Disney movies are probably the number one choice of movies for kids as they grow up. Disney princesses in particular are especially appealing to young ones everywhere. Little Walt from Chicago has created a multi-billion dollar enterprise, all starting with a dinky little cartoon mouse. But what the cartoon mouse has led to, starting with Snow White and the Seven Dwarves in 1937, is a surplus of young girl characters who may not be the best role models for today's girls. Now this isn't going to be me going through every single Disney Princess and ripping her apart, because I truly believe they are making a come around into the 21st century (hello Merida and Elsa who don't need no man), so they have gotten better. And this isn't going to be me saying that Disney Princesses should be banned and no child should ever watch them ever again, because I myself am a big Disney fan and seriously enjoyed them all growing up! This is me taking a break from the glitz and glam of the princesses and seriously discussing the type of characters we're putting out for our kids to look up to and admire.
First, the body type all the princesses have is not realistic. I recently watched a Buzzfeed video where an artist gave the princesses realistic waistlines, and this isn't skinny shaming, because Ariel with a humanly possible waistline is still thin.
The Disney Princess archetype for body types goes like this from top to bottom:
1. Perfectly sized boobs (they aren't flat chested, but there is some cleavage)
2. Toothpick sized waistlines
3. Flat or slight bubble butt
4. Perfectly shapely legs
Yes, I realize it's a cartoon so it shouldn't matter, but if your target audience is little girls ages 2-11, you're playing a dangerous game. You are perpetuating the stereotype of what makes a body physically attractive, giving yet another example for girls to compare themselves to. Because here's the thing, little kids don't realize that a cartoon is unrealistic. When they see those characters up on screen, they really and truly believe that's how a person can look, and since they're under the category of 'princess' that only adds to the appeal.
Alright, real talk for a second. How many of you feel accurately represented by a Disney princess? *cricket cricket* That's what I thought. Growing up my favorite princess was Belle, and you wanna know why? Because she loved books and was a brunette. That's right, I loved Belle because she and I had the same hair color, how sad is that? But I think many adult women know can look back and say, "yeah, I liked so and so because we had this in common." Aside from a few physical character traits, most all Disney princesses are exactly the same. They have literally zero personality, and their storyline consists of falling in love, getting into a pickle, having the guy save them, living happily ever after. I mean, you meet a guy once, the way cooler, way more interesting villain tries to kill you, the stranger you met only once kisses you and then you get married?? What kind of bs is that (looking at you Snow White and Aurora).
You wanna know who my favorite princesses now are? Pocahontas and Mulan, cause they both fought for bigger and better things and were strong female leads (I consider both to be very underrated in the Princess category). [I love Elsa and Anna too, cause of the whole sisters before misters theme, but when Googling stuff for this post I found they aren't technically apart of the Disney Princess franchise, which is stupid.]
As I was writing this post, I realized something. My issue doesn't really lie with the modern day princesses, because I think Disney has taken off the blinders and is finally putting out characters for the modern day woman. Just like the original princesses from the 30s-50s were relevant to woman in that time period, and it makes you realize how far women have come in society. Because nowadays, women come in all shapes, sizes, and colors and are considered beautiful. Women have made huge strides in the workplace, and are continuing to make them. And most importantly, women are strong and independent, standing up and speaking their minds for what's right, no longer being damsels in distress and needing saving.
So, hats off to Disney and all the other media outlets who are finally now getting the memo and putting out female characters that we can be proud of, and finally giving little girls good, relatable role models to look up to.
