The Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Animated Characters: From Mickey Mouse to Hercules by
John Grant
Character Description of King Triton from "The Little Mermaid" (1989)
The character of Triton is in many ways rather nondescript, for the mer-king's role in both the plot and the emotional subtext of the movie is as a symbol - and, at that, a symbol of two different things. First, he is the symbol of constitutional authority, convention and staidness: he is the establishment against which Ariel is rebelling, the past which she wishes to leave behind. Second, he symbolizes parental authority; in this...
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