A princess story I can get behind

I am not a fan of Disney princesses. I can deal with the
tiaras and the pink, but I'm disturbed by the sexualized visions of thinness,
the suggestion that to be ugly is to be evil and the promotion of extreme
body modification in order to get the guy.

But my five-year-old daughter lives in the real world.
Escaping the princess culture isn't even an option. So when I heard that
Disney's latest princess flick, Tangled,
has a female lead who is strong, adventurous and in possession of a
personality, I allowed myself to hope for a non-cringe-worthy princess.

I took my daughter to see Tangled on opening day, and I wasn't disappointed. The story
focuses on Rapunzel's journey to break free from the woman (Gothel) who
kidnapped her as a baby and has held her captive in a tower. But it isn't just
a simple tale of rescue and escape; it is the story of Rapunzel discovering her
passions. Her captivity convinced her that she was weak, good for nothing but
domestic chores, and in need of protection from the evil world. Yet as she
enters that world she discovers that it is a beautiful place where dreams can
be fulfilled. The true evil was captivity, which kept her from being whole.

The characters are all living others' dreams instead of
their own. Gothel believes she must remain forever young and beautiful. Flynn
Rider is convinced that if he had enough money he could find happiness. The
brigands live a life of crime while their true dreams--one wants to be a
concert pianist, another a mime--are left unfulfilled. Even Rapunzel's sidekick
is a chameleon, changing to fit into its surroundings. Those who find
redemption in the film turn away from the pressure to be what others tell them
they should be and embrace who they were born to be.

Disney is finally telling a story that delivers a
life-affirming message. As a Christian who constantly prays that my children
will be able to live into who God created them to be and not be swayed by the
siren calls of our culture, I found the message faith-affirming as well.

Other Christians don't agree. Todd Hertz's review
misses the point of the redemption story, reducing the film to a story of a
girl finding her parents. He suggests that the manipulative words Gothel uses
to keep Rapunzel captive (the world is evil, so good must be kept protected)
have biblical roots and would be a good discussion starter for family reflection.
Armond White condemns
the film, asserting that it is "strained through a sieve of political
correctness that includes condescending to fashionable notions about girlhood,
patriarchy, romance, and what is now the most suspicious of cultural tenets,
faith." He derides the Rapunzel character as "a girl of contemporary spunk,
daring, and godlessness," all apparently evil traits.

It's hard to raise a daughter. While the culture feeds her
lies about how being a pretty princess is all that matters, the church too
holds her back from living life fully. Its message is that she cannot be who
she was created to be if that involves questioning authority, exposing herself
to danger or showing a little spunk from time to time. Women have been held
captive by these messages for too long, and I'm grateful that Tangled offers something more
affirming--even if it's in the guise of a princess.