By Stephanie Nguyen
To summarize — in one word — Rachel Zegler’s Snow White in the recent movie that just came out: horrible. But just because one (ok, a few) movie flopped, doesn’t mean Disney is doomed. Part of the reason is because of popular franchises built on the popularity of past projects; by this I mean Disney princesses, Frozen, Mickey Mouse and Friends, etc.
If you have a younger sibling, you’d get why every kid wants to sing “Let It Go” on the way to kindergarten, but who cares about Disney princesses? Why are they still talked about today? Because they’re meant to be heroines young girls would emulate.
Until you’re about 18, there’s always someone you’d want to be like, whether that’s a pop artist, actress, model, or Batman, I guess. Now that I think about it, do adults still look up to people?
For now though, I’ve ranked all of them from the worst to best as role models, starting with…
12. Ariel
Selfish, immature and petty, I don’t get why she wanted to leave her family for the surface. To me, it seemed like she put her own interests above everyone else’s for novelty.
She lacked the empathy to understand her father, King Triton, agreeing to a contract that would turn her into a mute human permanently. Why? Because her father didn’t support her obsession with everything human. While he was harsh, he was valid for wanting his daughter to be safe. After all, his wife died because of a human ship.
And unlike a few of the princesses on this list, she didn’t learn from her or her father’s mistakes. In the sequel “The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea,” instead of explaining to Melody why she can’t go into the ocean, she lied and kept her mermaid identity a secret.
When confronted, she yelled at her own daughter, who wanted to escape because she felt she never belonged. She had twelve years to mature, and didn’t. That’s not to say young girls can’t learn from her, but they shouldn’t be like her.
11. Aurora
A dreamy princess known for her beauty, Aurora is a popular character that you’ll see on Pinterest occasionally. Yet she doesn’t rank highly because she didn’t set an example for young girls. Her movie was plot-driven, rather than character-driven, so she doesn’t have a distinct personality. The only thing most people know about her is that she slept a lot and waited for Prince Philip to save her.
I will concede that she embodied a gentle femininity that’s rare nowadays. However, she doesn’t embody the traits that young girls really need.
10. Snow White
She is similar to Aurora, but she had a tougher life. Forced to be a servant and escaping from an assassination attempt, she broke into a house and stayed with the dwarves for a while; it’s not easy for a fourteen-year-old to do that. What puts her low on this list is her first song, “Someday My Prince Will Come.” Unlike another princess who ranked higher than her, her spirit was broken. She hoped someone would save her instead of standing up for herself. Considering her age and situation, this doesn’t make her weak, but she’s not a role model. If Snow White is to be role-model worthy, she should at least have some degree of strength, even if it’s a quiet type.
9. Rapunzel
I can already see the Rapunzel fans picking up their stones, and I get it. She’s bubbly, she’s adventurous, she has a plan and there are lots of great things about her. She also disobeys Mother Gothel and explores the world outside the tower, confronting her when she finds out the truth. Unfortunately, Disney’s writing glossed over this key part of the film, so the exciting, fun parts were overemphasized. The result? A character lacking depth.
The main thing to learn from Rapunzel is: “Don’t give up on your dreams!” A young girl can learn that from any Disney princess. Actually, she can learn that from any Disney character that’s ever been created.
Had Disney done a better job of showing Rapunzel’s inner strength, she would top a couple of the ladies on this list, but there’s no better ranking for her than number nine.
8. Merida
There are a few reasons why a girl would want to be Merida. An obvious one would be that she’s a feminist and doesn’t want to get married. But she’s also selfish and immature, just like her fellow redhead, Ariel. For those who haven’t watched her film, she had a strained relationship with her mother, Eleanor, who wanted her to be prim and proper as a bride should be. Merida then gets into trouble when said mother turns into a bear. It’s a parallel to King Triton becoming Ursula’s imprisoned worm to save Ariel.
Nonetheless, she showed humility and growth by fixing her mistakes, reconciling with her family and undoing the spell. In the process, she becomes more empathetic and mature as well. Although her initial actions make her a flawed character, young girls can definitely learn from Merida, who was willing to become a better person and stay true to herself at the same time. And honestly, I wouldn’t be mad if they end up like her; they’re much better than Ariel.
7. Jasmine
I’m conflicted about ranking my favorite princess below the top five, but I had to. Despite her outspoken personality, intelligence and ability to think on her feet, she doesn’t stand out compared to the other ladies on this list. There are lots of confident heroines ( not just in Disney) ready to put themselves out there, but not enough compassionate and determined ones. Fortunately, the top six ladies have a similar fire burning in their souls, but with overlooked qualities to make them more than just a girlboss.
