Editorial+-+Disney+Princesses

Over the years, Disney princesses have brought both joy to the young hearts of girls everywhere but also, grief to the minds of women in society. There are more than numerous accounts of critique towards these lovely female characters. Some mothers are even insulted to the extent of forbidding their daughters to watch a single Disney princess movie in order to prevent them from dreaming with a lack of independence. "I have to say, I did not anticipate when I decided to have a baby how much of my job was going to be protecting my child's childhood." Peggy Orenstein, the contributing writer for the New York Times Magazine, stepped back to examine this phenomenon with her daughter, Daisy. Of course, Disney had no intention of insulting the natural women of the world, contrary to popular belief. "My intention is not to say that the Disney princess movies are all bad or a negative influence on our children, but it is important to consider what messages our children are exposed to," said study researcher Dawn England of the University of California at Santa Cruz. I believe that we should "cut these Disney princesses some slack" and try to see through the minds of Disney creators in order to imagine what they were attempting to teach their audience of children in terms of exemplary behavior in life. Although I do admit that yes, most Disney princesses do embody a sense of helplessness, throughout a period of time the cast have slowly started to evolve and improve both physically and characteristically. Each princess shows some type of behavior that Disney tries to portray but most people don't see it under their entire role of damsel in distress. The very first Disney princess, the one who receives the most judgment is //Snow White//. Created in 1937, she is the one who started it all, both literally and figuratively. Jeff Brunner, a sociological professor analyzes how "her burgeoning sexuality is a threat to another woman, so she's killed. Her only asset, physical beauty, is what saves her in the end." But did anyone stop to notice how her positivity and kindness is a wonderful trait that others should imitate? Aurora of //Sleeping Beauty// is blamed most often for the crime of "waiting around for a prince to save her" in 1959. However she is loved for her kindness, her patience, but most of all, for obeying the rules, lessons that are perhaps vital to children at a young age. In 1989, Ariel of //The Little Mermaid// "drastically changes her physical appearance so as to be more attractive to a man." He ultimately falls in love with her because of her voice. But in order to achieve all of this Ariel illustrates a sense of determination and willingness to never give up, even when the going gets tough. As time slowly begins to improve the attitude of Disney princesses in 1991, Belle of //Beauty and the Beast// doesn't receive as much critique as the princesses before her. Belle shows intelligence with her great love of reading, and in the end, cleverly teaching the lesson of "never judging a book by its cover." She displays compassion and understanding with her love from Beast. Pocahontas (1995) and Mulan (1998) both receive praise for their great qualities. They're adventurous, brave, witty, and wise. Defying conforming to society, they both risk their lives for justice. The motto of Disney princesses is "every girl deserves a fairy tale ending." That is the message that Disney implants into the minds of most little girls. However, they forgot to mention that magic won't be there to help you through it all. The creators of Disney princesses ultimately fashioned them for entertainment. They added sugar, spice, and everything nice, finally producing hints of ideas for proper role models.