The Little Mermaid...

Disney 1989

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love The Little Mermaid, and that I'm head over heels for Ariel. She is my favorite Disney Princess. When I was little when people would ask what I wanted to be, I'd say I wanted to be Ariel so then I could be a mermaid.

Many people say that Disney hasn't got a very good reputation for feminist characters, Ariel being one of those unfeminist characters. My response upon hearing this constant complaint about Ariel as a character is and always will be bullshit.

The constant complaint about The Little Mermaid is that Ariel changes who she is for a man who she hardly knows. This isn't fully true. I agrue and always will argue played a factor in Ariel's decision to turn human, but he was by no way the main cause. Part of Your World is where, if you are unfamiliar, Ariel sings about wanting to be human and to 'be out of these waters'. This song is sung before Ariel meets Eric, so her desire to be human is already clear to the audience. Also Ariel is obsessed by items from the human world, constantly getting in trouble with her father and Sebastian for going to the surface to meet with Scuttle, to find out what the items she found were. Within the first fifteen minutes the audience is very aware of Ariel's obsession with humans. Check mate. Also, if we look at one of the many versions of the Little Mermaid, she wanted to be human so she could have a soul, because once mermaids died they turned to seafoam.

Many people aren't happy with who they are. We constantly change who we are to try and improve how we think of ourselves. Some women use botox, and others go into education to improve themselves that way to get a better chance in the world. I know I try to change myself by spending the morning in front of the mirror to try and look like the person I want to try and be.

Disney Princesses are imperfect feminists. Belle stands up to an angry mob, Jasmine speaks against arranged marriages, Tiana works hard so she doesn't have to rely on anyone. As time changes so do our perspectives on how the world works, and how it should work. We start to see characters like Merida who refuses to marry a man she has just met, and doesn't love. We start to see stories that focus on family relationships more than romantic relationships. It's pretty cool, but it doesn't make older Disney Princesses weaker. They are all strong in their own ways. Rapunzel left the safety of her tower to see a world that she believed was cruel and dark. Belle saw through a beast to find a kindness. Cinderella went through years of abuse and still managed to sing a smile, when I know I'd be on the floor crying everyday. These characters are strong. Maybe not as strong as society today wants them to be, but that shouldn't matter.

Fairy Tales are stories, good vs bad with a happily ever after, in most cases. Leave them to their simplicity, because when you're a child you sometimes need those stories of bravery, adventure, and noble intentions to see you through hard times. Let them start to develop their own ideas before you bombard them with different varieties of critical thinking.