Topic > Comparative Analysis of Perrault's Sleeping Beauty and Maleficent

Narratives are cultural devices that represent their era, playing an important academic role in reflecting and developing the values, ideas and attitudes of their context and even alerting the public about what might happen in the future. Appropriations are a clear example of where composers are able to maintain the popular themes and plot of a story while simultaneously reinforcing the key issues and values ​​of the current society they are a part of on a subliminal level to still maintain the story but also provoke the audience to think about their actions in the world. This can be seen through the numerous appropriations of Charles Perrault's popular Sleeping Beauty from the late 17th century and Maleficent, Robert Stromberg's new interpretation of Sleeping Beauty in 2014. Through the changing roles of the main characters, such as Phillip,. Maleficent and Sleeping Beauty, the clear changes in the textual purpose of the narrative, young love versus the idea of ​​feminism and the ideals placed on women, both Perrault and Stormberg were able to address real life issues, reflecting the society and in turn shaping it by placing these narratives as influential factors in front of its audience to help them make real decisions throughout their lives, which is an important aspect of maintaining the relevance of narratives over time. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay First and foremost, the most obvious contrast between Sleeping Beauty and Maleficent are the gender roles expressed. This can be seen through the different ways all the characters are shown, more specifically both Sleeping Beauty and the Prince are shown. In Perrault's version of Sleeping Beauty, his characters are the direct creation of the roles assigned to both men and women in 17th century society, roles that would have connected and greatly influenced the individual at the time. The comparisons can be seen as malevolent that challenge ideas about the form of the Prince and Princess. In past narratives the princess has been depicted solely as a love interest or a prize to be won, seen through Disney's numerous interpretations of fairy tales such as Tangled, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, with the primary purpose placed in the pursuit of love, relationships, of marriage. + and in need of protection, working in correlation with the damsel in distress form. Just as their main values ​​can be seen as their beauty and superiority. This form is demonstrated through Sleeping Beauty throughout the story and can be seen in Cleary during the great baptism, the idea of ​​her beauty expressed through the first "gift" given to "she should be the most beautiful person". This demonstrated the importance of beauty in society constructed from Perrault's 17th century context where status, such as one's royal possessions, and appearance were obsessed, which furthers the idea of ​​the sociological function of myth. Perrault uses this idea to impose this idea on his own society, using the way the audience sees the princess to inspire them to want to be just like that and aim for this high expectation of beauty and status. This is further reinforced through the introduction of the prince and the archetype of this prince, the strong and fearless protector. This is demonstrated through the prince, who after learning that there is a beautiful princess waiting in a castle, becomes determined to be the savior she has been waiting for.These archetypes are questioned in Stromberg's appropriation, Maleficent, due to the context in which it was published. Maleficent largely rejects the idea that women are weak and need a man's protection or rescue, reflecting how individuals see their world in which 2014 ushered in a major promotion of women's empowerment and rejecting the sexist ideas on which they had been built. for many years, for example Perrault's version of Sleeping Beauty. This can be seen through the idea of ​​true love's kiss, where the idea that Prince Philip was the only one who could save Aurora is challenged by the visual scene of Aurora and Maleficent showing the women empowering women. This idea presents itself as a new moral lesson, about women empowering women, an important lesson to teach not only girls but boys as well, shaping how they see their future and how they will see themselves, and they have not need to rely on the stereotypes that created these archetypes. The contrast between Sleeping Beauty and Maleficent is important to really reinforce these ideas, where stereotypes may have retained their relevance to leave a lasting impression on 17th century audiences but have now evolved over time with society. This contrast continues further as Maleficent challenges the ideals imposed on women in the centuries before its release, showing audiences how they no longer have a role in today's society. Perrault's Sleeping Beauty was published at an extremely opportune time to reinforce society's notions of "ideal" women in the times in which they were told. A beautiful woman who could sing, dance and play would surely have been popular in 17th century Versailles. This can be seen through the opening baptism through each of the gifts offered by the fairies constructed