The Negative Influence of Disney Princesses on Young Girls

Mikayla McCray-Ross

Dr. Modestino

ENGL 002 – 57

September 3, 2014

The Negative Influence of Disney Princesses on Young Girls

The ideals that many of the Disney princesses and their stories present on adolescent girls negatively impacts their views in their adult future. The Disney princess stories are fiction and the princesses are fictional figures that, ultimately have these “Happily Ever After” lives. In the real world life is not always happy. The areas of impact that affect young girls into adulthood, which are introduced by the Disney princess films are low self-esteem, behavioral issues, and the reliance on being in a relationship and feeling loved only by physical attention which only a man can provide. These films subconsciously have a negative effect on young girls who truly look up to Disney princesses.

Many young girls develop self-esteem issues because of their ideals based on what they have seen in a Disney princess movies. Disney princesses are based on society’s view of what beautiful is. The princesses have nice bodies and perfect hair and usually a beautiful singing voice. The princesses are thin; honestly, have you ever seen a heavier set women as a princess? The answer is no, because a full figured women is not necessarily seen as beautiful. So many girls grow up trying to fit in to what society views as beautiful, instead of embracing the beauty that is already within them. Young girls grow up feeling self-conscious about their bodies just because they are fixated on these fictional characters, who appear “perfect.” This is something that I believe happens subconsciously. Having low self-esteem can also result in the constant need for attention, preferably male attention. Young females and women need to look up to actual human figures rather than a Disney princesses.

An even more devastating result of the influence that most of the Disney princesses have on young girls is the reliance on a man. That they can only have true love...