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Literary elements of the little mermaid
Literary elements of the little mermaid
The mermaid story
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Introduction
Mermaids are seen as something mythological or nonexistent, yet there are many stories about them. They are something that society has decided does not exist. Mermaids are mythical creatures that live in the sea. According to popular belief, mermaids were half human and half fish. Men are attracted to them because of their beauty and voice (Littleton 418). Mermaids are the female version and mermen are the male version. Many of the legends and myths about mermaids have come from many different places around the world, each carrying their own version of the myth. Another common term used for mermaid is the term siren. Mermaids are often a visual depiction of powerful water spirits. Manatees and dugongs are often mistaken for mermaids. For example, in 1493 when Columbus was sailing towards Haiti he had claimed to have seen three mermaids, but they were “not as pretty as they are depicted, for somehow in the face they look like men” (“Becoming Mermaids”). Mermaids are depicted in many forms of entertainment, from folklore, to art, to modern media. Mermaids have been a myth for many centuries and are now a popular topic used for entertainment and modern media such as television shows and movies.
The Commonalities between Mami Wata and Lasirèn
Mermaid folklore that come from various places in Europe, Africa, and the Americas have tiny details in common. The mermaids all carry combs and mirrors. This detail is carried from Europe to Africa, and then the Americas through merchant and slaves. A famous myth involves mermaids is Mami Wata, a popular and powerful African water spirit, who is often portrayed as a mermaid. She often would drown those who would disobey her, and as well as cause confusion, sickness, and visions i...
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...ough is no solid evidence if they actually exist or not, is it so wrong to let children use their imagination and dream that mermaids exist?
Works Cited
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Littleton, C. Scott. "Mermaids." The World Book Encyclopedia. Vol. 13. World Book: Chicago, IL, 2010. 418. Print.
N.S. Gill. "Scenes in Art Based on the Odyssey." About.com: Ancient/Classical History. About.com, 2013. Web. 4 Dec. 2013.
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The ocean is mysterious to mankind. The unfathomable vastness of the ocean intrigues humanity into exploring it. In life, the immense possibilities that lie in the future compel us to reach for the stars. In the poem “The Story” by Karen Connelly, an individual willingly swims into deep waters even though they are fearful of what may exist in the waters. The swimmer later finds out that their fears were foolish, which illustrates the human tendency to venture into the unknown. The theme conveyed in this poem is that life is like a rough, uncertain, uncontrollable ocean that we must find get through with experience.
Guin, Ursula K. Le. A Wizard of Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 1). 1968. Reprint. New York: Spectra, 2004. Print.
The women in The Odyssey are a fair representation of women in ancient Greek culture. In his work, Homer brings forth women of different prestige. First there are the goddesses, then Penelope, and lastly the servant girls. Each of the three factions forms an important part of The Odyssey and helps us look into what women were like in ancient Greece.
20 year- old Madison Stewart, many know her as shark girl, is an underwater filmmaker and a dive master. The young Aussie grew up living on a yacht from just two years old, she has spent nearly every day of her life in the water. When she first started snorkeling, one thing grabbed her eye and that was seeing sharks in the wild, She instantly feel in love with the animal and decided to have a future being around sharks every day of her life. When she was young she didn’t once think that she would have to fight for sharks and their lives. When she returned to the Great Barrier Reef at the age on 14 years old, she had expectation’s such as seeing the same beautiful reefs and the same sharks, but what she saw and discovered changed her life forever.
Frankel, Valerie Estelle. From Girl to Goddess: The Heroine's Journey through Myth and Legend. Jefferson, NC: McFarland &, 2010. Print.
According to Disney films, it is important for women to achieve the stereotypical characteristics of a woman, such as maintaining their beauty to capture a man, and being weak and less educated than male characters. The women in Disney movies are always beautiful, which help them to obtain a man. They are often encouraged to use their looks and their body to capture a man’s attention, and having a curvy, petite body is required in all good Disney women. The Little Mermaid is a 1989 movie directed by Ron Clements and John Musker, where “A mermaid princess makes a faustian...
Although Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid,” published in 1837, contains many patronizing nineteenth-century attitudes towards women, a value system that at least acknowledges the legitimacy of femininity shapes the fairytale. Unfortunately, Walt Disney’s 1989 film version of “The Little Mermaid” eliminates the values that affirm femininity in the original story (Trites 145)
Once upon a time, there was a 16 year old mermaid princess named Ariel who gave up her voice, an important part of her identity, in order to be with a man who she became infatuated with at just one glance. Ariel has a very traditional gender-stereotypical role in the film, as the helpless, clueless, naive, physically weak, submissive, and attractive female protagonist that Disney films, especially the classics, portray so often (England). There is a lot of controversy surrounding this film in regards to its patriarchal ideals. The Little Mermaid, like most media, is build for the ‘male gaze’, a term coined by Laura Mulvey that suggests that visual entertainment, such as movies, are structured to be viewed by a masculine consumer. I will argue that the male gaze perpetuates harmful gender-stereotypes in The Little Mermaid.
In considering the relationship between the meanings of myths and their representation of women, we learned that the major role in shaping the narratives was played by men. Myths reveal to us the experiences of women living in the patriarchal society and we gain the symbol value accorded to women and we come to realize what the term "Woman" meant to the ancient Greek man. Reading through the various stories on Goddesses and queens, monsters and more. Princesses, we learn that there are three major levels of women in Greek mythology. The first level is composed of the divine beings known as the goddesses.
Fairy-legends in particular often reflected the people’s fears and became a way for them to explain things they just could not understand. These fairy legends were told very long ago before people had an understanding of science so when an unexpected death or a child went missing fairy legends were created to explain this. People’s anxieties were greatly reflected in fairy legends such as giving birth to a child and what had to be done, children being taken and replaced by changelings, women getting taken away, and children being abducted.
Rowe Karen. “Feminism and Fairy Tales.” Folk & Fairy Tales. Matin Hallett and Barbrar Karasek. Canada: Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication, 2009. 342-358. Print.
the history of our mission to conquer the underwater world.” Geographical Aug. 2005:54+. Student Edition. 3 Nov. 2009 .
"Myths and Legends." Origins of A Mermaid and a Magic Comb. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.
There are many Myths and legends in the world and some are more common than others. Different people believe in different myths and legends. They are different myths and legends that correspond with different religions and countries. Myths can be a long story or a short story, some myths can be more interesting than others.