The purpose of this blog was to deconstruct the 11 official Disney Princesses by examining their historical context and focus mainly on how each princess relates to the feminism movements. The Disney Princesses can be broken down into two different categories with the first group of princesses (Snow White, Cinderella, and Aurora) deriving from a post World War culture and existing in a pre- Second Wave Feminism movement. The second group of princesses can be grouped into the post- Second Wave Feminism movement and even continue on the Third-Wave movement. After the Third Wave, the Disney Princess ideograph begins to break and Disney attempts to contextualize its princesses. With princesses like Pocahontas, Jasmine, and Tiana, I examine the successes and pitfalls of each attempt to represent women within different cultures.
With Disney being such a giant conglomerate, it is important to understanding the amount of influence that these cartoon women have on popular culture. By understanding the historical contexts in which these women were created, perhaps femininity may be viewed differently and can be created in a more progressive, positive light for admiring little girls...and boys.
Finally! An awesome, age appropriate, rebellious little girl princess whose hair is as wild and untamed as her spirit. I absolutely love Princess Merida. She too is a princess that refuses to conform to the expectations that both her gender and her duties as a princess require of her. Brave is a very progressive Disney Pixar animated film that taps into the unfair obligations of a princess. Merida is funny, adventurous, smart, and obviously brave. After viewing this film, I thought there was no way that Disney could destroy the new image of the badass little girl princess. She is the first princess to actually be a little girl, and to act like a little girl too. Merida is also the only Disney Princess to lack any love interest at all. A very refreshing change. The central theme revolves around tolerance and understanding within a family. Probably a more relate-able and common issue for young girls today.
I thought that there was no way that Disney could destroy my love for little Merida after the wide success of Brave, but naturally they proved me wrong. When Princess Merida became an official Disney Princess, she got an official Disney Princess makeover. The young, adorable, natural looking little girl with wild hair became more slender, doughy-eyed, and sexualized. Even her hair became smooth and wavy. Thankfully, due the strong negative feedback of the revised Merida, Disney quickly scrapped the sexual image of Merida. However, when researching Merida as a Disney Princess, the glamorized and controversial image of Merida still appears. Let us hope that future Disney Princesses are not treated the same and that Disney may continue to tell little girls that it is okay to just be a little girl.
Rapunzel is the tenth official Disney Princess to be crowned. There is not much to be said about the shy, sweet 18 year old except that she is a throw back to the classic Disney Princess like Aurora or Cinderella. She possess similar qualities that the original princesses have but she is more modern. Unlike her classic princess pals, her dreams do not include escaping her tower to be saved by her dream prince. Instead, her dreams and aspirations include freedom, independence, and adventure. She may not be the badass role model that Mulan is, but there are little criticisms to be found in the retelling of this classic fairy tale.
In 2011, Princess Rapunzel actually received a real life coronation in London. This started a new trend of official coronation ceremonies, as Princess Merida also received one back in May of 2013.
Disney had received criticism for countless years about the lack of African American representation in its films. When they announced that the first black princess had been made, there was much anticipation and excitement around Princess Tiana's debut... I'll give Disney kudos for trying. But in terms of accurate representation, it unfortunately falls short. To an extent, I understand Disney's decision to have their first black princess come out of 1920's New Orleans. It has a rich culture that cannot be misconstrued with stereotypes, and it is a great set up for a 'Best Original Score' award. However, by choosing a specific culture of the African-American community, it excludes a representation of the community as a whole. And even though the heavily French influenced culture has distinct characteristics that lessen criticism for racism, stereotypes, and misrepresentations, in the end it still does all of those things. Even as animals, Tiana and the friends that she make along her journey all possess very stereotypical characteristics.
The most unfortunate aspect of Princess Tiana is that she is not even a human for the majority of the film...she's a frog! After the anticipation that had built up to finally having an African American princess, Disney creates her and then quickly reduces her to a slimy amphibian. Disney cannot be praised for creating a black princess because they ultimately failed to do just that. What is worse is that Tiana's prince is also not black. Although Disney felt that the world was ready for a black princess, apparently they did not feel the same about a black prince. Prince Naveen is from Maldonia, a fictional country with an absurd accent. So a a very real New Orleans is used but the origins and nationality of Princess Tiana's counterpart is completely made up. And god forbid he be a white prince and create a mixed family... we all learned from the Cheerios commercial.
Tiana does succeed in representing a hard working woman though. Her ambitions, work ethic, and drive should be praised. Just like Mulan, Tiana does not need or want a man to make her dreams come true. She makes them happen for herself and in that respect, Tiana is a feminist character.
There is no denying that Mulan is the badass of the Disney Princesses. After a failed attempt to please her family by conforming to the cultural expectations of her gender, she disguises herself as a boy to fight for the Chinese army in place of her sick father. Mulan is the most progressive and acceptable Disney Princess according to the Third Wave Feminism movement. But many people argue that Mulan doesn't count as an official Disney Princess as she is not a princess at all. I disagree. Despite her Cinderella-less pedigree, Mulan should be considered a Disney Princess as she is a more appropriate role model for young girls. Many argue that the anti-feminist qualities of the movie, such as her family expecting her to get married, the disgust of her fellow men when her gender is revealed, and the overall suppression of the women and their roles, are backwards. But they are historically and culturally accurate. Unlike any other princess, Mulan is a 2,000 year old legend, not a fable, fairy tale, or loose depiction of a historical figure.
