May 24, 2010
How to get the girl…Disney-style
Sorry, socially-awkward/modestly-remunerated/average-looking dudes—
We’re straight out of luck…
Perhaps The Beast could be mentioned as a counterpoint, but even he is rich, (in)famous, likable (if not charming) and impressively machismatic.
…At least compared to some other interpretations:
Update: Thanks to Sarah for pointing out that the guy on the bottom right is the Beast, post true love. I need to brush up on my Disney.
But my point still stands that, as a beast, he was pretty awesome. In fact, I’d say his transformation was a demotion…but that’s for the ladies to decide.
* * * * *
The Beast is actually in that picture… he’s the bottom right. I also liked one of the responses to that picture: http://thedailywh.at/post/625430279/reddit
Apparently, I don’t know my Disney too well…Thanks!
We have some books you could borrow…
i have always maintained that his transformation was a demotion, though never with those words.
flashback to my first viewing of the movie when i was about 12: the beast was in the air, slowly spinning around as the curse was being lifted. he finally revealed his new face with a dramatic up-turn of the head–i cringed in inward dismay!
go back! go back!
and by 12 i mean 7. (did it really come out in ’91?!)
Have you ever noticed how similar the Beauty and the Beast story line is to the story of Jepthath in Judges?
Here’s a response with what’s wrong with the Disney Princesses, and why they deserve each other.
I absolutely think the Beast’s transformation was a demotion and have always openly said so. It seems like a cop-out from the “moral” of the movie.
The moral that it’s what’s inside that matters and you need to learn to look past appearances to who people really are. Just after they finish teaching the kids that, they turn the Beast into a dream prince, which ruins the whole thing.
As a girl, I’d happily marry the Beast (Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney movie), but I don’t want anything to do with the Prince. He’s not the same person anymore.
And in that, Shrek is such a better example! Shrek doesn’t get turned into a handsome prince, no, Fiona keeps her ugly beast status and everyone learns the lesson that it’s what’s on the inside that counts.
I too, was disappointed when the Beast became man. There goes his whole appeal…
Read Robin McKinley’s “Rose Daughter” for a story in which the Beast says himself. :)
Talk about unrealistic expectations. We ladies also have to be perfect hourglasses, with hair that stays in place even when we’re swimming, and have lovely singing voices as well.
And Sleeping Beauty only has to wait 22 seconds between wishing for a husband and meeting Prince Charming.
Your blog needs a “like” button, Abraham. And I should be able to click it a couple thousand times for comments like this one.
Thanks, that’s really sweet and made my day. Love your blog, btw!
Thank you! :)
Belle sings:
“There’s something sweet and almost kind,
but he was mean and he was course and unrefined”
No, actually, he threw your dad into a dungeon and now he’s keeping you prisoner for the rest of your life.
An interesting take, but is the writer giving the princesses too much credit here? Not many 6 year olds can interpret Alladin as “Its okay if a guy lies to you to impress you if he’s cute.”
Now, Twilight, on the other hand ….
I’ve often been disturbed by the subliminal messages about romance and men that my young Disney-indoctrinated mind was subject to asborb.
http://thatsnotfunnymisskatie.wordpress.com/2008/12/09/there-are-many-things-that-i-would-like-to-say-to-you/
Must agree on the demotion for the Beast with his transformation. Beams of light blasting out of fingers and toes doesn’t really do it for me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ms05La1pDIU
I’d definitely have been running away screaming then, if somehow I miraculously made it past 0:17
I now blame you, 22Words author, for making me question the ethics behind showing my future children Disney princess movies, which, by the way, I was really looking forward to. (Maybe that says something about me from childhood—brainwashed by Disney.)
Face it, we say it’s what is on the inside, but how many really blatantly ugly people have you dated, loved or married? God gave us eyes to see a first impression, then a brain and ears to hear what comes out of the mouth and then make a decision. Some people don’t get pass the eye test. BE HONEST! So which came first, that syndrome where women fall in love with their captor or Disney movies showing us that, then…
May I ask what “machismatic” means? A cursory google search did not answer that question.