Shining Examples

Disney Princesses are some of the most iconic characters from The Walt Disney Company. These young heroines are generally thought of as strong female characters that are great role models. The key word there is generally, because the first three princesses (Snow White, Cinderella, and Aurora) are nowadays often thought of as one-dimensional damsels in distresses, and solely reliant on a prince to be their rescue. Sure, all three of them live happily ever after with a prince at the end, but these princesses have a lot more virtues than they’re given credit for.

Let’s start with Snow White. She always makes due with what she has, and stays positive throughout the movie. She goes through horrific circumstances, like The Evil Queen’s attempt to kill her, and yet Snow White never speaks unkindly about step-mother. She always looks for a way to lend a hand. For example, when she finds the empty house in the woods, her first instinct is to help out whoever lives there by tidying it up. She shows kindness to the motherless dwarves, like preparing nourishment for them, reminding them of manners, and having good organizational skills to run the house. She even prays for her enemies, asking for Grumpy to like her. Snow White does dream of a prince to come into her life, but she doesn’t sit around while waiting for her dream to manifest. She’s always optimistic in what ever situation she’s going through.

Moving on to Cinderella. She maintains a cheerful attitude even through the abuse she suffers from Lady Tremaine and her daughters. Many cynics question why Cinderella wouldn’t run away if she was suffering from hardships, but the truth of the matter is that there’s no other place for Cinderella to go. Her parents have both died, leaving her no choice but to live with a wicked step-mother. She shows a tremendous amount of generosity to all living creatures, even the very malicious cat, Lucifer. Cinderella also doesn’t wait for her dreams to come true, but she takes action and pursues her dreams when the opportunity presents itself. As Walt Disney said, “She believed in dreams, all right, but she also believed in doing something about them. When Prince Charming didn't come along, she went over to the palace and got him.” 

Aurora is the last Disney Princess from Walt’s era of animated films. After she is cursed by Maleficent, the three good fairies protect Aurora by raising her in a cottage in the woods away from civilization. She’s very kind to the fairies and treats all of them with respect, and devotedly does her share of the household chores. Aurora also longs for companionship and meets a kind gentleman in the woods, but then she finds out she’s actually a true princess and already betrothed. She doesn’t rebel, instead she dutifully puts her feelings aside and accepts her destiny. Aurora puts her responsibly over her own desires, which is an extraordinarily hard thing to do.

All three of Disney princesses share a common trait. They’re dreamers. They all look into the future with optimism and hope, and they keep a positive outlook through all their hardships. It doesn’t make sense when people disregard these heroines for being too passive or weak, when the truth is that these three princesses are bold and courageous, and they empower many virtues and are wonderful role models for girls and boys alike.