A live action remake of Beauty and the Beast recently came out and if you haven't seen it, you really should. It's now one of my favorite movies. But with this tale as old as time, there are many different arguments. For example, that Belle has Stockholm Syndrome. I would like to just take a moment to argue against that.
For just a moment, put yourself in the beast's shoes. Imagine you were living a luxurious life. You had everything and you never needed anybody in your life. And then you piss off an enchantress. Now, not only are your trapped in the body of an animal, but you have trapped the very people that have loved you and raised you. AND the only way you can be freed is by the help of someone else. How would you feel? After many years of being trapped and alone, I think I would be pretty angry too.
Yes, it is pretty ridiculous to give someone a life sentence over a rose, but if a rose was what brought you into this mess, I'm sure most would have a similar reaction - I was punished for a rose and you should be too!
Now let's look at another piece of the story. How many of you have gotten into a relationship with someone and after a period of time (maybe even years) realized that you had no idea who they were. Perhaps they even had a temper or an anger issue that proved very dangerous.
When Belle meets the beast, she knows exactly who he is from the start. She knows him at his worst, and later, will get to see him at his best. She knows what she's getting into. But she also knows there is so much more to him. She pulls him out of his grumpy stupor. Out of his vain imaginations. She falls in love with who he really is and what he looks like doesn't matter. She saw him for who he truly was, uncovered what had been buried and saw the beauty in it. Saw his love and intellect - saw someone who loved to read as much as she did, who loved to have fun, and who loved to dance. Someone who has been dealt a bad hand of cards and just needed someone to show them they could get through. That there was a bright side.
So yeah, maybe it is a little weird that she fell in love with her captor. But would most captors treat her that way? Protect her from wolves and sacrifice themselves? Not harm or assault her? Give her a library?Maybe some would do that, give them what they think they want. But I still don't think so.
The beast may not have known at the beginning, but Belle was very much like him - an outsider, someone who didn't fit in. And then he gave her what she has always wanted - an unlimited supply of books!
I see it as a beautiful love story where a girl sees a man for who he truly is and loves him all the same. Or maybe I'm just a hopeless romantic and simply want to only see the good in people.
