Ariel
Disney’s The Little Mermaid made its big debut in theaters in 1989. Ariel, the protagonist of the film, captivates audiences with her brave, determined, adventurous, and inquisitive personality that would make any parent proud. Throughout the film she maintains a strong relationship with her three best friends, Flounder, Sebastian, and Scuttle, which demonstrates the importance of friendship to the film’s young viewers.
Ariel is raised solely by her father, King Triton, thus the audience pities or may even empathize with Ariel’s plight of being raised in a single-parent home. She is the youngest child and has six older sisters, which drives her to stand out amongst the rest and be so independent. She often explores shipwrecks and ventures to the surface of the ocean, against her father’s wishes, to collect human possessions. Her adventurous and fearless personality makes her an exciting Disney Princess to emulate.
Ariel is beautiful and moves with grace and poise throughout the film, with the exception of when she first gets her legs. The use of complementary colors for her hair and her tail make her aesthetically pleasing to the eye. In addition, her big, bright, and inquisitive eyes provide her with a sense of innocence, which helps characterize her as being only sixteen. Young viewers enjoy watching this aquatic Disney Princess because of her color palette, her charm, and her acrobatic movements.
When Ariel is conflicted about how to handle her love for Prince Eric, she makes the brave decision to meet with the evil sea witch, Ursula. It took a lot of courage for Ariel to even meet with Urusla and then even more when she decided to trade her voice for legs and leave her family. Ariel is very confident in herself and her abilities to accept the legs in exchange for her voice, knowing she only has three days to make Prince Eric fall in love with her and cannot verbally persuade him. Her confidence sets a great example for the film’s audience as it suggests everyone should believe in his or her own abilities.
At the end of the film, Ariel’s confidence and loyalty to her friends pay off. Urusal disguises herself as a beautiful woman and uses Ariel’s voice to trick Prince Eric into marrying her. Ariel’s friends inform her of Ursula’s plan and help her break up the wedding, which results in Ariel getting her voice back and Prince Eric realizing he wants to marry her. If it had not been for her persistence, self-confidence, and loyalty to her friends throughout the film, Ariel would never have had her happy ending.
With Eric’s help, Ariel is able to defeat Ursula and free her father from Ursula’s evil reign. King Triton realizes how much his daughter loves Prince Eric and uses his magical triton to once again transform her fins into legs, demonstrating his unconditional love for his daughter. Ariel and Prince Eric are wed and the audience has learned a plethora of important life lessons: the importance of being loyal to your friends, you can do anything you set your mind to, it is important to have self-confidence, and your family is more understanding than you think.
But what if this is not the message our kids are getting from The Little Mermaid? What if the film sends subliminal messages disguised as a wholesome family film?
Ariel is raised solely by her father, King Triton, thus the audience pities or may even empathize with Ariel’s plight of being raised in a single-parent home. She is the youngest child and has six older sisters, which drives her to stand out amongst the rest and be so independent. She often explores shipwrecks and ventures to the surface of the ocean, against her father’s wishes, to collect human possessions. Her adventurous and fearless personality makes her an exciting Disney Princess to emulate.
Ariel is beautiful and moves with grace and poise throughout the film, with the exception of when she first gets her legs. The use of complementary colors for her hair and her tail make her aesthetically pleasing to the eye. In addition, her big, bright, and inquisitive eyes provide her with a sense of innocence, which helps characterize her as being only sixteen. Young viewers enjoy watching this aquatic Disney Princess because of her color palette, her charm, and her acrobatic movements.
When Ariel is conflicted about how to handle her love for Prince Eric, she makes the brave decision to meet with the evil sea witch, Ursula. It took a lot of courage for Ariel to even meet with Urusla and then even more when she decided to trade her voice for legs and leave her family. Ariel is very confident in herself and her abilities to accept the legs in exchange for her voice, knowing she only has three days to make Prince Eric fall in love with her and cannot verbally persuade him. Her confidence sets a great example for the film’s audience as it suggests everyone should believe in his or her own abilities.
At the end of the film, Ariel’s confidence and loyalty to her friends pay off. Urusal disguises herself as a beautiful woman and uses Ariel’s voice to trick Prince Eric into marrying her. Ariel’s friends inform her of Ursula’s plan and help her break up the wedding, which results in Ariel getting her voice back and Prince Eric realizing he wants to marry her. If it had not been for her persistence, self-confidence, and loyalty to her friends throughout the film, Ariel would never have had her happy ending.
With Eric’s help, Ariel is able to defeat Ursula and free her father from Ursula’s evil reign. King Triton realizes how much his daughter loves Prince Eric and uses his magical triton to once again transform her fins into legs, demonstrating his unconditional love for his daughter. Ariel and Prince Eric are wed and the audience has learned a plethora of important life lessons: the importance of being loyal to your friends, you can do anything you set your mind to, it is important to have self-confidence, and your family is more understanding than you think.
But what if this is not the message our kids are getting from The Little Mermaid? What if the film sends subliminal messages disguised as a wholesome family film?
