Is the real beast patriarchy? From a story where beauty becomes a beast, underlying issues of femininity, identity and society are called into question, years before Disney upheld traditional notions of the role of women through their depiction of Beauty and the Beast. The Tiger's Bride by Angela Carter is a feminist revision of the traditional fairy tale, written in 1979 at the height of second wave feminism in the UK, when bras and power suits were the emblem of the empowerment of women. The story centers on a beautiful Russian woman, her gambler father, and a tiger man. In this version, beauty becomes a beast. Disney's Beauty and the Beast was released in 1991, but it has the distinct flavor of Jeanne-Marie LePrince de Beaumont's 1740 version of the story. Focusing on traditional gender roles and themes of self-sacrifice and obedience, Disney chronicles the life of Belle, who saves her father from the Beast and eventually finds love with her. Some argue that this narrative is feminist, but the obvious cycle of abuse and theme of obedience keep the 1991 film set in the 1700s. Disney's Beauty and the Beast reinforces stereotypical gender roles and remains airtight with a storyline which dates back to the 1700s, while The Tiger's Bride moves forward, allowing the heroine to express herself and be seen not just as an object of her obedience or purity, but as an autonomous individual. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayDisney stories continue to treat women as ancient times did, reinforce obedience, and make physical beauty a priority merchandise, even if it is modern. Released in 1991 as a children's film, the Disney film sought to empower little girls...to a point. Women (read: Beautiful) were encouraged to be intelligent, but they were also encouraged to endure captivity and abuse with little protest or complaint. The first quote deals with Belle's personality and her conditioned outlook on life. As she sings in the first number, she takes a moment to enlighten a few willing sheep on the plot of her favorite story: "It's here that she meets Prince Charming, but she will only discover that it's him before chapter three” (00:05:33). Although Belle is presented as unusual and independent, her favorite story is a fairy tale about Prince Charming. She is rejected by the entire town due to her individuality, but she still has the aspirations of an average fairytale woman. She wants “adventure,” but she also wants to find love. Additionally, she only loves the Beast through proximity and grooming, willingly putting up with abuse for the promise of a better life and protection from her father. This is what passes for “true love.” The only reason the girl in the story Belle reads doesn't know that the prince is really Prince Charming is because she hasn't yet been prepared to think of him as such. Belle effectively foreshadows her own encounter with Stockholm syndrome. Next comes a statement from the beginning of the film, when the witch visits the Beast (aka Prince Adam) in his castle. He turns her away because she is ugly at first, and she curses him in turn: “She warned him not to be deceived by appearances, because beauty is found within” (00:01 :23). This statement is humorous, considering that Belle's name literally means beauty, so in reality, the Beast hasn't learned anything. The Beast reveals himselfalways bestial and abusive when he threatens death to a sick old man, forces the man's daughter to be imprisoned to save her father's life, and when he repeatedly intimidates and isolates Belle during her stay at the castle. His features are intimidating, but through Belle's self-sacrifice and kindness, he eventually becomes more civilized. This indicates less that he learned his lesson, but rather that he finally got what he wanted, a beautiful woman to pamper him. The most insightful commentary on this dichotomy between Belle's perceived independence and intelligence versus her femininity comes from "Gender Role Representation and Disney Princesses." The author states: "This princess [Belle] was the first to show very high rates of intellectual activity by frequently reading books, although this was used in the film to characterize Belle as strange and served to separate from other villagers. » 564). Continuing my assertion, Belle's "feminist" traits were what made her hated, isolated, and treated with disrespect when among the townsfolk. Her masculine traits, such as an adventurous spirit, curious nature, and self-reliance, only served to make her an object for the hyper-masculine Gaston or a love interest for the equally hyper-masculine Beast. Only after she became more obedient and devoted was she rewarded with acceptance and marriage, and the Beast adopted more feminine traits. Angela Carter's version of the "Lost Husband" type of tale places more emphasis on the heroine's self-sufficiency and refuses to commodify her as in Disney. Angela Carter revised several fairy tales into an anthology to follow a feminist paradigm. Although its story contains disturbing images of captivity and the treatment of women as property (the titular Tiger's Bride is put and swapped in a deck of cards), its heroine is stubborn, resilient, and refuses to give in unless she doesn't get his soapbox. Written in the 1970s, during the 2nd wave of feminism, the story definitely represents the heroine with more “masculine” traits and in a sexually positive light. Character development is best illustrated by this quote from the book: "The tiger will never lie down with the lamb...the lamb must learn to run with the tigers" (Classic/Carter 63). The heroine is first represented as a lamb, but she literally becomes a tiger. She realizes her own value. His father's treatment of him gives him no desire to be the selfless protagonist we so often see in this type of tale. She refuses to return to her father, just as she refuses to immediately submit to the Beast's desires. Her personal decisions are more important to her: she is independent and takes complete control of her situation. For example, when the Beast asks her to be naked in front of him because he wants to see virginal flesh, she says: "I would have liked to roll in the hay with all the boys on my father's farm, so disqualify me from this humiliation. good deal” (Classic/Carter 60). The heroine does not consider her purity as important, but as a commodity. She wishes she wasn't a virgin so the beast couldn't use her to satisfy his own perversion. The male figure is clearly in the wrong and the female protagonist has no problem with her choices. She is sexually independent, but also refuses to participate in objectification. Treating the Beast's staff with kindness is not a priority, and she does not wish to return to her father or sacrifice herself. Additionally, his attitude changes when the Beast is ready to reveal part of itself to him. His self-esteem leads him to wish.