reluctantprincess

a liminal space where boundaries thin like wisps of smoke in early dawn light.

but there is beauty in this too, soft pastel colours, a quiet empty echo of laughter and then darkness, encompassing and heavy, pressing into lungs but still radiant somehow.

for now demons count souls like dollar bills held close to devil red chests, smiles curling because they think that they’ve won.

but one day those girls will see past black ringed promises bartered at an intersection of road, down to the skin that was already perfect and that quiet empty echo of a soul that had been perfect too.

hell will see. the four horsemen are nothing compared to an army of girls ready to reclaim what is theirs.

Guess who’s back with another theory? Me! How did you know? Anyways, I’m going to be taking a break with my Harry Potter theories and venture out to one my childhoods fondest memories. Yes, Disney. More specifically, Disney Princesses.

Like every single life organism on this plant, everyone (even your beloved film characters and TV series) goes through a form of evolution. In this theory, I am going to be talking about the “Evolution of Disney Princesses” and how they adapt to our ideas of what a Disney Princess should be.

But before we get into all of that, we need to answer: how does one become a Disney Princess?

Simple, really. (sarcasm).

Each Official Disney Princess must meet the following requirements: A) has a primary role in a Disney animated feature film, B) is human or mostly human-like (e.g. Ariel), and C) does not appear primarily in a sequel. The actual title of Princess (or equivalent) is not necessary, but certainly helps.

Then, if they pass the requirements above: there’s more! Whereas the first set of requirements required you to meet all three, in part b) you only have to meet one of these criteria. A) You have to be born royal or B) you must be born royal or C) perform a significant act of heroism.

Then, the final test. The unspoken rule. Box office revenue.

As of 2017, the eleven characters considered part of the franchise are Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Pocahontas, Mulan, Tiana, Rapunzel and Merida. 

Fun Fact: Tinkerbell was revoked of her Disney Princess membership.

Disney Princesses are a massive thing to every young girl. They are role models for the next generation and as generations and generations pass, the ideas of roles of a Disney Princess becomes different.

Classic Era:

These are your “reactionary” princess whom saw a lot of action but didn’t do much about it. They are very dependant of basically everyone else and victimised a lot - feeding into the stereotypical “women”. Granted, this was princesses that represented the era that “girls should be seen and not heard.”

Snow White

Snow White is the first and original Disney Princess. Snow White is a beautiful young princess, described by her evil stepmother’s Magic Mirror as having ‘hair as black as ebony, lips as red as the rose, skin as white as snow’ and also dubbed by the Mirror as the 'Fairest Of Them All’. Then, somewhere along the movie, she seeks refugee in the Seven Dwarfs, eats an apple from an insecure witch and is saved with a true love’s kiss. Disney regards Snow White as kind, sweet and respectful, encouraging children to, “be a friend to all,” in the same way she is depicted in the film.

Cinderella Cinderella is the second Disney Princess. She is often considered the “Leader of the Disney Princesses”. Forced into servitude by her evil stepmother, Lady Tremaine, and her two cruel stepsisters, Drizella and Anastasia, after her father’s death, her only source of happiness was her animal friends, which consists of birds and mice. While scrubbing the floors of her late father’s mansion, an invitation to the Prince’s ball is delivered, inviting all of the eligible women to attend so that he can find a wife. And, you know the story. There’s a godmother, a clock, about a dozens of songs and a glass slipper thrown into there.

Aurora Aurora is the third Disney Princess. She first appeared in Disney’s 16th animated feature film Sleeping Beauty (1959). To be perfectly honest, I actually forgot what this movie was about. Blah blah, blah, a princess was born. Blah, blah, blah, the Holy Trinity appears in a fairy form. Blah, blah, blah, she gets cursed how she’s going to prick her finger on her 18th birthday. Ouch. Blah, blah, blah - she does. Blah, blah, blah, prince charming comes with a true loves kiss. Oh, what an excellent plot convenience.

Renaissance era:

Then, Disney introduced these princesses that had more independency, more complexity and depth in their character - challenging social norms (well done for being bold Disney.) Sure, they still had their critics but not as much as the classic eras.

Arial:

Mermaid. Sees human world. Trades for voice to an octopus in order to experience the human world. There’s a prince in there sure but still, we see a more feisty and independent women who wants to take charge of her own fate. You go, Arial!

Belle:

Everyone knows her. Her story can be best summed up by this manta - “don’t judge a book by it’s cover.” Pretty sure there’s a handsome beast in there (who she helps saves), talking objects and Emma Watson thrown in there. But really, Belle is independent, intelligent, headstrong and courageous princess - again challenging society norms.

Jasmine:

There’s a genie. Three wishes. A castle. The songs are amazing. Jasmine, despite she’s so independent and headstrong still has red flash marks as she “seduced” the villain or something and still depends on a man. Though on the positive side, she does challenge authority. Actually, her dad. Actually, that might not be a good message to parents after all. Oh well, still a great fairy-tale from Disney.

