This is my first article on this website, so I thought I'd start with my opinions on how I feel about each one! I had a little bit of a hard time ranking them because I just really love them all so much!! I suppose it's because one of my college english professors thought they were all horrible role models, so I always feel the need to defend them all because all her reasons are based off of things that never happened in the movie. I also wanted to stay pretty positive for the most part because I feel like they get enough hate already.
13. Surprise, surprise...Aurora's at the bottom. However there lots of things I really love about her like her voice, her beauty and her wardrobe. Sleeping Beauty is one of my favorite Disney movies of all time even, however I just don't connect too strongly with Aurora. I would have loved to see more of her in the original.
12. Next is Rapunzel. Rapunzel is adorable, determined, sometimes insecure and smart and I like those aspects about her. And I also like that she proves that a female character can be tough and girly at the same time. However, I do think she's a little too perfect. I feel like the writers were trying so hard not too offend anyone so they just took all the "positive" qualities from past princesses and put them all on her. Lost princess - Aurora, locked away and marries a thief - Jasmine. Likes to read - Belle. Etc.
11. Then there was Pocahontas. Although she's a princess I grew up on, I'm not her biggest fan. I love her spirit and I absolutely love what she stands for - peace and looking past differences. I even love her relationship with Grandmother Willow and her father. Though it makes her "more relatable", I find her indecisiveness can be very frustrating . I feel like she never even makes the effort to confront her father about her issues, unlike some other princess which I like a lot more.
This portion of the list is entirely interchangeable. The amount of emotional attachment for these characters is equal for each.
10. I feel like people who love or hate Cinderella have never seen her movie. They either love her because she has the ultimate rags to riches story or they hate her because she's a "damsel in distress" which I don't really think is true. Anyways, I really love her subtle sass, whether she is yelling at the clock or if she's disrupting music lessons. And though critics might say she's stupid, I think she showed many glimpses of genius - pointing out that every maiden was invited, telling the birds to get Bruno, having the other glass slipper. I also really like that she's passionate about her dreams and holds on to her beliefs by never going down to her step-family's level - it's extremely admirable in my opinion.
9. Belle's been getting quite a bit of hate lately and I don't appreciate that. While I agree that her fangirls can be annoying, I don't think they should be a reason to hate her. I think she's a character you can easily relate to and I love that. I can definitely relate to feeling like an "oddball" like her, but I could care less that she reads. I love her relationship with her father and that she was willing to sacrifice her life for his. And yes, she has her flaws but I really don't care - it just makes her a more interesting character (If characters never made mistakes, how would most of these Disney plots be driven?)
8. I hope Merida doesn't shoot me for putting her here, but oh well. I like Merida, but to me she has a similar problem as Rapunzel. I feel like she always gets praised as the "first disney princess to *blank*" when she's not, granted she has rightful claim as the first pixar princess. As I was watching the movie for the first time, I couldn't help but think how similar she was to past princesses - Jasmine, Ariel, Mulan, Pocahontas which is fine but then she gets treated as the most original and progressive character ever which I don't approve of (suddenly people forgot about Rapunzel and Tiana as well). But, I love Merida's relationship with her mother because it did help her develop. I do like that they tried to compromise and see eye to eye. I love her free spirit and that she tries to fight for a better way to handle marriage.
7. To tell the truth, I initially thought I was going to like Anna more than Elsa before watching Frozen, but I was wrong. I love that Anna's an actual source of humor and that she really wants to establish relationships and that she's an awkward real girl. However I do think they may have pushed it a little too far - her constant apologizing and need to correct herself became pretty annoying very quickly. But despite it all, she's just a lovable goofball, so I can't be too mad.
This portion of the list is where I feel very emotionally attached to the princesses. They are my absolute favorites and I don't think their positions are going to change anytime soon.
6. As I've already alluded to, I love Elsa more than Anna. I feel like she provides a very unique perspective to the Disney Princesses. Personally, I believe that she doesn't feel like a re-hash of past princesses nor does she feel forced. Although I will admit that she reminds me a lot of Superman, Spiderman and even Batman, "with great power comes great responsibility." Unlike Rapunzel, her power has the potential to hurt others which I think is an interesting concept for a Disney Princess. I like that she's reserved because she's so afraid of hurting others and that she still puts a veneer up - I think that's very relatable. And she has some pretty awesome style.
5. Tiana is my favorite modern princess!! I love how relatable she is because she chooses to work hard for a very concrete dream, like me pursuing medicine. I also love how dedicated she is to her father's dream. I also love that she's a quick thinker with amazing sass and style. I also like that despite all that, she can't always pick up a hint - like at the end of "Dig a little deeper."
