As a full-fledged tomboy girl, I was so pleased to see a new “myth” created by Disney when they created the character of Merida in their movie, “Brave”. Merida did something never seen heretorfore… she broke the mold of the stereotypical “damsel in distress” in need of a “white knight”. For those who have not seen the movie, this is what Merida looked like on the screen: (All rights belong to Disney Pixar for these images)
She is bold, she is daring… She runs with the proverbial wolves, hair flying freely and untamed – daring to live free of societal restrictions… Daring to be herself.
My daughter, also being a tomboy girl that is not of the ilk of society's “Size 4 and Under” Club while also having wild, curly Irish hair just like me, thought Merida was ushering in the novel idea of being okay with being different – not interested in boys, living in touch with nature, not feeling the need to look like a model, and accepting yourself for who you are. And then, this morning, we see this – Merida, brave new make-over that feeds a patriarchal society that still embraces rape culture* and tells young girls and women that THIS is what the world wants to see:
(All rights belong to Disney Pixar for the above images)
Lo and behold, Merida donning a dress that is very similar to the one she eschewed in the movie – only this one bares more of her skin. Here we find her hair artfully arranged, cheeks no longer rosy from having run with the wind, but instead pinked-up with the blush of a more sex-appealing nature. Her waist has been narrowed. Her feet have been narrowed. Her eyes have been given a more “sultry” look, as opposed to her more “wild-eyed” love-for-adventure gazes we see in the movie rendering of Merida. She's lost the look of someone wanting to live free and experience things to learn more about them through exploration, having taken on a somewhat smug, sensual, “I know something you don't know” and far older appearance. Parents, feminists, and tomboy girls everywhere are NOT happy with this redesign of their beloved wild-child, tomboy teen princess.
So imagine my surprise when I read THIS blog post from Forbes:
Mr. Mendelson, you've completely missed the mark.
Mr. Mendelson opens his article by saying:
“If you have a feminist icon and take away her bow-and-arrow, apparently she’s not a feminist icon anymore. That seems to be one of the key messages over the last week regarding at least some of the outrage of Disney’s inevitable decision to officially include Brave‘s Merida into their Disney Princess line.”
The point is not resting at the tip of Merida's missing arrows. The point is, once again, we are warping a new role-model to fit not the vast majority of young girls around the world, but to remind them – once again – that they need to put down the “boy toys”, clean up, dress up, squeeze into those skinny jeans (or gowns), and act, or at least LOOK, like a twenty-something bombshell. SURE… You can have lightly tossed bed-head (because what man *wouldn't* want to bed a pretty, thin, petite delectably fire-y red-head??)… But really now… Step away from your passions, your curiosity, and conform. They want us to believe we can be like Merida when we're playing, but when it comes time to put down the toys… Step away from the callused hands, girls… Go “pretty up” and be a “good girl” {the very same brand of “good girl” Merida vehemently protested against becoming}.
Further into the article, Mr. Mendelson says the following:
“We seem to put a premium on female characters who partake in action and/or violence over those who do not. Bella Swan is a lousy role model because she relentlessly pursues a romance while Katniss Everdeen is a positive female role model because she kills people with a bow, right?”
Isn't it a bit telling that putting a premium on male characters who partake in action and/or violence over those who do not?? The last time I walked down a toy aisle directed at boys, there was Ironman, Spiderman, SWAT, the Incredible Hulk and military toys galore!! I didn't see one Harvard teen figure for boys to play with. There were no Iron Chef figures for the boys to take home and excitedly rip out of its packaging to play with at home with friends. The last movie I saw where the young men that focused on intelligence rather than brawn got “the girl” (instead of the tough guys) was “Revenge of the Nerds“.
(And, for what it's worth, Bella Swan was a lousy role-model because she had a disingenuous smile, a serious lack of emotions beyond whining [which we encourage our 3 to 5 year old children to stop], and couldn't think for herself because she was so awe-struck by a beautiful, creepily-overbearing and over-protective man who made her swoon with his “caring” – which really was nothing more than jealousy and thinly-restrained anger).
You missed the point, Mr. Mendelson. AND you failed to give due consideration to young boys worship of characters who partake in action and/or violence. The point is, girls need to know it's healthy to be curious. They need to know it's okay to not look like the women who are air-brushed or modified through plastic surgery or computerized adjustments. Girls need to know it's okay to pursue areas of interest typically reserved for boys. Girls need to know it's healthy to be self-reliant, to think their own thoughts, and that they have a right to be heard.
Katniss, and more to the point, Merida are today's Artemis. I daresay that yes, they are becoming icons for strong females everywhere – not because they know how to use a weapon… But because they know how to think… How to plan… How to create win-win situations without giving up their integrity and identities. THAT is what makes them great. That is what makes them important role-models. These characters didn't whine – they created action that they learned from, that made us think and feel and encouraged us to do so, and let us believe it's okay to be in public with hair tousled by wind, and even without mascara. They teach us to not shy away from decision-making – and to be responsible for the consequences of those decisions made. And really, isn't that what we want ALL of our young people to learn?
* End note: for more about “rape culture”, please see the brilliant discussion at this blog:
http://cogentcomment.com/2013/03/19/so-youre-tired-of-hearing-about-rape-culture/
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