Mia Thermopolis became my favorite Disney princess when "The Princess Diaries" movie premiered in 2001. I watched the movies more times than I can count, but it wasn’t until 6th grade I discovered the book series by Meg Cabot. I would flip through the pages of one of the numerous "The Princess Diaries" novels past my bedtime with a flashlight in hand. Meg Cabot is solely responsible for my lack of sleep during middle school. The series is based around the concept of every little girl’s dream; a teenage girl who goes through normal girl problems but also happens to be a princess. From the start, Mia is quirky, flawed and realistic. As a 5-year-old watching the movie, these characteristics seemed cute and funny when portrayed by Anne Hathaway. However, when I read the series in middle school I realized Ms. Cabot created a well-rounded role model for young girls. Now, as a young woman in college, I have a new found respect for both Mia and Meg.
When the reader first meets Mia, she is starting her first year of high school. She develops a strong work ethic and passion for her studies as the series continues. Mia is, first and foremost, a student. She cares about her grades and aims for achievement in her studies. That’s not to say that sometimes she doesn’t do so well in algebra, but she always picks herself back up again. I could relate as a middle school girl who didn’t like math class, but I could also find inspiration in this character to do better in my studies. In the novels, Mia wants to attend Sarah Lawrence College and achieve a career path as a published writer. By writing such a smart and goal oriented character, Meg Cabot encourages young girls to take their school work seriously and strive for career goals.
Another point that makes Mia a realistic role model is her friendships. Friends fight. Friends forgive. It’s an important lesson Meg Cabot reiterates in her series, which shows an authentic friendship to a young female audience. By reading Mia’s frustrations and failures with friendship, teen girls understand conflict happens with friends. They can also see, through the lessons Mia learns, that friendship can last and strengthen through tough times too. In Mia’s personal thoughts, Meg Cabot shows how girls can handle confrontation and frustrations with friends.
Most importantly, Mia taught me how to deal with stress. Mia juggles a lot of responsibility on top of her school work, clubs, and relationships and, of course, princess duties. In the diary format, the reader is able to read the honest thoughts and feelings of a young girl. The audience of young girls can learn from the lessons and hardship Mia goes through during high school. From the perspective of a young woman, Meg Cabot influences an audience of young girls to handle their stresses in healthy ways, like writing in a personal diary.
Mia is a princess, not because of her genes, but because of the characteristics that supply her with being a good role model for young women. Her flaws and quirks show her as a realistic person, someone to relate to as an awkward preteen girl. I always enjoyed watching Mia’s glamorous transformation from a teen girl to a princess on the big screen; however, Meg Cabot’s written words impacted me the most. Throughout middle school I continued to read as Mia developed into a strong go-getter, which inspired me to be the same. Meg Cabot’s inspired an entire generation of girls to stay smart, stay true and stay royal. What literary figure inspires you?