4. I've always loved Snow White!! She's so adorable. My favorite scene with her is at the beginning when she first meets the prince, she runs away and hides behind a curtain, then she tries to make herself look pretty even though she's wearing some tattered rags. She's so cute!! I also like that she's secretly sassy and that she can command a bunch of forest animals to clean - I would love to have that ability!! I also appreciate her optimism and how she always remains positive.
3. Ariel is one of my childhood favorites and I don't really care what Ariel haters have to say because you don't see her the way that I do. I love her passion and her bubbly personality, it's just so wonderful (sorry for the bad attempt at mimicking Ariel). I like that she has a clash with her father, she tries and fails to convince her father that not all humans are bad - that's sort of something I can relate to. I love her curiosity and that she wants to know so much more. Plus she's adorable, especially in the dinner scene with the fork.
2. Mulan is another childhood favorite. Though I do think she has become overrated for all the wrong reasons like her ability to fight (I believe Jasmine was the first princess who knew how to combat) or that she's constantly mislabeled as a "tomboy." Despite the ignorant fangirls, I love Mulan for so many reasons.
I really like that she sort of fails at both gender roles, she can't be the perfect bride or the perfect soldier, but when she eventually puts in the effort she proves everyone wrong - I love that so much!! I adore her relationship with her father, it reminds me kind of my own, especially at the end when it turns out that the most precious gift of all was having her for a daughter - it almost always makes me cry. On a side note, does it bother anyone else when people try to argue that Mulan shouldn't be included even though she's official?
1. What, Jasmine is #1 on somebody's list? Yes, she's always been my favorite though that may have something to do with the facts that she was the first Disney princess I ever watched, she comes from my favorite Disney movie of all time and the fact that she's Arab like me doesn't hurt at all (though it does not mean that I think that you should be forced to like a princess just because she looks like you). But besides the superficial reasons, I love so many things about Jasmine like how she wants to have genuine relationships where she is appreciated whether it be a marriage relationship, friendship or whatever. I also like that she's never had a true friend and that she is kind of lonely (although almost every Disney princess is a loner in some way). I love her relationship with Rajah, he's always there for her. I like that she's angry and that she wants to be heard or else she'll be dismissed on the sole fact that she's a girl. I also love that behind her tough girl exterior, she's really sweet and loving like when she's with her father or giving the little boy in the market an apple. I love her desire for freedom and adventure and that even though she wants her independence she still has to rely on her father - that's something that's really relatable for a lot of college students. I love her sassiness and her amazing style and that she's kind of fearless. I just love Princess Jasmine so much and I think she's just as awesome in the tv series!!!
13. Surprise, surprise...Aurora's at the bottom. However there lots of things I really love about her like her voice, her beauty and her wardrobe. Sleeping Beauty is one of my favorite Disney movies of all time even, however I just don't connect too strongly with Aurora. I would have loved to see more of her in the original.
12. Next is Rapunzel. Rapunzel is adorable, determined, sometimes insecure and smart and I like those aspects about her. And I also like that she proves that a female character can be tough and girly at the same time. However, I do think she's a little too perfect. I feel like the writers were trying so hard not too offend anyone so they just took all the "positive" qualities from past princesses and put them all on her. Lost princess - Aurora, locked away and marries a thief - Jasmine. Likes to read - Belle. Etc.
11. Then there was Pocahontas. Although she's a princess I grew up on, I'm not her biggest fan. I love her spirit and I absolutely love what she stands for - peace and looking past differences. I even love her relationship with Grandmother Willow and her father. Though it makes her "more relatable", I find her indecisiveness can be very frustrating . I feel like she never even makes the effort to confront her father about her issues, unlike some other princess which I like a lot more.
This portion of the list is entirely interchangeable. The amount of emotional attachment for these characters is equal for each.
10. I feel like people who love or hate Cinderella have never seen her movie. They either love her because she has the ultimate rags to riches story or they hate her because she's a "damsel in distress" which I don't really think is true. Anyways, I really love her subtle sass, whether she is yelling at the clock or if she's disrupting music lessons. And though critics might say she's stupid, I think she showed many glimpses of genius - pointing out that every maiden was invited, telling the birds to get Bruno, having the other glass slipper. I also really like that she's passionate about her dreams and holds on to her beliefs by never going down to her step-family's level - it's extremely admirable in my opinion.
9. Belle's been getting quite a bit of hate lately and I don't appreciate that. While I agree that her fangirls can be annoying, I don't think they should be a reason to hate her. I think she's a character you can easily relate to and I love that. I can definitely relate to feeling like an "oddball" like her, but I could care less that she reads. I love her relationship with her father and that she was willing to sacrifice her life for his. And yes, she has her flaws but I really don't care - it just makes her a more interesting character (If characters never made mistakes, how would most of these Disney plots be driven?)
