A Princess must be . . . (Princess Quotes part 2)

"But that's impossible, how could I marry a Prince, I'd have to be a . . . "
"A Princess, and you are, dear."
 Sleeping Beauty

I decided to continue our wonderful discussion about being a Princess. In Part 1 we discussed what it means to be a princess, how she is expected to act, and what she symbolizes in the fairy tale, goodness, salvation or truth. A Princess is all those things, but she is also just a young girl, trying to grow up and understand the world.


a dress like this jellyfish

I recently watched a show called Princess Jellyfish. You may remember I nominated the cast for a Gooseyness Award. While the show is set in modern day, there a Princess theme throughout it. The main character is a girl named Tsukimi who, as a child, believed "All girls can be beautiful Princesses when they grow up" and once her mother promised she would make Tsukimi's dress when she got married, a beautiful lacy white dress like the jellyfish pictured on the right, a fluttery dress that a Princess might wear. Her mother was always reminded of Princesses when she looked at jellyfish. Perhaps this explains Tsukimi's obsession with drawing them.

However, now that Tsukimi is older, she finds reality is very different, her childhood dreams have fluttered away. Her mother passed away when she was little, and she realizes ". . . I have some bad news. I'm not sure where I went wrong, but somewhere along the line, instead of becoming a Princess. I ended up a freak. Mom, I couldn't manage to become a beautiful Princess."

The show follows Tsukimi as she learns about love, as she discovers she may not be such a freak after all, and perhaps she can make that beautiful Princess Jellyfish dress just as her mother wanted, just like she has always dreamed. Don't give up on your dreams Tsukimi! You can do it!

What does a princess dreams about? Does she dream of an ordinary life, where she is not a royal princess? (I'd be curious to know if anyone has ever made a gender reversed Prince and the Pauper. Come to think of it, I've never actually read the original, I'll have to put that on my classical reading list.) Or does a Princess not dream at all, does she put those kind of dreams aside in order to serve her family, and her kingdom? Or, maybe she  is like Princess Jasmine who, when faced with marriage, shouts, "Then maybe I don't want to be a Princess anymore." Or perhaps like Princess Fiona, "I want what any Princess wants - to live happily every after . . . with the ogre I married."

I'm curious to know what Ange dreams about, I don't think she dreamed much, not seriously. I do think she dreamed about falling in love, and these dreams are crushed in the beginning when her mother tells her she is betrothed and must marry a man she has never met before. Terrwyn, what does Mirth dream about?

How many girls dream about being a Princess? In a more recent Disney movie, the Princess and the Frog, young Charlotte declares, "I would do it. I would kiss a frog. I would kiss a hundred frogs if I could marry a Prince and be a Princess."

I've been collecting Princess quotes for a while, so many interesting ones. There are so many more out there, but this next one is my favorite:

"Are you a Princess? I said and she said I'm much more than a Princess, but you don't have a name for it yet here on earth." Brian Andreas

That's right, we are so much more than just a Princess. We are sisters, we are friends, we are lovers, we are dreamers. We are magic makers. Ange and Mirth have so much to discover, their adventure has just begun. It will not be all roses and cupcakes, they will encounter ruffians and scoundrels, badly written poetry, curses that will make them cry and geese that will insult them and bit them. But that's life, it comes with some good and some bad and that's what makes it so interesting.

In the Grand Tradition of . . . a Trailer Review

"Something brought you here. Fate. Destiny."
"A horse."

I've been wanting to review something for a while now, but I haven't read any books, manga, graphic novels or watched any movies that tie in with fairy tales or Goosey. I plan to remedy this next month, but in the meantime I've decided to review the trailer for the upcoming Disney movie Tangled, in theaters November 24th, I believe.
  

I have to say the trailer made me laugh aloud - twice. Flynn cracks me up. There's a definetely feeling of nostagia when I watch it, it makes me think of Princess Bride. So, I'm giving the trailer 4 of 5 stars.
I will admit it, I'm a Disney Fan. I'm intrigued. I want to know more. And that's really all I require from a trailer, now the movie that's a different story. (And another review.)

Tangle is the latest in the line of Disney movies that retell fairy tales.
Snow White 1937
Cinderella 1950
Sleeping Beauty 1959
Little Mermaid 1989
Beauty and the Beast 1991
Aladdin 1992
Princess and the Frog 2009

And this is a Princess movie, a generous mix of old with a new modern feel. It has its snappy dialogue, a bit Shriekified, just without the ogre. Let's see where's my checklist:

A Handsome, yet arrogant, yet loveable hero (can we say character development?)
A Princess, locked in the tower
Bumbling soldiers in presuit
Not one, but TWO animal side kicks: horse and a lizard

Check and check. We're just missing the easily identified evil villian or villianess and it seems we're expected to just know the story, Rapunzel's name is never even mentioned. She's an intriguing girl with luxurious hair, so long and deadly it's practically alive, but this girl has it under control and she's not afraid to use it. She's a Medusa with her snakes, only no one's going to be petrified by her. Or are they?
Not that a trailer review is anything like a movie review. It's mostly speculation, or prehaps anticipation, a little cynicism and even some nostalgia.

Perhaps you've already seen it.