with both visual and auditory metaphors and images to highlight their importance, where the Princess would be the "...most beautiful person...character of an angel ... wonderful grace ... dances to perfection ... sings like a nightingale ... plays all kinds of music with the utmost skill.” Within these gifts the idea of ​​female curiosity is not mentioned which dramatically shows how it was not valued as a feminine characteristic but rather warned women of the time, manifested through the introduction of the curse of the evil fairy"... declared that the princess should prick her hand with a spindle, and I will die.” This curse alarms the king who hides all the spindles from his princess, but due to her curiosity she inevitably finds the spindle which will lead to her ruin is seen as a way to warn society of women's curiosity, showing that it is not their job to search around but rather to implement the previously stated ideas, reinforcing their importance in Perrault's society discussion from Maleficent, female curiosity is largely affirmed rather than scorned This is a support throughout the film, for example when Aurora is young, wandering around, chasing the butterfly, curious to see what it is and experience the joy it brings, and also. when Aurora and Maleficent travel through the woods, allowing Aurora's curiosity to take over. above and experience the new encounters, the tracking shots used to show the occurrence of new experiences that occur continuously, without threats to Aurora. The negative connotations about curiosity were important to challenge as they reflected the current society Stromberg found herself in, a society where women's roles are not limited to being agood wife or good mother, but they explore and find their own future. This was an important lesson to teach young women, particularly teenage girls, who would experience these idealistic expectations brought about by narratives that had previously left a lasting impression on society and needed to be challenged. Maleficent successfully challenges these ideals brought forward by composers like Perrault, not just curiosity, to reflect the society they had evolved in now, not the one that had been created and carried forward through narratives over time and create new realistic ideals for young women. measure up.The greatest contrast between Maleficent and Sleeping Beauty is the sheer textual purpose communicated by the composers. Written and published in the 17th century, Perrault wrote about an important aspect of life that he could clearly recognize and represent to his audience, the idea of ​​true love and young marriage. These ideas are referenced in the written moral of the story, ensuring that if the audience is unable to understand the underlying message of the narrative, they will by the time they finish reading. It reads as "Many a girl has waited a long time, for a brave or strong husband... young blood must do it when young blood wants it!" This clearly demonstrates the textual purpose, and Perrault's ability to portray this and reflect its modern society allowed Sleeping Beauty to extend its relevance even further. Sleeping Beauty has held an important meaning for its audience and has had the power to influence and shape the society in which it maintains its relevance. Many women who read the narrative are inspired by its results, by the happy ending in which men and women find each other, fall in love, get married, have children and live happily ever after. This inspiration leads them to want to find their true love, giving Sleeping Beauty the power to shape its audience's worldview and future actions. This can also be said with Maleficent, however, Maleficent shows her own textual purpose, feminism, and the idea of ​​whether someone is truly good or evil. The overall story of Sleeping Beauty shows Maleficent as the evil witch, the villain who sentences Aurora to death but is ultimately defeated. Stromberg's Maleficent challenged this idea, introducing a second side to the story, her side, showing the audience why she does what she does. Maleficent's actions are ultimately justified or explained through the actions committed against her. The audience is shown the great betrayal she faces from a man, who she thought was a friend, who took advantage of her trust and took much of her identity, her wings. This betrayal is what leads to Aurora's curse, however, the idea is introduced that Maleficent is good, or just like every other human. The audience sees the good through his bond with Aurora and his determination to protect her. Maleficent's character develops greatly "I swear nothing bad will ever happen to you" with this young girl. Aurora Maleficent's perspective of the world has changed, reinforced by the close-up shot of Maleficent's face, showing tears in her eyes. The audience is forced to consider the idea that there is more than just one side to a story and is also introduced to the idea of ​​feminism and women's empowerment. Maleficent no longer gives men the power to control her or fuel her anger, but accepts herself as a strong woman, strengthened by Aurora's love and support for her. The textual contrast between Sleeping Beauty and Maleficent is dramatic and shows the evolution of societies. Women's roles are no longer defined by theirs,.