Pocahontas:

If you ever want to see an inaccurate, loved-up, innocent version of racial domination, you got it in Pocahontas! But seriously, her independence and bravery needs to be commended.

Mulan:

She also does not fit in with the expectations of a young Chinese girl of the time; despite her natural beauty, she is clumsy, outspoken, and independent rather than graceful, silent and demure. After her meeting with the matchmaker ended in chaos, the matchmaker claimed that even though she had the looks of a bride, she would never find a match. However, her courage, intelligence, and determination helped her through her adventures, in which she disguises herself as a male soldier in order to fight in the Chinese army in place of her wounded father. 

Modern Era:

Get ready to see a storm of feisty and confident princesses who actually kick-ass!

Tiana:

Tiana offers a new perspective as simply a hard-working woman who bears no reliance on a man. She gets turned into a frog. Then becomes a human again. She then fulfils her dream to open a restaurant. She also does marry a prince but that’s not her intention in this movie - marrying a prince for her was just a “bonus.”

Rapunzel:

A princess. Long, blonde hair. Teams up with a thief called Flynn and go onto a magical journey to see the lanterns and to escape the tower that her stepmother forces her to be in. We learn freedom.

Every girl’s dream. :)

Merida:

First Disney Princess to not have a love interest nor to sing in Brave. A huge achievement on it’s own from Disney. The best way of putting it: she is basically like Katniss Everdeen without actually competing in the Hunger Games and instead tries to reverse the spell that landed of her mother into a bear.

If you want to learn about more about that characters history: I strongly recommend you to check this site :https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disney_Princess in which I got a lot of this information from.

As society progresses, our ideals for a Disney Princess changes. Who knows? Maybe we will have a LGBT+ Disney Princess, a plus sized Disney Princess or even just an ordinary person - you don’t have to be royal to be a princess. (or something corny like that.)

Additionally, from the complaints Disney got about their line up of Disney princesses, they teamed up with Kate Moss and created a poster called “The Princess Principles.”

It’s actually quite a clever advertisement endorsement. Checkmate, Disney. But you can’t deny, the poster DOES look pretty.

It actually sort of makes sense. I would prefer to be blunt and say “thy shall not kill” but you know, each to their own.

Until next time, Au revoir little biscuits!

-sexierthanaheartburn

Snow White

- was a survivor of attempted murder, and was resilient to not let that horrid and traumatizing event bring her down or let it ruin her life

- was a victim of emotional abuse, and didn’t let the abuse get to her

- would save a baby bird from danger and make sure it found it’s parents

- knows how to hold a rocking party with friends

Cinderella

- survivor of emotional abuse from her stepmom and stepsisters for many years, and stayed kind towards others

- despite her family treating her so wrongly and poorly, she just wanted to spend a night with them and have fun with them, and just be like a normal family “ Prince Charming, who “ ?????

- she’s sassy as fuck “ Well I don’t want to interrupt their “music lesson “ during her stepsisters bad singing

- even though she had a short time to be at the ball, she was grateful for the opportunity anyways

Aurora

- Gives up her happiness, to perform her duty as a princess for her kingdom and her kingdom’s future and knows that she must do her job as a princess. That’s pretty brave and selfless.

- that gorgeous blonde curly hair !!!!

Ariel

- she’s the first Princess that goes forward to make her dreams come true, rather than just wishing, hoping and waiting.

- she’s adventurous, curious, loves to explore, learn about new things and new cultures and new world

- she’s the first Princess to save her love interest, but once, but twice

Belle

- different, odd and a misfit from the common crowd and gives no fucks

- “ Women shouldn’t read “ Well shut the fuck up, I’m going to do what I love and enjoy anyways.

- takes no bullshit. You are a asshole ? Got no time for that. She’s outtie.

- sees the good within people, but is also isn’t naive, she knows that some people are just plain monsters, through and through.

Jasmine

- will stand up for her rights, and won’t be pushed around

- is quick, sharp, intelligent and a fast learner

-wants to learn more about the outside world and her people

-if you try and lie to her or manipulate her or treat her like she’s a fool, she’s not having that shit

Pocahontas

-will fight for her people, her family, her world, her home, her culture

- she’s the first princess to save the day, not the guy, not a male sidekick, she’s the one the saves the day, while Snow had the Dwarfs, Cinderella had her mice friends, Aurora had Prince Phillip, Ariel had Eric, and Jasmine had Aladdin. ( Belle is debatable imo )

- loves the earth and nature and will protect it from harm

Mulan

- she saves China, I mean, come on

- she never gives up, no matter what. If she fails, she will just try even harder to succeed and will find a way on how can succeed.

