Disney Princesses Are Bad Role Models For Young Girls

It seems you often defend the classic princesses because they are made to fit their time periods. While it's true that all the stories are based off of literary works, the movies were made at a much later time; a time when women were beginning to have more equality. I don't think this is a good enough excuse. It isn't unlikely that if the Disney Company wanted to showcase a strong independent woman they would have bent the plot line and characters a bit. But the sad truth is, they didn't. While they made the stories more kid friendly, they did not bother to make the women take action. As you said before," Aurora is never given a chance to save herself and thus has no choice but to play the role of "damsel in distress."" It didn't have to be that way though. One simple change in the plot line would have kept Aurora from being put into a long sleep. If someone had informed her of the curse that had been placed on her, then she probably wouldn't have touched the spindle of a spinning wheel. In fact, her curiosity seems to have gotten the better of her. While I'd argue that curiosity is a good thing, too much of it can be fatal as seen in this case. She may have still even fallen for the prince and lived happily ever after, as Snow White may have too if her storyline was changed a bit. I'm not talking about huge changes. Aurora might have known but that wouldn't mean she still would fall into a slumber. Snow White might have been wise enough to not eat the apple but forgot. But the way that the movies are set up, they aren't given an option to be independent and therefore are even more pathetically dependent. While they do posses good qualities, this does not necessarily make them good role models for young girls. Young girls need to be taught to be strong and independent, and obedient to their parents. This is the problem with most of the newer princesses. In fact, it can be argued the Ariel, Belle, Pocahontas, Mulan, and Rapunzel all go against their parents words. Ariel is punished by her father for going to the surface because he fears she is going to get caught and killed by fisherman. She then does it anyway (again) and even goes as far to give away her best gift and change herself for the man she is enthralled with. A young girl should never be taught to change herself for a man. Belle, when rescuing her father he tells her to save herself and just get out because she still had a life to live. If she had listened, she may have never had her happy ending but she would have never known better either. Pocahontas also falls in love with a man that her father doesn't approve of and puts herself in danger for him multiple times through out the storyline. She even stood between the Englishmen and Native Americans to prevent a war which may be honorable, but it is also reckless and dangerous. Mulan takes her fathers uniform and letter to fight for the army when everyone knows that he wanted to join the fight to protect his families honor. While it may have been a noble act for her father, she also puts herself in danger and disobeys his wishes. It's by luck that she turns out to be skilled and saves the day. As I stated before, Rapunzel also disobeyed mother Gothel (the woman who kiddnapped her) and went off on an adventure. While this was arguably the better choice because she was so overbearingly protective and sheltering, it still isn't wise to run off with a stranger whom you don't know. Luckily, Flynn was a relatively nice guy and she was smart enough to con him into staying. Overall, the newer princesses are dependent (more or less), but it can also be argued that they are reckless and stupid. They often put themselves in danger despite what their parental figures say. As role models for young girls, this isn't a very good message.