ipl-logo

Gender Roles In Beauty And The Beast

1351 Words6 Pages

“Beauty and the Beast” is an original fairy tale and over time have incorporated social, religious and cultural themes. An analysis of the Disney version of “Beauty and the Beast” exemplifies the stereotypes of the more subtle forms of social manipulation that fairytales undergo to employ. The question of whether these stories are made for entertainment or send a much larger picture, depicting to children their gender roles within a society. In this paper gender roles will be represented showing the typical female and male character within a society. Historian Sylvia D. Hoffert defines a gender ideal as “the cluster of characteristics, behavior patterns, and values that members of a group think a man or a woman should have, a set of cultural expectations.” It refers to what society think is appropriate for men and woman. In many fairytales, the female character is seen as beautiful kind and compassionate. She is one who obeys her father and seeks true love from a handsome prince and live happily ever after. As scholar Kay Stone notes “heroines are not allowed any defects, nor are they required to develop, since they are already perfect.” At the end the female considered the heroine is in love and happy with the prince. Perhaps ironically, the villain is also generally female. Like in Cinderella the step mother and …show more content…

The heroine is seen as perfect in every way. However she also is depicted as helpless and naïve considering her role is to be found by a prince and be married happily ever after. It may be a tad bit irrational to call a heroine ignorant but the adjectives description seem to fit idealistically. However in “Beauty and the Beast” this fairytale takes a further turn suggesting that beauty is not only found physically but mentally and emotionally as well. Rather it still indicates that woman should be submissive and obedient to male

Show More
Related
1456 Words | 6 Pages

Chivalric romances are often centered upon the efforts of gallant knights seeking to achieve a concept known as “true knighthood” which involves embarking on quests or adventures to obtain honor, love, and Christian virtue. The brave knights of these stories are met with many obstacles to overcome, commonly in regards to rescuing or protecting a lady. In other words, the typical role of women in this period is that of the damsel in distress or a helpless, dependent lady in need of a hero. However, the stories of Chrétien de Troyes’ Yvain, the Knight of the Lion and Friedrich Heinrich Karl La Motte-Fouqué’s The Magic Ring strays from the typical role of women as the damsel in distress.

Read More
1154 Words | 5 Pages

A heroine is “a woman admired or idealized for her courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities” (Dictionary.com). Minerva was the first sister to get involved in the revolution, which made her a leader. She is willing to fight with everything she has,even if it brings danger itto her life. Mate is a sister that admired Minerva a lot. When Mate finds out that Minerva is sneaking out to secret meeting she asks her why she would do that.

Read More
329 Words | 2 Pages

The story told in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum became widely popularized through the 1939 film adaptation. A children’s classic , Baum says in the preface that he tried to offer a modernized fairy tale. Though now old-fashioned, the book does still present a relatively progressive view, portraying gender in an unconventional and curious way. The gender roles and character relationships throughout the novel differ from the typical gender stereotypes seen in traditional children’s stories and can be viewed by the reader in different ways.

Read More
949 Words | 4 Pages

Throughout Old English Literature, women were seen as evil. Like in Beowulf where the woman with the most power was a monstrous sea creature who destroyed things. Or in Lanval and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight where women were dishonest and corrupted men, or like in The Wife of Bath where women manipulated men to get what they wanted; owned them in a way. In old English texts women are seen as an evil force; a force of destruction, corruption and cunning.

Read More
1910 Words | 8 Pages

Throughout history, men have always dominated. They never let a woman rise to power or have the same rights. This sexism has been ingrained in society for thousands of years, so much so that it has defined some of the most famous works of literature, including A Midsummer Night’s Dream. This play was written during the Elizabethan Era, an era in which a woman had all the power imaginable (Queen Elizabeth), and yet, women were still severely discriminated against. Women had no say whatsoever in their society; they were not allowed to vote and they had very few legal rights (Papp, Joseph, Kirkland).

Read More
956 Words | 4 Pages

She is targeting an audience that has the power to create change. A possible opposing view is that the princesses with more masculine traits are less looked up to compared to the more traditional ones. She talks about how princesses in movies receive unfair criticism and why they ought to receive better praise. The essay keeps up with the author's assertions that society needs to change how women are treated in the media and in everyday life. The audience can influence how things are perceived by paying closer attention to the untrue statements, which will prevent the issue from becoming too big to

Read More
395 Words | 2 Pages

These concepts are depicted within the classic Disney princess film Cinderella directed by Clyde Geronimi. This film has ‘taught’ and/or shown little girls to stop everything they are currently doing and to become dependent on a man to save the day. Cinderella can be seen as the ultimate example of a “damsel-in-distress” because she gets saved from being “abused, humiliated and a servant in her own house to her stepmother and stepsisters” (Cinderella). However, the film does not fail to mention how despite this Cinderella still remains “gentle” and “kind.” The usage of ‘gentle’ and ‘kind’ rather than ‘understanding’ pinpoints the societal gender norms in action— according to these, a woman should be compliant and quiet.

