Disney Princesses Are Bad Role Models For Young Girls

To close, many of the Princesses were a victim of their circumstance (as is especially the case for Aurora and Rapunzel) and the times – both the times they were written originally and the times during which the stories were retold by Disney. During these times, there were different expectations for women, and the Disney Princesses try to mirror that. While the classic Princesses – Snow White, Cinderella, and Aurora – exemplify the belief of the early-mid 1900's that women were to be obedient and behave like proper young ladies by cleaning and cooking and doing housework, the middle-age Princesses – Ariel, Belle, Pocahontas, and Mulan – as well as the moden Princesses – Tiana and Rapunzel – challenge this belief because they are a product of the 1990's and 2000's, when women were encouraged to be headstrong, independent, and ambitious. These middle-age and modern Princesses all experienced during their films some sort of "rebellious phase" in which they were disobedient, broke boundaries, and overcame certain obstacles in order to achieve their ends, all while encouraging girls to go out and make something of themselves by achieving their dreams and making a difference. Also, each Disney Princess has at least as many good qualities as bad, and more often than not, their positive characteristics outweigh the negatives. Snow White may be dependent on a Prince to save her, but she is kind, optimistic, generous, thankful for what she has, and willing to dream. While changing the stories of the Disney Princesses may make them stronger characters and, in terms of the argument you had made previously, better role models, it would also make the character no longer the character. Aurora would no longer be Sleeping Beauty if her curiosity had not led to her that strange spinning wheel. Furthermore, the majority of Disney Princesses did not focus their lives on finding love or on marrying a Prince. In fact, most found love almost by accident, much like how love generally happens in the real world. The fact that Disney Princesses usually have one parent, and that this parent is usually the father, may have an impact on what acts are seen as reckless and dangerous. Fathers are oftentimes stricter with their daughters, acting in what they see as protection and safety and benefit, however, in doing this they often sacrifice their daughters' chances of growing on their own, making their own mistakes, and learning about the world for themselves. In addition, while the Disney Princesses are all beautiful, they are rarely aware of this fact, and if they are, they do not make a big deal of it. Also, thin waistlines and nearly-perfect hair come from times when such was the norm, and many of the Princesses with these characteristics have very clear reasons why. And the non-Caucasian Princesses came about in the 1990's, with a new era of spunky and headstrong Princesses. The fact that Disney Princesses show love being found at young ages should not be seen as a flaw, since there are many people who fall in love and/or marry young. "High school sweethearts" aren't necessarily uncommon, and so depicting young love and young marriage hardly has any negative influences on young girls. And finally, it is the positives, not the negatives, that make a role model such. Disney Princesses are valued for their spunk, their independence, their ambition, their longing for adventure, their nonconformity, their inner beauty, etc. These are the traits that young girls hope to emulate. The positives and the things that they have done right are what make Princesses admirable as role models, not what they have done wrong.