Christian Anderson vs. Disney
I actually enjoyed Robert Trites' article on The Little Mermaid. Compared to the other articles we have read this semester, I think this is one of the best ones. Trites articulates his point clearly and effectively with good organization. His main point is to discuss Christian Anderson's The Little Mermaid vs Disney's version.
The main focus is on the portrayal of femininity. Disney changes Anderson's version to make is much less feminine. A strong point Trites makes is that in Anderson's version the reason the mermaid is motivated to become human is much different than in Disney's. In Anderson's version the mermaid learns from her wise grandmother that mermaids die into sea foam, and the only way for a mermaid to gain a soul is "for a human to love the mermaid so much that part of his soul flows into her and creates a soul within her" (145). In Disney's version Ariel is mainly looking for love.
I believe Trites is correct with this point, but I do not believe Disney's Ariel is only looking for love. Ariel is discontent with the way her life is with an overpowering father and Ursula. Ariel wants to explore and find a new meaning to life. However, early on she finds Prince Eric and falls in love with him.
After reading Trites' article I generally agreed with him that Disney's portrayal of femininity was far less than the original. Trites lists many reasons why that I think are important to look at. First, in the original tale the grandmother is portrayed as a wise and "positive role for the mermaid", but in Disney's she is replaced by a male bird (152). Next, there is no evil mother in Anderson's version, but instead an enchantress that supports the mermaid. Finally, in the original the sisters of the mermaid help her, but in Disney's they do absolutely nothing. In Anderson's tale all of the women are feminine and strong characters.
Comparatively, Disney's portrayal of Ariel is far better than their portrayal of Snow White, and is continuing to depict femininity more and more with characters such as Rapunzel in their recent Tangled.
I also thought this article was really interesting. The Little Mermaid has always been one of my favorite Disney films, but I never knew how much it varied from the original version. Now that I know how much more Andersen's version focused on the strength of women and Ariel's desire to gain a soul, I almost like the Disney version a little less. The story line is still entertaining and full of fun characters, but I wish Disney had kept the strength of the female characters a prominent aspect of the story. I think you're right about the progress of the Disney company and its recent creation of characters like Rapunzel and Tiana. Even though they are catching on a bit late to the trend of strong female characters eager to find more than just love, it is really nice to see Disney shifting that way.
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