The Little Mermaid by Rob Marshall
Case study by Margot Maritz
The Little Mermaid is a tale of more serious themes - on the surface, we see a romantic story of a mermaid, Ariel, falling in love with a Human, Prince Eric. And people could think she gives up her voice for a man and how that is degrading to women, however, the new 2023 film could set those thoughts aside and change audience perspectives.
Ariel
The Little Mermaid; A bright young girl that has a dream of finally being heard. Ariel has a desire of walking among humans and saying goodbye to the ocean floor, which is well established in the first few scenes of the film.
“I wanna be where the people are I wanna see… Up where they walk, up where they run. Up where they stay all day in the sun. Wanderin' free,
wish I could be part of that world.
What would I give if I could live out of these waters? What would I pay to spend a day warm on the sand?”
The Little Mermaid; A bright young girl that has a dream of finally being heard. Ariel has a desire of walking among humans and saying goodbye to the ocean floor, which is well established in the first few scenes of the film.
“I wanna be where the people are I wanna see… Up where they walk, up where they run. Up where they stay all day in the sun. Wanderin' free,
wish I could be part of that world.
What would I give if I could live out of these waters? What would I pay to spend a day warm on the sand?”
While listening to Halle Bailey sing, “Part of your world”, audiences understand her dream of being a part of the world and this is the first instance where we realise that she did not give up her voice for a man but rather to fulfil her dream. The second verse indicates the deeper meaning of the film.
The voice of women
“Bright young women sick of swimmin'. Ready to stand.
When's it my turn? Wouldn't I love, love to explore that shore up above? Out of the sea. Wish I could be part of that world.”
The Little Mermaid is a strong metaphor for a woman standing up. Finally finding the courage to speak their mind and achieve their goals, no matter the obstacles. This film has a positive impact on young girls, and can also extend to anyone that feels trapped and has a goal they think they can not reach. Ariel and her determination are an inspiration to the audience.
Ursula
The voice of women
“Bright young women sick of swimmin'. Ready to stand.
When's it my turn? Wouldn't I love, love to explore that shore up above? Out of the sea. Wish I could be part of that world.”
The Little Mermaid is a strong metaphor for a woman standing up. Finally finding the courage to speak their mind and achieve their goals, no matter the obstacles. This film has a positive impact on young girls, and can also extend to anyone that feels trapped and has a goal they think they can not reach. Ariel and her determination are an inspiration to the audience.
Ursula
Throughout the film, Ariel is seen exploring the human world, whether that is on land or in the waters with her thingamabobs. Her determination to explore the human world is what prompts Ursula to make the deal. Having no intention of Ariel succeeding, the sea witch used Prince Eric as the pawn in her trick. Knowing that Ariel gave up her voice because of the promise of receiving legs, and being able to walk on shore, and not for the Prince.
Ursula enforces the metaphor by being as well as creating an obstacle in Ariel's reaching her goals. In our world, we have obstacles we face almost every day. Those obstacles could be the selfish nature of people, materialistic objects or even ourselves.
Prince Eric
When audiences first see Prince Eric, they quickly realise his similarities to Ariel. Whilst not long after that, Ariel also sees those similarities and relates with him. Audiences fell in love with the character and so did she. Nonetheless, this crush did not impact her goal but rather strengthened it, as she realised she is not alone.
Ursula enforces the metaphor by being as well as creating an obstacle in Ariel's reaching her goals. In our world, we have obstacles we face almost every day. Those obstacles could be the selfish nature of people, materialistic objects or even ourselves.
Prince Eric
When audiences first see Prince Eric, they quickly realise his similarities to Ariel. Whilst not long after that, Ariel also sees those similarities and relates with him. Audiences fell in love with the character and so did she. Nonetheless, this crush did not impact her goal but rather strengthened it, as she realised she is not alone.
Eric does play a big part in assisting with her goal. He helps her define what she sees and indulges her curiosity by showing her the village and exploring new things. Even without communication Eric understands Ariel’s hopes and encourages her to increase her curiosity, knowledge and dreams. This representation contrasts with the selfishness of Ursula and is a metaphor for the people in our life that help us succeed and overcome obstacles.
The Little Mermaid inspires all viewers with its vibrant colours, positive theme and sub-theme, and dynamic characters. Telling the story of a girl fulfilling her dreams, together with help from people that care and support her. However, this is not the only positive message…
The Little Mermaid inspires all viewers with its vibrant colours, positive theme and sub-theme, and dynamic characters. Telling the story of a girl fulfilling her dreams, together with help from people that care and support her. However, this is not the only positive message…
Biocentrism and Environmentalism
The Little Mermaid has a strong sub-theme of biocentrism and environmentalism; in the film, audiences learn that the “human” world and the “ocean” world do not live in harmony. This is due to human acts of hunting mermaids, polluting water and destroying coral due to shipwrecks and can be extended to other environmental issues we have today such as oil spillage, plastic pollution, whale-hunting and overfishing. However, audiences learn that Prince Eric does not condone these behaviours. The entire premise of Eric and Ariel being together, creates the sub-theme of the “human - and ocean world” finally setting aside environmental injustice and becoming one.
The Little Mermaid has a strong sub-theme of biocentrism and environmentalism; in the film, audiences learn that the “human” world and the “ocean” world do not live in harmony. This is due to human acts of hunting mermaids, polluting water and destroying coral due to shipwrecks and can be extended to other environmental issues we have today such as oil spillage, plastic pollution, whale-hunting and overfishing. However, audiences learn that Prince Eric does not condone these behaviours. The entire premise of Eric and Ariel being together, creates the sub-theme of the “human - and ocean world” finally setting aside environmental injustice and becoming one.
This can be translated to how humans live in an egocentric way towards nature and how we should adopt a biocentric lifestyle, in order to protect our world. As well as how people, regardless of their race, ethnicity, culture or sexuality, etc. differences, should respect one another and learn from each other.This environmental sub-theme has the potential to inspire conservation and sustainable audiences’ perspective change.
Marshall, R. (2023). The Little Mermaid (Film). Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.
IMDb (2023) The Little Mermaid, IMDb. Available at: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5971474/.
IMDb (2023) The Little Mermaid, IMDb. Available at: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5971474/.
All imagery used are taken from The Little Mermaid film and is the property of Lightstorm Entertainment.