I don't know if I'm alone on this, but I've become quite tired of everyone bashing the earlier princesses and saying they're bad role models for girls. Personally, I think parents shouldn't be relying on fictional, animated characters to be the role models... but that's a whole different issue altogether. In this article I want to address the common complaints towards the princesses: waiting around for/needing a man, not being independent, etc...

Snow White:

I want to start with a reminder that Snow White is only 14-years-old. Face it, her story is no different than any other 14-year-old girl's: still lives at home, does chores, daydreams about the guy she likes. Keeping that in mind, it isn't fair to say that she isn't a good role model because she isn't independent; very few 14-year-old girls are. And they don't need to be, that's the point. And I don't like that everyone says she's sitting around waiting for a man. That's not true. Her step mom tried to have her killed. She had to run away from home to save herself, but she literally didn't know anyone. She was fortunate enough to come across the dwarfs and they took her in. It's inaccurate to say she stayed in their cottage, just waiting for her prince. As far as she knew, that was her new home considering her old home was no longer safe and she didn't know anyone else. But, she pulled her own weight by cooking and cleaning. True, in the end she DID need a man, but that wasn't by choice or anything. She was under a spell and couldn't exactly wake herself up with True Love's Kiss; even the most feminist of women can't pull off that trick. Blame the Evil Queen for Snow White depending on a man- Snow White had nothing to do with it. Snow White is, hands down, the kindest of all the Princesses. Yes, she was also naive; but she was very young and had absolutely no real world experience. She was just being caring and helpful to someone she thought was in need. If anything, we could all use a little bit of Snow White in us; true no good deed goes unpunished, but that doesn't mean we should turn our backs on those in need. In this case, Snow White was a very good influence.

Aurora:

There really isn't too much to say about Aurora since she actually wasn't in the majority of her film. She was a lonely girl. All she had was her family; no friends, thinking she had no real chance at love or much of a future. So, she daydreamed about the life she wanted and I think most people can relate to that. True, it probably wasn't smart to talk to a man she had never met before, despite the fairies' warning. But, let's be honest: if any one of us were in her situation, we would do the EXACT same thing. I mean, who doesn't want to dance with a handsome, mysterious stranger in the woods? Her only real flaw was refusing to tell Phillip her name, but being more than willing to tell him where she lived. As far as being independent, again, she was still young and didn't have much of a choice. The fairies most likely didn't give her a lot of freedom and then she was forced into the life of a princess. And, like, Snow White, the whole needing a man to save her wasn't exactly what she wanted. She was put under a curse that only a kiss could break. There was nothing she could do for herself at that point. If anything, Snow White and Aurora only teach us that you need a man to rescue you if you happen to find yourself under a curse by a witch or sorceress. But, let's be honest: how often does that really happen nowadays?

Cinderella:

One thing that bothers me is when everyone says Tiana is the first hard working princess. That's not true. Think about all the stuff Cinderella had to do. She basically, single handedly took care of the house and held it together. If anything, Cinderella is the most like stay at home and single moms (Without the kids... unless you count the animals, which she also took care of by herself): overworked, never appreciated and completely under valued. Cinderella lived with her family and made absolutely no money: she couldn't leave and start her own life. She was as independent as someone in her situation could be. Technically, she did need a man to "save" her, but she wasn't waiting around for him to do so. She had very little control over her own life, but it was her life and she had accepted it. Of course that didn't stop her from wanting more, like everyone else. She daydreamed about what it would be like to not be a servant anymore and treated as an equal. With very little exposure to the outside world, she couldn't really meet a man- so her only option was to go to the ball and hope he would choose her. Of course, it can be argued that Cinderella could have just left and tried making it on her own. And that's true, she could have. But then that would have meant living in the streets until she somehow earned enough money to get her own place. But, let's be honest, hardly anyone actually hires homeless people.


One more thing I think everyone really needs to keep in mind is that Snow White, Aurora and Cinderella are women of very different times. Everyone is constantly judging them by how women are in the 21st century, but they're not supposed to represent women of today. Now, it's more common for women to have a career and her own life before getting married. But, if a woman wants to get married, have a family, cook, clean and take care of the house, that's totally okay! Everyone gets one shot at life and if a girl wants to be more like Snow White and less like Mulan, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. Disney movies are made for entertainment with some life lessons thrown in there, but they're not meant to be scripts for your life.


You can still be kind like Snow White and still join the Army like Mulan. Or be too trusting like Aurora and still stand up for what you believe in like Pocahontas. You can be the one taking care of the household every day like Cinderella and still not need a man in your life like Elsa. Be whoever you are and live your life the way YOU want to; it doesn't matter if you happen to be more like Snow White and less like Mulan. And don't let anyone tell you differently.