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The princess phase only lasted about two years in our household. It had a lot more to do with pretty dresses than any deeper meaning.
I wish I could keep her interested in princesses. I'm much more concerned about the role models that MTV and network tv are putting forward for my daughter than I am about sweet Ariel
ETA not that I let her watch that junk but its out there all the same.
Or dolls they just think are pretty. I remember being seven and asking Granny Aconite for a black Barbie doll. I will spare you her response, but my sister finally bought me one for my fortieth.
When I was a kid she had her own name; Christie. She had a blue box, so I liked her better too.
oh and maybe that's why the girls in Disney movies are delinquent... So yes they would be bad for our daughters to watch!!! The learning isn't all there!!!
When those particular movies came out, they were marketed heavily....(at least Aladdin, Mulan and Pocahontas - those were when my DD was small, can't speak for the Princess and the Frog or Rapunzel as I no longer have little girls).....My guess is the reason that Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty and Snow White are still around is simply they are more "classic Disney"....you don't see Belle and Ariel around anymore either (at least I don't think so, though I haven't been browsing in the little girl section of Walmart lately....).
As for the "princess culture"....eh....I think it is what you make of it. My daughter grew up watching those movies but she doesn't expect to be treated like a princess....we had a healthy dose of other movie entertainment and an actual life outside of our movie watching......
You're right...I guess Mulan and Aladdin and all that came before my dd's time, and after mine, so I didn't pay a lot of attention to stuff like that. I just know I try to avoid buying everything with those three princesses on them ALL the time, and it is hard, because they seem to be on EVERYTHING. When Princess and the Frog first came out, they did have some Princess Tiana things, and she was included in some of the Cinderella-Snow White-Sleeping Beauty things, but she seems to have faded away now.
I personally like some Disney movie but not all. I've tried researching but I couldn't find much on how Disney movie impact our kids. When I was a kid I was very into the skin, blonde hair and blue eyes type. I wanted to be like that and asked myself why I wasn't like that. As I've grown older, I learn to appreciate myself. I look at my niece today, and she doesn't see what I saw back then. All she sees is (for example toy story) toys are moving and talking, that's it. How about Avatar? I mean it's not a Disney movie but all she sees is blue people. Obviously she doesn't understand the concept of the movie or what the movie is trying to portray, but I really wonder if Disney movies will have impact on them on the long run.
My sister named her baby Arielle because she really liked Ariel. I don't think she plan to treat her kid like a princess but let it known that she is very important to her.
I don't think Disney movies will have much impact as far as the meaning or message behind them. I think most of the mushy stuff and storyline goes right over their heads. In my opinion, the thing that has the most impact is the visual image they see. For little girls, they see beautiful girls in pretty dresses and that's what captures their attention. For a little girl who does not fit the stereotypical Disney princess image, I believe it can have an impact on her, depending on what other influences are in her life. When I was a kid, it was more difficult because it was rare to see anybody who looked like me in a book or magazine or even on TV. I remember the only time we used to see commercials featuring black people or black products was when Soul Train was on. I never saw a book with black children in it, and dolls were few and far between. Things have greatly improved since then, and it's easier for a child now to look around and see a face that resembles theirs on a billboard or magazine and even as a princess. My dd and all my nieces have seen every Disney princess movie there is, and none of them suffer from any self esteem issues, but I think that's because we've gone out of our way to make sure that wasn't the only influence they had.
It's because the archetype of the evil mother figure was very common in fairy tales. Those stories originated from a time when a snug nuclear family was atypical.
Julia, you are right, the stories are archetypal, and many were actually adult stories, not for children. In fact, a 'culture' for children and actual children's literature was not at all common until recently.
What concerns me is what happens to the child's sense of self through 'princess culture.' Relationships with men and non-parent figures are distorted too. I really view this 'princess culture' as a sort of ostracizing of the child, cultivating the child's sense of self away from context with normal human relationships and the security of family and peers.
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