The problems that lay within this film do not exist in the portrayal of the female gender, but rather the male gender. While Mulan may be applauded for not conforming to the expectations that her sex requires of her, it appears that the men in this movie are not given the same freedoms. In the song, 'I'll Make a Man Out of You,' the young soldiers are challenged to 'man up' and prove their worth through aspects that clearly represent masculinity; strength, bravery, and physical fitness. They even bash the men by referring to them as girls due to their weakness when they say, "Did they send me daughters when I asked for sons?"
Although Mulan is progressive and sends a positive message to little girls that it is okay to be independent and stand up to adversity, it lacks in portraying a more equal and fair representation of the male gender. What does this say to our little girls about how little boys are supposed to be? Or what does it say to little boys about how they should be?
The show 'Once Upon a Time' took it a step further and portrayed the strong and powerful Mulan as a lesbian. Although it is refreshing to see the LBGT community gaining representation in the media, it is unfortunate that it comes at the expense of Disney's more masculine princess. This unfortunate portrayal claims that Mulan's bravery, strength, and independence is a consequence of her sexuality rather than her gender.
There are many criticisms to be made about the historical inaccuracy of 'Princess' Pocahontas, but that is not what this blog is analyzing. In terms of a strong, progressive feminist figure for little girls to admire, Pocahontas is actually an admirable young woman. What is interesting about this heroine is that she is the first Disney Princess to not be based off of a fable or fairy tale. This is also the first Disney movie to take a look at the negatives of the European settlement into North America. It is also a continuation of venturing further into the femininity of multiple cultures. Pocahontas is credited with being the 'hippie' of the Disney Princesses with her love of nature and acceptance of all beings created equal; a very positive message for young girls. So what is there to deconstruct with this Powhatan native?
When researching the voices behind these princesses, I started to notice a trend. All of the cartoon princesses resemble the real life voice actors. It appears to be coincidental at first, but with Pocahontas it became very obvious that it was no accident. Irene Beddard, the speaking voice only of Pocahontas, is a very Native American-looking woman. Her roots, although still technically Native American, are in fact Inuit and also Metis (a Canadian culture based originally out of Europe). The singing voice of Pocahontas is played by Judy Kuhn, a New York City native. So what is the big deal? It appears that Disney is casting these women based off of their stereotypical portrayals of cultures. By lumping an Inuit native such as Irene with a Powhatan tribe member strips the cultural significance of these women. It is ironic that Disney would attempt to make a culturally progressive film, albeit inaccurate and stereotypical, and then make a stereotypical vocal casting.
Directly after the release of Beauty and the Beast came Aladdin and with that, the Disney Princess identity progressed. With Jasmine, we are given our first princess with any sort of exotic ethnicity. Yes, Disney continued to break the ideograph of the princess by giving Jasmine a cultural origin and context but with Jasmine, we begin to see the emergence of the Disney Princess being sexified. I used to want to be Jasmine when I was younger because she was so attractive. But in hindsight, I was only six years old.
However, there are some positive things to be said about Jasmine. First of all, she is rebellious and refuses to be won over as some unknown man's bride. There is also something to be said about her falling for the commoner Aladdin but being repulsed by the debonair Prince Ali. Another interesting aspect of the movie in general is that Jasmine is the first Disney Princess to not be the main character of the film. She still holds her own as a powerful, in control princess who refuses to settle for the life she was born into.
We can applaud the ethnic diversity of this Disney movie, but it is important to analyze the way in which this Arab culture is portray. The bad guys, such as Jafar, and the impoverished commoners in the movie may have some Arab-like qualities, but the beautiful Jasmine and handsome Aladdin are merely dark skinned Europeans. Accepting this quality of the movie as a norm only reinforces the misconception that it is okay to be Arab looking if you are poor or a bad guy, but if you are good, you must be beautiful and European looking. Below is a picture of Prince Eric next to Aladdin.
I thought that there was no way that Disney could destroy my love for little Merida after the wide success of Brave, but naturally they proved me wrong. When Princess Merida became an official Disney Princess, she got an official Disney Princess makeover. The young, adorable, natural looking little girl with wild hair became more slender, doughy-eyed, and sexualized. Even her hair became smooth and wavy. Thankfully, due the strong negative feedback of the revised Merida, Disney quickly scrapped the sexual image of Merida. However, when researching Merida as a Disney Princess, the glamorized and controversial image of Merida still appears. Let us hope that future Disney Princesses are not treated the same and that Disney may continue to tell little girls that it is okay to just be a little girl.
There is no denying that Mulan is the badass of the Disney Princesses. After a failed attempt to please her family by conforming to the cultural expectations of her gender, she disguises herself as a boy to fight for the Chinese army in place of her sick father. Mulan is the most progressive and acceptable Disney Princess according to the Third Wave Feminism movement. But many people argue that Mulan doesn't count as an official Disney Princess as she is not a princess at all. I disagree. Despite her Cinderella-less pedigree, Mulan should be considered a Disney Princess as she is a more appropriate role model for young girls. Many argue that the anti-feminist qualities of the movie, such as her family expecting her to get married, the disgust of her fellow men when her gender is revealed, and the overall suppression of the women and their roles, are backwards. But they are historically and culturally accurate. Unlike any other princess, Mulan is a 2,000 year old legend, not a fable, fairy tale, or loose depiction of a historical figure.
The show 'Once Upon a Time' took it a step further and portrayed the strong and powerful Mulan as a lesbian. Although it is refreshing to see the LBGT community gaining representation in the media, it is unfortunate that it comes at the expense of Disney's more masculine princess. This unfortunate portrayal claims that Mulan's bravery, strength, and independence is a consequence of her sexuality rather than her gender.