8. I hope Merida doesn't shoot me for putting her here, but oh well. I like Merida, but to me she has a similar problem as Rapunzel. I feel like she always gets praised as the "first disney princess to *blank*" when she's not, granted she has rightful claim as the first pixar princess. As I was watching the movie for the first time, I couldn't help but think how similar she was to past princesses - Jasmine, Ariel, Mulan, Pocahontas which is fine but then she gets treated as the most original and progressive character ever which I don't approve of (suddenly people forgot about Rapunzel and Tiana as well). But, I love Merida's relationship with her mother because it did help her develop. I do like that they tried to compromise and see eye to eye. I love her free spirit and that she tries to fight for a better way to handle marriage.
7. To tell the truth, I initially thought I was going to like Anna more than Elsa before watching Frozen, but I was wrong. I love that Anna's an actual source of humor and that she really wants to establish relationships and that she's an awkward real girl. However I do think they may have pushed it a little too far - her constant apologizing and need to correct herself became pretty annoying very quickly. But despite it all, she's just a lovable goofball, so I can't be too mad.
This portion of the list is where I feel very emotionally attached to the princesses. They are my absolute favorites and I don't think their positions are going to change anytime soon.
6. As I've already alluded to, I love Elsa more than Anna. I feel like she provides a very unique perspective to the Disney Princesses. Personally, I believe that she doesn't feel like a re-hash of past princesses nor does she feel forced. Although I will admit that she reminds me a lot of Superman, Spiderman and even Batman, "with great power comes great responsibility." Unlike Rapunzel, her power has the potential to hurt others which I think is an interesting concept for a Disney Princess. I like that she's reserved because she's so afraid of hurting others and that she still puts a veneer up - I think that's very relatable. And she has some pretty awesome style.
5. Tiana is my favorite modern princess!! I love how relatable she is because she chooses to work hard for a very concrete dream, like me pursuing medicine. I also love how dedicated she is to her father's dream. I also love that she's a quick thinker with amazing sass and style. I also like that despite all that, she can't always pick up a hint - like at the end of "Dig a little deeper."
4. I've always loved Snow White!! She's so adorable. My favorite scene with her is at the beginning when she first meets the prince, she runs away and hides behind a curtain, then she tries to make herself look pretty even though she's wearing some tattered rags. She's so cute!! I also like that she's secretly sassy and that she can command a bunch of forest animals to clean - I would love to have that ability!! I also appreciate her optimism and how she always remains positive.
3. Ariel is one of my childhood favorites and I don't really care what Ariel haters have to say because you don't see her the way that I do. I love her passion and her bubbly personality, it's just so wonderful (sorry for the bad attempt at mimicking Ariel). I like that she has a clash with her father, she tries and fails to convince her father that not all humans are bad - that's sort of something I can relate to. I love her curiosity and that she wants to know so much more. Plus she's adorable, especially in the dinner scene with the fork.
2. Mulan is another childhood favorite. Though I do think she has become overrated for all the wrong reasons like her ability to fight (I believe Jasmine was the first princess who knew how to combat) or that she's constantly mislabeled as a "tomboy." Despite the ignorant fangirls, I love Mulan for so many reasons.
I really like that she sort of fails at both gender roles, she can't be the perfect bride or the perfect soldier, but when she eventually puts in the effort she proves everyone wrong - I love that so much!! I adore her relationship with her father, it reminds me kind of my own, especially at the end when it turns out that the most precious gift of all was having her for a daughter - it almost always makes me cry. On a side note, does it bother anyone else when people try to argue that Mulan shouldn't be included even though she's official?
1. What, Jasmine is #1 on somebody's list? Yes, she's always been my favorite though that may have something to do with the facts that she was the first Disney princess I ever watched, she comes from my favorite Disney movie of all time and the fact that she's Arab like me doesn't hurt at all (though it does not mean that I think that you should be forced to like a princess just because she looks like you). But besides the superficial reasons, I love so many things about Jasmine like how she wants to have genuine relationships where she is appreciated whether it be a marriage relationship, friendship or whatever. I also like that she's never had a true friend and that she is kind of lonely (although almost every Disney princess is a loner in some way). I love her relationship with Rajah, he's always there for her. I like that she's angry and that she wants to be heard or else she'll be dismissed on the sole fact that she's a girl. I also love that behind her tough girl exterior, she's really sweet and loving like when she's with her father or giving the little boy in the market an apple. I love her desire for freedom and adventure and that even though she wants her independence she still has to rely on her father - that's something that's really relatable for a lot of college students. I love her sassiness and her amazing style and that she's kind of fearless. I just love Princess Jasmine so much and I think she's just as awesome in the tv series!!!
