Through the movie, The Little Mermaid (1989), Disney took a bit step forward in the way they presented women in their movies. Although Ariel's main focus was to date and marry a guy she just met, I do kind of understand Sebastian and her dad’s point on this one, she had a lot more personality than any Disney princess who came before her. The princesses who came before Ariel, Snow White, Cinderella, and Aurora, had little to no personality at all. And while Disney still had the archaic perception of a woman's only motivation being a relationship, this time Ariel was more than just a glorified animated prop to be in a relationship.
In the movie, Ariel is extremely curious about the lives humans lead, WAY before she even meets Eric. She is a closer representation to what young girls actually can be like, as she was rebellious against her father and curious as to the world around her. This helped advance the portrayal of women in Disney princess movies, as it showed a young girl (VERY young at 16) making decisions for herself, and even rebelling against decisions men had made for her. However, she still very clearly fell in ‘love’ with the first (human) man she even kind of interacted with and the entire movie’s plot was centered around how she was going to get with him, and what she was willing to give up to be with him, while he gave up nothing.
After this movie, Disney still had a LONG way to go to making a movie with a Disney princess that wasn’t centered around her relationship, but it was an important first step in the right direction to fully flesh out and give personality to a Disney princess.
I'm intrigued by your point, Katy, about what Ariel was "willing to give up to be with" Eric, while Eric "gave up nothing." It's one that made me go, "Hmmm" and really stop and think.
ReplyDeleteDo you think that Ariel really gave up anything, in the end? After all, she gets her voice back! And while Eric may not have given up anything, I do think he proved he would have, as he risked his life to save her.
And does Ariel get any bonus points for saving him first? :)
Hmm, Ariel did give up being with her family for the rest of her life (although I still don't see why Triton couldn't just turn her back into a mermaid then back into a human for visits) but truly she didn't seem too broken up about it, she seemed more happy to spend her life with Eric. So I'm unsure if her sacrifice was that large in the end, but she did end up giving up something in the end, and she demonstrated her willingness to give up her voice, her tail, and her family all for the chance to meet him. While Eric proved he would have given up something by putting himself in danger, he didn't even do this until after they had spent some time together. You make a really good point that made me reconsider my thesis!
DeleteKinda similar to Prof. Andres' point, I think what Eric did for Disney Princes is almost as, if not more significant than what Ariel did for Disney Princesses. Do you think Eric's bravery and willingness to fight for Ariel had impacts on both boys and girls about the attributes of a good man, apart form looks?
ReplyDeleteI think what Eric did for Disney Princes was very significant as well, as it gave boys a reason to watch Disney movies and have someone to resonate with. I think you're right, that his bravery and willingness to fight for Ariel did have an impact on young boys and girls, but I also think that most Princes in the Disney movies had the same attributes as they would fight to "protect" the girl, such as Prince Phillip in Sleeping Beauty. I do love that Eric was a lot more fleshed out as a character and was a lot more likable though.
DeleteHi Katy! I agree with many of your points– I'm glad that Ariel was closer to reality than some other Disney princesses. I'm curious if you think that Ariel's appearance subverts beauty standards in any way, because Ariel is conventionally pretty but it says a lot that she's a redhead and a mermaid. Her body type is in many ways the feminine body ideal, and the use of Ursula's plus-size body type to convey villainy is questionable to me.
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