A Journalistic Exploration of Disney Princesses

“‘The Little Mermaid’ is meant to inspire little girls,” says senior Ryan Heyworth during his presentation, “but there was a lot more talking done by men in the movie. Basically, every character besides Ariel and Ursula were men, and there were three times more lines from men.” Ryan’s journalistic exploration of the famed Disney princess Ariel led Ryan to uncover some consequences of the movie's portrayal of females. 

This project is part of Adam MacDonald’s Honors History class, where seniors are challenged to engage with historical subjects of the past, i.e., Disney princesses, and compare them to recent adaptations. Students research examples of mimesis — how they are designed and cast — and how they reflect, reproduce, or challenge existing values and views. 

Senior Avery Berg, who researched the Polynesian powerhouse princess Moana, which came out in 2016, observes that in “photos of virtually all the other Disney princesses, you will see that they all have men to lean on.” Avery points out, “While obviously Disney is trying to portray love — in all these photos, the man is taller than them, is holding them in their arms, and the princess needs the man for support. There are no photos of Moana in a pose like this: with a man, leaning on a man, finding comfort in a man. And I think that’s really powerful,” says Avery. 

Their teacher Adam MacDonald explains, “The goal is to trace the developments of each princess over time, looking at intended or unintended consequences of their framing, and pausing to look at what future princesses could or should look like.” 

Adam challenges students to write for an external audience and to tell the truths behind these famed princesses, recent mimesises, and what can be inferred when looking through the political, social, and economic lenses of today. 

“This class is a little different in the profile of a Seattle Academy history class,” Adam says. “Writing for a public audience differs from expository writing. Part of it deals with identifying concepts that are interesting and engaging as a bridge for a meaningful conversation. The other part is writing with engagement. How you reconcile two things that seem quite different but are actually quite in alignment.”

For the project, SAAS students transformed themselves into contemporary journalists. Their missions included various lenses:

• You are an independent scholar interested in the use of color in Disney animations, particularly its ability to provide commentary on issues of race and gender.
• You are an independent scholar who has been hired by the Florida Educational Board to demonstrate the ways in which Disney dismantles family values.
• You have been hired by Disney to write a historical piece for an upcoming event entitled, “Empowered Princesses.” 
• You are a feminist historian interested in elements of hypermasculinity in Disney films.

As feminist historians, independent scholars, and freelance journalists — these minds unveiled impactful consequences of Disney princess depictions.

“Little Mermaid is an excellent illustration of where social psychology is used in everyday life. In this movie, the little kids who watch it want to look like Prince Eric and Ariel because that’s what being attractive is deemed to look like in this movie,” says Ryan Heyworth. 

The Fall Trimester project coincidentally aligned with the announcement of the first Black “Little Mermaid,” played by Halle Bailey and scheduled to be released in May 2023. The media stir is somewhat predictable, with Disney princesses serving as cultural and international icons. “People have thoughts about what princesses ‘should’ be,” says Adam, “and the general trend of progress is still somewhat narrow. A Black princess is still something that seems out of bounds.”

“The idea behind this project is to explore how authors or creators make choices about how they define or cast their subjects. Based on what the context is, who their audience is, and the general sense of the world — authors will cast their subjects in different ways,” says Adam. “It is the taking out of some elements, and adding of others, that reveals hidden meanings in every work of art. When you recast something, you can’t go completely off the board; you have to retain some elements but emphasize or de-emphasize certain attributes depending on your subject.” 

As students and viewers anticipate the release of the new “Little Mermaid,” what aspects will the directors choose to keep, and what will they alter? How will this change the context of the story? And how will this interplay with the conversations of current political times? 

More photos from inside our history classrooms.