6. Pocahontas
There aren’t enough people in this world who prefer peace over being right. Wise and open-minded, she kept the peace between the settlers and her people. She also tried to understand the newcomers, checking out their tools and listening to what John Smith said about their ways of life in London. In the movie, at least, she defended the Powhatans’ lifestyles when he looked down on them.
Yet I couldn’t give her a higher ranking because of the historical context. I could write all about it, but there’s a website linked in the caption with the details. Long story short, Pocahontas appears as a jerk because when she saved her love interest, she told her people, who weren’t the ones who started the problem, that they are “blinded” by hatred for wanting to kill him and fight the rest of his men. Of course, she had the settlers in mind as well, but it irked me. Nonetheless, if the situation was different, she would’ve been in the top three.
5. Cinderella
She’s not as weak as many claim she was. Abuse is no joke, and she was an orphan as well. Not to mention, she had no financial means to move out, leaving her no choice but to continue being a servant so she’ll at least have a roof over her head; many would’ve given up if they were in her place. Yet her resilient spirit kept her soft and kind without being a doormat.
When the invitation to the ball arrived and they wanted her to stay at home, she stood up for herself, saying that she was still a part of the family and the king commanded every woman to attend. That shows strength and dignity on her part. Instead of insulting them or yelling, she gracefully reminded them she’s not their maid. And she never resented them; she let go of the past and she invited them to her ball at the palace in Cinderella II.
Young girls could learn a lot from Cinderella, who had a rare kind of inner strength that could take her through anything.
4. Belle
Out of all the ladies here, she’s the most well-rounded. She’s intelligent, kind, curious, strong and mature. Being her father’s only daughter, she showed great compassion by taking care of him and taking his place as the Beast’s prisoner, as well bringing the best out of the Beast without trying to fix him, letting him learn from her instead.
However, her wit stood out to me the most. It shined when she talked back to the Beast and Gaston, refusing to back down if they tried to make her shut up, all without being rude or condescending. For example, when Gaston proposed to her, she wasn’t put off by his comment that she was a spinster, managing to get him falling through the door. I think a lot of young girls need someone who’s willing to do that.
Overall, she deserves this ranking as the fourth-best role model candidate. She teaches young girls to see people past their face and march to the beat of their own drum.
3. Moana
A determined and independent daughter of the chief of Motunui, Moana is a character that young girls both remember and like. She’s one of the most popular princesses of the franchise, and with good reason. She was brave to venture out into the ocean with little sailing experience to defeat Te’Ka for the longevity of her people. At sixteen, her willingness to learn, determination and selflessness is impressive. What’s more impressive on Disney’s part was that her writing was realistic.
She was drawn to the ocean ever since she was little, and similar to Ariel, she tried to go for a while. Yet when she grew up, she didn’t demand things to be her way, unlike her mermaid counterpart. She only suggested going further out because they couldn’t find any fish, showing that it wasn’t about herself. Sometimes the princesses come off as selfish when they rebel, so it was a refreshing change. Young girls need to learn to go against the current for the right reasons, not just for the sake of it.
2. Mulan
Mulan isn’t in second place because she can fight as well as a man can. She’s in second place because she put her family above herself and had a lot of character development while being a brave, strong-willed soldier. Nothing she did was for fun; she had an understandable reason for everything. She fought in the army because she didn’t want her father to die, being an old man.
She still defended the king when Shan Yu set an ambush because she cared about her country, not because she wanted to prove herself when the army rejected her. She lied, ran away from home, and broke societal norms for her family’s honor, which she felt they had lost because of her mistakes. The whole time she was trying to make it up to them, and I think that makes her an incredibly selfless and courageous role model that all girls can learn from, no matter how old you are.
1. Tiana
I had considered giving Mulan first place, but I think Tiana would be a more relevant role model. As a Black woman in the 1920s, she broke boundaries by opening her business. Even today, businesses by Black women (POC women in general, actually) still don’t get the recognition that they should be getting.
Young girls need to know that if they don’t let naysayers and doubters get to them, if they don’t let discouragement hold them back, they can achieve their goals and do what many thought was impossible; that’s what Tiana and other Black women today did. Society needs more people like Tiana, unafraid of the unknown and peer pressure, forging a new path for others to follow, making her the best role model out of all the Disney princesses.
