After a crazy, a
fast-paced intersession, and too much to study, my brain has felt brain dead.
So perhaps that is why I feel this urge to analyze a topic I have always been
passionate about that is more fun than work: Disney Princesses.
I have been a
Disney princess fan since before I was born and I will defend them until I die.
I recognize that all of these films have their flaws and that some are much
worse than others. However, I would argue that each one of them has a positive
message to offer their audience and are well-intentioned. Even if some were
written with more inspiration originating from their wallets than their hearts,
none of them are without merit. I am also a feminist. There are many who think
who one cannot be a Disney princess fan and a feminist, but I have been both
for 20 years. When I am told about parents who do not allow their daughters to
watch Disney princess movies because they want their daughters to have strong,
female role models, I just feel that these parents are missing out on a great
source.
I recently
watched Wonder Woman and found myself crying at the sheer female-empowerment.
Yet, Wonder Woman did not look too much different from what I had seen before
in Mulan or the messages of Pocahontas.
But Disney
Princess films post 1992 would be too easy to defend and justify. Today, I will
be defending one which many consider to be the least feminist.
Sleeping Beauty
has been one of my absolute favorite films since before I could talk. There is
a video of me dancing around the living room, holding a baby bottle, and
singing “Once Upon a Dream”. Aurora was one of my favorite Disney princesses,
but I admit that it was probably because I loved her dresses and her hair is
the best ever featured on screen. When people hate on Sleeping Beauty, it rubs
me the wrong way, and I never knew quite why. Surely, if I was a true feminist,
I would see it as trash, right?
Tonight, I had
an epiphany while singing “Once Upon a Dream” to my dog. Sleeping Beauty is one
of the most feminist Disney films, but in one of the most subtle ways.
If I described
the basic plot of the film, it would be just as anti-strong women as people say
it is. An evil witch puts a sleeping curse on a young princess. The princess
has less than 20 minutes of dialogue, but is the protagonist of the film. A
handsome prince of whom we know little about stumbles across this princess in a
forest and falls in love (with what we can assume is her beauty). He must slay
a dragon to rescue her.
However, that is
not the movie. Before we a witch, prince, or princess speaks, we are introduced
to three fairies. These three fairies are female, short, chubby cheeks, and
middle-aged. They have three distinct personalities with little in common
except their magical abilities. They gift the princess with beauty and song.
When the witch arrives and places a curse on the princess, they save the day by
taking it upon themselves to raise the child and keep her safe.
Right away, out
of the 8 main characters with lines, only three are men: 2 kings and a prince.
Let’s begin by analyzing the men. None of these men have any magical abilities.
The main scene with the two kings is of
them discussing the future of their children. They get drunk, fight with sword
fish, fight over how soon the wedding should be, and generally don’t get
anything done. The king who is father of the prince is portrayed as easily
angered, prejudiced, and unable to take control of the situations he is placed
in. The other king, father of Aurora, sends his daughter away and (pointlessly)
burns every spinning wheel in the kingdom. Neither of these two men are strong
leaders. The prince is a lovesick teenager. He is charming and brave, but is
also easily kidnapped by Maleficent. Most of his accomplishments are due to the
help of the fairies, which we will return to. Like Aurora, he has very few
lines despite being considered the hero.
Now for the
women.
Maleficent: this
woman is a badass. There is no other way to put it. She doesn’t get invited to
a party, so she curses the hosts’ child. She kidnaps a young prince and
torments him with images of his future decrepit body. She laughs in the face of
do-gooders and has a pet crow. Side note: her ensemble is fabulous and evil. Her
male minions are idiots that she learns she can’t trust and she must do
everything herself. She trusts her crow, but to assume the crow is male is
sexist (I think?). Her message is very “I’m the strongest and most intelligent
and I have to do everything”.
Aurora/Briar
Rose/Sleeping Beauty: Let’s get real here. This is a sixteen year old shut in
whose hobby is picking berries and singing to animals because she isn’t allowed
to have friends. A man approaches her in the forest and she smirks and attempts
to ignore him, but who can resist Prince Phillip? Rather than seeing this guy
in secret, she tells her mothers (or aunt or guardians or whatever they are)
and invites him over to meet them. When they say no, sure she throws herself on
her bed, but what was she going to do? Go back into the forest, looking for a
guy who didn’t say his name, to live with said guy she has only known for half
an hour tops? She is a young girl in Medieval France. Of course she is going to
throw herself on her bed and cry.
The fairies:
These are strong independent women. They do not ask, they TELL THE KING, they
are going to take care of his daughter. They go into Maleficent’s castle in
order to save Aurora when they could have just cut their losses. They are
really the ones who save Aurora. They free Prince Phillip, give him the sword
which they enchant to not miss, these bitches do EVERYTHING! They have the most
lines. They raise Aurora (and probably make her clothes, which is worth
mentioning a second time, are the best). They confront Maleficent when they didn’t
have to. Phillip was forced to face Maleficent because his options were fight
or be free when he was so old and decrepit his life was practically over.
The source of
the conflict is Aurora’s curse, but the main players in this conflict are the
fairies and Maleficent. The kings are put under the sleeping spell by the
fairies and do nothing. When people say Sleeping Beauty is anti-feminism, I
want to ask if they are referring to the character or the film. If it’s the
character, I would argue she is an accurate depiction of how limited a woman’s
options were in Medieval France, but I understand she isn’t feminist. If it’s
the film, that statement is wrong. The film is filled with strong, powerful
women. The women spend the movie acting for the men.
