Is the real beast patriarchy? From a story in which beauty becomes a beast, underlying questions of femininity, identity and society are questioned, years before Disney supported traditional notions of the female role through the portrayal of Beauty and the Beast . Angela Carter's The Tiger's Bride is a feminist revision of the traditional fairy tale, written in 1979 at the height of second wave feminism in the UK, when bra-burning and powerful dress-wearing were emblematic of female empowerment. 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 published in 1991, but 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, the Disney chronicles the life of Belle, who saves her father from (and ultimately finds love with) The Beast. Some argue that this retelling is feminist, but the clear cycle of abuse and theme of obedience keeps the 1991 film in the 1700s. Disney's Beauty and the Beast reinforces stereotypical gender roles and remains airtight with a plot that dates back to 1700, as The Tiger's Bride moves forward, allowing the heroine to express herself and be seen not just as an object of his obedience or purity, but as an autonomous individual. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Disney narratives continue to treat women as they did in ancient times and enforce obedience and make physical beauty a commodity, even if it is modern. Released in 1991 as a children's film, the Disney film sought to empower little girls... up 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 is about Belle's personality and conditioned outlook on life. As she sings in the opening number, she takes a moment to enlighten some volunteer sheep about the plot of her favorite story: "This is where she meets Prince Charming, but she won't find out it's him until chapter three" (00:05:33) . Although Belle is presented as atypical and independent, her favorite story is a Prince Charming fairy tale. She is rejected by the entire town for her individuality, but still has the aspirations of the typical fairy tale woman. He wants to “adventure,” but he also wants to find love. Furthermore, she learns to love the Beast only through closeness and enticement, willingly enduring abuse for the promise of a better life and her father's protection. This is what passes for “true love”. The only reason the girl in the story Belle is reading doesn't know that the Prince is really Prince Charming is because she hasn't yet been accustomed to thinking of him as such. Belle actually foreshadows her encounter with Stockholm syndrome. It follows a statement from the beginning of the film, when the witch visits the Beast (aka Prince Adam) in his castle. He pushes her away because she is initially ugly, and she in turn curses him: “She warned him not to be fooled by appearances, for beauty is found within” (00:01:23). This statement is funny, considering the fact that Belle's name literally means beauty, so the Beast hasn't actually learned anything. The Beast proves to be once again bestial and violent when he threatens to kill a sick old man, forces the man's daughter into prison to save her father's life and whenhe repeatedly mistreats and isolates Belle during her stay in the castle. His features are intimidating, but thanks to Belle's self-sacrifice and kindness, he eventually becomes more civilized. This doesn't so much indicate that he learned his lesson, but rather that he finally got what he wanted, a beautiful woman to babysit him. The most appropriate commentary on this dichotomy between Belle's perceived independence and intelligence and 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 as she often read books, although this was used in the film to characterize Belle as strange and served to separate her from the other villagers" ( 564). Continuing with my statement, Belle's "feminist" traits were what made her hated, isolated, and treated with disrespect when she was among the townsfolk. Her masculine traits, such as an adventurous spirit, curious nature, and autonomy, only served to make her an object for the hyper-masculine Gaston or a love interest for the equally hyper-masculine Beast. It was only after she became more obedient and selfless that she was rewarded with acceptance and marriage, and the Beast adopted more feminine traits. Angela Carter's version of the "Lost Husband"-type tale places more emphasis on the heroine's self-sufficiency and refuses to turn her into a commodity as in Disney. Angela Carter revised several fairy tales into an anthology to follow a feminist paradigm. Although her story contains disturbing images of captivity and the treatment of women as property (the title Tiger's Bride is gambled and traded in a card game), her heroine is stubborn, resilient, and refuses to give up unless she gets the his soapbox. Written in the 1970s, during the second wave of feminism, the narrative certainly portrays the heroine with more “masculine” traits and in a sex-positive light. The character development is best exemplified through 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 initially portrayed as a lamb, but literally becomes a tiger. He realizes his own worth. The way her father treats her doesn't make her want to be the selfless protagonist we so often see in this type of tale. He refuses to return to his father, just as he refuses to immediately submit to the Beast's wishes. Her personal decisions are more important to her: she is independent and takes her situation entirely upon herself. For example, when the Beast asks her to stand naked before him because he wants to see virginal flesh, she states: "I wish I had rolled in the hay with all the boys on my father's farm, to disqualify myself from this humiliating affair" (Classic/ Carter 60) The heroine does not see her purity as important, but as a commodity. She wishes not to be a virgin so that the beast cannot use her to satisfy his perversion. The male figure is clearly in the wrong and the female protagonist is not problems with her choices. She is sexually independent, but also refuses to take part in objectification. Treating the Beast's staff kindly is not a priority and she does not wish to return to her father or sacrifice herself is willing to reveal a part of himself to her. Her self-esteem leads her to desire equality and only give in when she feels she is being treated fairly. This emphasis on balance and the shift to more masculine traits leads the heroine to choose to become a beast. This choice is eloquently examined by Seago in 'New Wine in Old Bottles?: Angela.