I shouldn't have been surprised that Beauty and the Beast has been around so long. Even Disney admits that it's a Tale as Old as Time! But still, as a Classical Studies minor, I was surprised that I had never realized that Beauty and the Beast is based on the myth of Cupid and Pysche. Loosely based.
I can't say that I'm entirely on board with all of the stories included in "The Classic Fairy Tales" counting as Beauty and the Beast. Obviously De Beaumont's version is the most similar, and someday I would like to read de Villeneuve's version since it was not included in the book due to length. My favorite quote from de Beaumont's version is: “It is not good looks nor great wit that makes a woman happy with her husband, but character, virtue and kindness and Beast has all those good qualities. I may not be in love with him, but I feel respect, friendship and gratitude for him." I feel like every little girl needs to recite that quote again and again. "The Classic Fairy Tales" states that Beauty and the Beast is a parable for arranged marriages and was meant to help ease anxieties about marriage, but I see it more as a guide for what qualities young women should look for in men.
I don't find The Pig King nearly as favorable because the beast-character doesn't have any redeemable qualities. He's a cold-blooded murderer and doesn't even have to be a pig! At least Meldina loved him, unlike the swan maiden in The Swan Maiden, who was tricked and captured by a young hunter. She doesn't have the option to fall in love with him. My least favorite is The Frog King, because the beauty-character is not virtuous and in fact throws the frog against a wall, yet is still rewarded with a handsome prince in the end! I thought Urashima the Fisherman was a lovely story, because (a) it sounds like a Greek myth and (b) they truly loved each other. Plus, I think it's a nice tale for children, since Urashima is the cause of his own grief by disobeying his love and opening the jeweled box. Finally, The Frog Princess is one of my favorite versions just because the Beauty-character is clever. It is also the only version with a suitor, so perhaps that's the foundation for Gaston. Like Urashima, Prince Ivan causes his own grief by being too impatient. Unlike Urashima, Prince Ivan searches for, fights for, and wins Elena the Fair in the end.
Beauty and the Beast has always been one of my favorite Disney movies. My parents never had a problem with me watching it again and again because they thought it held such great values for young girls. I always found it interesting that Disney changed Beauty to Belle (which obviously means "beauty") but they didn't give Beast a name, even after he transforms into a handsome prince. That always has and always will bother me.
Hey Katie, I know what you mean about the Beast! I think that sums up my biggest problem with fairy tales in general: they don't treat their characters honestly. A lot of the time, as weird as it sounds, I feel sorry for the stories. I think they're worth being told by their own right, but writers and storytellers are constantly shoe-horning their own ideology into what becomes, evintually, an empty husk.
ReplyDeleteOverall, I guess it's really not all that bad. In fact, it reminds me of the work of Bertolt Brecht, who I'm sure you're familiar with. Yeah, it conflicts with my personal opinion on how and why stories should be told, but sometimes, like with Brecht, you just have to sit back and laugh at it.. or you go crazy.
As a matter of fact, I just finished up studying Brecht in German Lit!
ReplyDeleteHi Katie Rose,
ReplyDeleteYour blog opens with a response to Disney’s version of Beauty and the Beast which is very interesting. I thoroughly enjoyed my first viewing of this version in class and noticed the indelible impact it continues to have on many students like you. As you note, Disney’s version stresses many of the same themes that Madame de Beaumont’s does; the ideals of virtue, kindness, friendship, romantic love, and the importance of valuing the essence of a person (Beast, Belle) rather than a person’s outer appearance alone (Gaston.) It is not Belle’s appearance that makes her virtuous but it does mirror an inner reality in her case, and in both versions, her virtue is what unmasks and brings to the fore the surprising inner virtue hidden in Beast’s character. Maria Tatar remarks in the introduction to Beauty and the Beast in Classic Fairy Tales that de Beaumont emphasizes friendship and respect as the best foundations for marriage because physical attraction may change over time. Your interpretation that de Beaumont’s version serves young women as a guide to the qualities they should look for in a man reinforces and supports de Beaumont’s original intention and runs counter to the modern feminist interpretation that the tale was intended to help ease the anxieties of young women forced into arranged marriages. The fact that your parents viewed the tale as teaching “great values for young girls” also demonstrates the staying power of both Disney’s and de Beaumont’s versions.