Our Disney Princesses, Ourselves

I might be generalizing a bit here, but I think it is safe to say most girls spent their childhood watching all the Disney princess movies, singing along to the catchy songs and imagining a life as her favorite princess. This is a wholesome and normal stage in girls I think, like the way boys have toy lightsaber duels and play pirate in the backyard. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with the girls who spent their childhood playing football with their brothers or loved to play video games, I’m just assuming that most girls enjoyed playing princess like how most boys would choose a nerf war over a tea party.

Logically, then, these Disney princesses play a significant role in shaping the self-expectations and ideal image in many girls; this fact is evident in how Disney princesses evolved to better combat the feminine issues of the time.

Let’s start at the very beginning- the first Disney princess, Snow White, debuted in 1937. American girls awed at this traditional male-hero dependent story in the time Americans were regaining confidence in the economy after the Great Depression. The movie conveys a very clear-cut message: let the men do the rescuing and the dirty work. It is surprising just how powerless Snow White is- her Seven Dwarves do all the chores, she foolishly eats the poisoned apple, and Prince Charming has to rescue her. This reflects the ideal woman of the era, the housewife that obeyed her husband. In fact, this was the bread-and-butter storyline of Disney for the next couple of decades- Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Ariel, etc.

As the society began to change for more feminine independence and freedom, the princesses who carried the “idealistic” views of women at the time changed as well. With the introduction of more developed and strong princesses in the likes of Mulan and Pocahontas, Disney sought to influence the progressive generation. These princesses had a purpose and acted boldly to do what was right. I don’t think it’s wrong to say that these new bold princesses had an influence in the feminist movement of the 90s-2000’s.

Disney princesses nowadays are even more developed- the evident equality between Rapunzel and Flynn in their funny relationship (Tangled), a completely prince-free Merida in Brave, and even a “Prince Charming” antagonist against the princess’s love for a common boy in Frozen. As Disney breaks more gender stereotypes and traditional images, I believe that it will continue to break down the societal images of women in the future generations.