephant?
  • That might already be commonplace. This is Disney.
• Why do the crows all have black stereotypes? Because it's the what society saw and treated them as. Think about it. If you are seen and treated as black stereotype, eventually, you would start to be a black stereotype.
  • This particular troper was surprised to hear that it was supposedly a 'black stereotype' as if this was a bad thing, because what I got out of it was that blacks were friendly, intelligent problem-solvers. (Come to think of it, crows definitely fit that description.)
    • That's exactly what they were meant to be. See "Fair for its Day" under the YMMV for this film, particularly black animator Floyd Norman's explanation.
• Even assuming a world where talking animals exist, how the heck would a newborn baby like Dumbo be able to understand a thing the mouse says?
  • Dumbo might be young, but he is capable of understanding people—at least those who bother to reach out to him. Timothy was notably the only one who made an earnest effort to offer help to his plight and get his mother out of the clink— the other elephants practically shunned him, the Ringmaster and the rest of the circus troupe mistreated him (especially after the big top fall), his interactions with Casey, Jr. never made it past storyboarding, and his mother is sadly locked away. Perhaps Dumbo can understand for someone so young, but only to those who bother treating him right. Recall that when the other elephants gave him the cold shoulder, he had no idea what they were doing, but he did perk up when Timothy said he had a plan to free Mrs. Jumbo.