Read More
597 Words | 3 Pages

The movie “The Princess and the Frog” is not your typical “boy saves girl” movie. Instead, this Disney movie presents us with a strong female lead who doesn’t need a man to achieve her goals. In many previous Disney movies, it is demonstrated that a girl needs a man in order to get her happily ever after. Without a prince, she is nothing. In “The Princess and the Frog” the gender roles are presented to us as equal, even reverse at times.

Read More
846 Words | 4 Pages

Beowulf is an excellent piece with a lot for the readers to desire and relate to while reading. This analysis explores different escapades while examining the role of women in the literature. One thing to point out is that female characters have always received very thin attention in different pieces of literature, something that has always made many people think that their role is meager. Every piece of literature has an important message to pass across to its intended audiences. Indeed, this study seeks to demystify the male-centric mindset to promote the visibility of women in the contemporary interpretation of literary works demonstrating that women play a greater role in the literature despite the proximity given to male protagonist.

Read More
881 Words | 4 Pages

Numerous schools of criticisms have attempted to find the meaning behind most of our favorite childhood stories. From Marxist who pursue the idea of social classes portrayed in literary works, to Psychoanalysts who depict the sexual tensions and desires that are subconsciously embedded behind characters’ motives and actions, to Historicists who try to show the preservation of tradition in stories, many different concepts exist for each fairy tale. The Feminist school of criticism greatly focuses on unveiling the patriarchal system and sexist roles that are displayed in stories, and more specifically, fairytales. Four versions of the well-known fairytale of The Little Mermaid will be compared and discussed while focusing on many distinctive

Read More
1156 Words | 5 Pages

Within the scope of this discussion, different dimensions of “queer” are presented as emulated by villains. “Queer” can be described as an umbrella term used for sexual and gender minorities who are not heterosexual nor cisgender. Correspondingly, Disney cinema villains obliterate all established notions of gender and sexuality, especially heterosexual norms. Through this frame, Disney cinema villains such as Ursula, Maleficent, and Elsa may be read as queer-coded in contrast with the relatively more heteronormative heroes. Queer-coding is essentially understood as fictional characters, who have not been revealed as queer, but are given traits or are being read as non-heteronormative, because of the style, behavior, gestures or overall appearance.

Read More
465 Words | 2 Pages

This is when we discover how the men believe the women should be treated. It is also shown at the end when Kate makes her speech about how a wife should be submissive to her man. Such duty as the subject owes the prince/ Even such a woman oweth to her husband;/ And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour,/ And not obedient to his honest will,/ What is she but a foul contending rebel (V.ii.7). In this quote, Kate compares wives to subjects of a prince.

Read More
979 Words | 4 Pages

The Harry Potter series have been an interesting series for me ever since I have enrolled in Professor Fox’s class. I personally have not read any of the Harry Potter series during my childhood, but once I have enrolled in Professor Fox’s class I have recently just finished Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Throughout my readings of these two books I have had many observations on certain aspects of the story that I would not have noticed when I was younger. These three aspects that I can’t imagine as a child noticing is how the Dursleys abused Harry, the stance on gender, and prejudgement based on appearance.

Read More
1205 Words | 5 Pages

The male roles in the family seem to be above females’ because they get to make decisions for girls. Men feel dominant to women, so the same behaviors as the women are acceptable for them. Along with these, the ladies are not expected to crave love and affection like the gentlemen do. The gender issue of men being dominant and women being submissive used in the drama, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, shows the differences in the roles, behaviors, and expectations appropriate for each gender and is an example of an outdated stereotype. Unlike the time frame of this literature, women in the present are valued equal to men.

Read More
822 Words | 4 Pages

It is in one's power to decide whether or not to conform to society. Indeed both texts include many similarities and differences such as the stereotypical roles set on each gender, their search for individuality and their desired privileges. While approaching adulthood, many people encounter obstacles which lead their understanding to a fact that gender stereotypes do not only occur for women but, for men as well. The narrator in Boys and Girls discovers the societies’ views and expectations of her.

Read More

More about Gender Roles In Beauty And The Beast

Related Topics

Open Document