- brave, determined, strong mentally and physically, a kind friend

-teaches girls that it’s okay if you haven’t found yourself yet- if you don’t give up, one day you will, and you will conquer

- pushes gender norms

- another female princess that saves the day, not her male love interest, or sidekicks, is also the first princess to defeat the villian in battle, like a previous male character like Phillip or Eric would

Tiana

- is hard-working, and never gives up on her dreams, and will work hard to get there

- teaches that dreams are done by sweating your butt off, giving up on fun sometimes, sometimes having to work more than one job, than just wishing and hoping, you have to take action, and make that dream happen

-ambitious and smart and realistic

- teaches that you shouldn’t take a short-cut, find a lazy option, cheat or gamble your way to success, the only to get there is through hard work and effort

- again,another badass princess that saves the day on her own

Rapunzel

- is kind to everybody

- is cheerful, positive, warm and supportive towards others, even people who seem “scary “, she knows inside, that we all have dreams

-is brave enough to step outside her  zone and new and strange places and territories

- anger her by harming one of her loved ones and she will fucking tear you apart

- a talented artist

Anna and Elsa

- teaches girls that family love is just as important than romance love, if not more so

- Anna goes through a abusive relationship and isn’t put off love forever, she learns her lesson, doesn’t let Hans bad treatment of her ruin her or let her become a toxic person, like he was, and moves on with a better man, and a healthier relationship

- Elsa goes through basically being locked up with lack of other human contact, fearing her powers and fearing what other people think of, to come out as better and stronger person

- Elsa teaches that sometimes its best not let what others think of you, and just say “ fuck it “ and just be yourself and be free

- Anna teaches the difference between a unhealthy relationship (whirlwind romance,quickly trusting people, getting into a deep relationship with somebody you don’t even know )  and healthy one ( somebody who gives you his jacket when you are cold, holds you close when you are scared, is worried about your well-being, getting to know somebody first before leaping in, somebody who asks for your consent before kissing you, will do anything to make sure you are safe and okay )

Moana

- will do anything for her island and people and make sure they’ll all okay

- her leadership skills are A++

- no “ you are forced to marry this boy so you can become his queen”, BS, Moana is the future leader

- is brave to fear the unknown waters, learn new skills, and battle monsters

- is understanding, and understands why somebody acts the way that they do

- is extremely independent

“Lady Tilda and the Dragon”

“There is no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish.” 💗💪🏻

In the films we looked at for class, aside from the visual representations of beauty, the princesses are sometimes described as well.

Snow White: described by the mirror as being fair and having lips as red as a rose, hair as black as ebony, and skin as white as snow.

Cinderella: described as having charm and beauty

Aurora: described by the choice as having beauty rare, her hair being full of sunshine, lips that shame red roses, and that springtime will walk wherever she goes

Ariel: described as having a beautiful voice

Belle: referenced in multiple songs as being beautiful and the most beautiful girl in town, her name also means beauty

Tiana: her beauty is never directly referenced. When beauty is discussed it is in reference to Naveen (as a joke calling him sleeping beauty), Tiana’s dream, and Evangeline

This begs a few questions:

1) How does the definition of beauty change throughout history?

2) What is the Disney Princess impact on socialized concepts of beauty? (Additionally, what is it meant to be?)

1) How does the definition of beauty change throughout history? For Disney Princesses we begin to see a larger focus on their abilities (both natural and supernatural) and their finding strength in themselves. Ariel is never referenced as being physically attractive (although she does still adhere to traditional beauty standards). Rapunzel and Elsa are often referenced more for the abilities they possess (Eugene being one of my favorite references for this with his priorities being on Rapunzel’s glowing hair). Moana’s story is never about her beauty but her stubbornness and willingness to continue to try. Does Disney still need a lot of work in this area? Absolutely. They’re headed in the right direction with less of the story/reasons for things occurring being focused on beauty, but all their princesses are still beautiful. We are seeing some differences in how they’re animated but even recently we had the whole Rapunzel/Anna/Elsa all look EXACTLY the same issue. (Which can be partially blamed on their all being related but that’s still a bit of a stretch.)

2) What is the Disney Princess impact on socialized concepts of beauty? (Additionally, what is it meant to be?) Especially in the earlier films, a lot of importance is put on beauty. Since children are often exposed at early ages to Disney and the Disney Princess movies, Disney Princesses have a huge impact on socialized concepts of beauty. The concepts we as a society have today about beauty are heavily based in the media we consumed as children and its impact on us and that shows in the way we perceive beauty. I think for what it’s meant to be, Disney is working to slowly but surely step away from the standardized form of beauty it has become known and criticized for with the Disney Princesses.

I also think about how wild it is that women get mocked and made fun of for pretending to be interested in sports and other things that are typically understood as male interests, and it seems like we’re the weird ones for doing that, but it’s crazy how there’s no pressure on men to be interested in, or at least understand anything considered feminine, like, wouldn’t you want to have knowledge about something your significant other is interested in?

femslash february ❤ day twenty-two❤ amira/sadie (princess princess ever after)