In the last week, there’s been a lot of talk about Merida–first with her coronation into Disney’s royal court of princesses at Cinderella’s Castle in Walt Disney World a week ago Saturday and then the creator of Merida came out in protest of Disney’s “makeover” of Merida. I’ve always considered myself a girly girl and love all things princess, but in all honesty, as a mother of three boys, all things princess are typically not on my radar. These Merida issues have given me food for thought and here’s what I think on the matter. I’m not looking for a debate; it’s just the way I see things. Maybe I’m right and maybe I’m wrong and maybe since I don’t have girls I’m totally out in left field.
Let’s start with the coronation. I was honored to be part of this exciting and hallowed occasion. The ceremony welcomed Merida into Disney’s royal court of princesses in a celebration of her strength, self reliance and courage. Here’s a video of the special occasion.
In the past, parents have complained that Disney princesses teach girls to “look for their prince charming” and do not provide positive role models. There is no denying that Disney movies reflect the female gender roles of the time in which they are produced. Many Disney films–like Snow White and Cinderella—were made when women did wait for their prince charming and didn’t have the power they have today. Sure no one really wants their daughter to wait around for Mr. Right to make things happen, but we just can’t hold those films accountable to today’s ideals. To combat those undeniable themes in early Disney princess movies, Disney has created the “I am a princess” campaign that focuses on the princesses’ positive, strong attributes–whether it’s courage, compassion, resourcefulness or hope. In the case of more recent princesses, like Mulan, Jasmine and Merida, it’s easy for little girls to find solid role models with great strength and modern gender roles we can all appreciate.
Recently, the creator of Merida came out in protest of some artwork that depicted Merida as a bit more adult (prettied-up) appearance. Her freckles were lessened, her hair less frizzy and her waist a bit thinned. I understand the frustration with this. It is very important that girls have realistic role models and Merida certainly provided that for young girls. However, what Merida’s creator (and people who are outraged by the alternate artwork) fail to realize or recognize is that alternate character art is nothing new and that characters are often marketed differently to different audiences. Whether it’s Lightning McQueen, Snow White or Mickey Mouse, characters are drawn differently for different marketing campaigns to attract different consumers because they are a commodity.
This particular piece of art was used to welcome Merida into the princess collection and was not intended to replace the way Merida is used in Disney Consumer Products across the board. My favorite princess is Snow White and I’ve seen a number of different “versions” of her over the years. Some I’ve liked and some I haven’t. And even though Merida looked a bit different in those specific pieces in question, what hasn’t changed and will never change is what she looks like in the movie–which is really the most important piece of art of all, as well as her message of self reliance, strength and courage. Remember when Minnie Mouse was dressed in couture and made “model skinny” over the holidays in a Barney’s campaign? Disney fans were outraged but when it comes down to it, Minnie is still Minnie and full of sugar, spice and everything nice.
On a side note, I would like to say that as a professional writer and the wife of a television producer, my husband and I have both been victims of companies we’ve worked for taking our creative intellectual property and changing it in a way we did not intend. It happens… a lot. Us creative types get very invested in our creations and seeing them altered can be frustrating, even downright heart breaking, but when it comes down to it, once we turn our creations over to “the man” (or “the mouse”), they are no longer ours. It stinks, but it’s just the way it is.
According to reports from Disney, Merida will continue being Merida on merchandise–in her original glory–and as parents and consumers, it is up to us to purchase the version of her that we most identify with. The choice is ours and how we spend our money will determine the best-selling Merida of all.
