Talk:Ariel/@comment-10252860-20130609114130

If you believe that Ariel abandoned her family, it's not true. Read this and you will anderstand.“It’s okay to abandon your family for a guy..”

and

“You have to be willing to drastically change your body to be with your man..”

Well… Both of that statements imply that the only thing that motivates Ariel to become human and leave the sea is (wanting to be with) Prince Eric. But that simply isn’t true. Whoever thinks so, has obviously only watched the second half of the movie. Or just ignored the first part, who knows. Ariel is incredibly fascinated by the humans and their world long before she gets to know Eric. We see her exploring shipwrecks, collecting anything made by humans and inquiring about everything connected to the human world. However, not only is she fascinated by that world, but she also wants to be a part of it. All this becomes quite clear with what Ariel sings in the cave where she stores all her collected objects – before she even sets eyes on Eric for the first time:

Look at this stuff isn’t it neat? Wouldn’t you think my collection’s complete? Wouldn’t you think I’m the girl, the girl who has everything? Look at this trove treasures untold How many wonders can one cavern hold? Looking around here you’d think Sure, she’s got everything I’ve got gadgets and gizmos aplenty I’ve got whozits and whatzits galore You want thingamabobs? I’ve got twenty But who cares? No big deal – I want more <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">I wanna be where the people are <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">I wanna see, wanna see them dancing <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Walking around on those – what you call them? Oh – feet <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Flipping your fins you don’t get too far <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Legs are required for jumping, dancing <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Strolling along down a – what’s that word again? Street, oh <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Up where they walk, up where they run <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Up where they stay all day in the sun <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Wandering free wish I could be part of that world <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">What would I give if I could live out of these waters? <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">What would I pay to spend a day warm on the sand? <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Betcha on land they understand <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Bet they don’t reprimand their daughters <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Bright young women sick o’ swimming ready to stand <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">And I’m ready to know what the people know <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Ask them my questions and get some answers <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">What’s a fire and why does it – what’s the word? Burn <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">When’s it my turn? Wouldn’t I love? <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Love to explore that shore up above? <span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Out of the sea wish I could be part of that world

<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:23px;outline:0px;line-height:23px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ariel states in this song that she feels trapped in her body or maybe rather the place she lives in – the sea. Her body and the sea don’t offer her the possibilities and the freedom that legs and the world on land could give her. For her, the life under the sea is just not the kind of life she wants for herself. And yes, she only goes through with her wish of becoming human after she met Eric. But after all, the possibility only presents itself after she met him. Before Ariel simply doesn’t know of a way to become human. I’m not even saying that Eric doesn’t have anything to do with Ariel’s decision. Her love for him sure adds to the motivation. He might even just be the final straw that breaks the camel’s neck and make her finally go through with it. But – and here’s the important point – he (or Ariel’s love for him) is not the only reason why she does it in the first place. He is not what even brings about her wish to become human. Ariel had that wish before already for completely different reasons.

<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:23px;outline:0px;line-height:23px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It’s true though, Ariel does have to change her body in order to be with Eric. But why’s that? Doesn’t Eric love her as a mermaid? Umm… wait a second… yes! He does! When Ariel transforms back into a mermaid in front of Eric, it doesn’t change anything about his feelings for her. So why should Ariel change her body to be with him? Can’t she just remain as a mermaid and still be with Eric? Umm… Well… No, not really. Being a mermaid makes it impossible to be with Eric, at least physically and constantly. As a mermaid she can’t be and live where he is and lives (and vice versa by the way). As a mermaid, Ariel couldn’t survive on land, same as Eric couldn’t survive under the sea as a human. So, yes, the change of body is an inevitable requirement for Ariel to be with Eric. But that’s completely due to the given circumstances in their special case. It’s not something you should or can take out of context, generalize and sell as a common rule. That’s like saying “You have to use your feet to open a bottle” as a general rule for everybody, after you saw somebody doing that who did not have hands. Ariel does not teach us, that we have to change our bodies to be with a man. And I don’t think any kid would get that impression from the movie. I certainly didn’t as a child. Even if her love for Eric was the only thing that motivated Ariel to change her body, it wouldn’t be what she teaches us with it. What she teaches us, is that getting to be with somebody might not always be easy. You might have to make some effort in order to get to be with the one you love, because there might be obstacles on your way. But Ariel also shows us that you can overcome those obstacles with love as your motivation. She teaches us that love will overcome any obstacle. That love has no boundaries – which is also a tagline of the movie.

<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:23px;outline:0px;line-height:23px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">As for the second statement – I already got a part of my point across, stating that she does not just do it for Eric. But there’s a lot more wrong about this statement. You see, I wouldn’t even say Ariel does “abandon” her family in the first place. “Abandon” is a pretty negative expression. Abandoning someone means leaving them for good, giving up on them, dropping them like a hot potato. Ariel does not do such a thing. After all, her family is present at her wedding, she still speaks to them, they are still in contact and she still loves them. Ariel only leaves her family in so far that she leaves the place where the rest of her family lives. She leaves home. Well, in case you didn’t know that before I’ll gladly bring to your attention, that pretty much everybody leaves home at some point in life. It mostly happens when people grow up and start living their own lives. Even Sebastian realizes that:

<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:23px;outline:0px;line-height:23px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Sebastian: Like I always say, Your Majesty, “children have got to be free to lead their own lives.” What Ariel teaches us with leaving home is that it’s okay to grow up. It’s okay to go and start living your own life. That might mean you won’t live with your family anymore and you might not even see them everyday anymore. But it’s okay. It doesn’t change anything about them being your family. They will still love you and they will still be there for you. Because your family will still be your family, no matter what. It’s okay to grow up and start your own life. Because even as a grown-up woman, you’ll still be daddy’s little girl.

<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:23px;outline:0px;line-height:23px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="outline:0px;color:rgb(204,153,255);">Ariel: I love you, Daddy.

<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:23px;outline:0px;line-height:23px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I think this quote is a worthy last line for a text. So I’ll just leave it at that.