One reading of Beauty and the Beast
The latest version of Beauty and the Beast has generated a lot of displeasure on facebook, especially Belle's role, and I'm contending that it's because she is being viewed through a masculinist/patriarchal lense, in fact, as most versions of the story are.
It took me half way through my PhD, which involved applying Campbell's hero myth to a female hero, and a lot of reading of Jung, to realise that I was doing the same thing, even though I am a feminist.
I haven't seen the latest version, but I saw the animated one, which I believe is very similar. To read the story through a non-masculinist/patriarchal lense, you need to put aside how women are treated in our present social/economic systems, and focus on other things.
It is pretty obvious that, a lot of the traditionally female gendered qualities result in women being second class citizens, in many, if not most societies. I am certainly not disputing that, and I think it really impacts our judgement on notions of love and reward, sacrifice and benefit.
I want to look at these four things in terms of being a whole human being, emotionally and spiritually, in offering this different reading.
The young prince is cursed by a crone for his lack of hospitality. In other words, he does not welcome into his psyche, the wise woman, the wisdom of the anima (the female aspect of psyche we all have), which will allow him to be open to love (take a wife) and be complete (animus [male aspect] +anima), He is trapped in his previous, immature life-stage.
His outward appearance (the beast) now mirrors the unmoderated animus at its worse. He is not all bad though. He has a libraray (higher understanding, logos, creativity),
Meanwhile, Belle is likewise trapped in her immature life-stage. She must move from daughter-love, to wife-love ie become an adult, welcome the addition to her anima, of the male animus.
Push comes to shove (as it often does when the psyche is frustrated) when the beast and her father fight for her. She must choose between them when her father is captured by the beast. In effect, she trades the father for the mate (or potential mate). The film suggests she takes the father's place as the beast's prisoner, actually, she chooses to pass into the beast's domain and out of her father's.
The sexuality of the mate is frightening, better the gentle care of the father, but it is time to mature, and so she goes bravely forward. It is a sacrifice which will reward her handsomely, with a mate that is worthy of her. By working to integrate his animus with her anima, she grants him the opportunity to integrate her anima with his animus.
They will become adults worthy of each other. The dance motif, just before the beast dies to his old self (is killed by Gaston) is a lovely way of showing how they have come into step.
Belle has already redeemed the beast before he 'dies'. In verbalising her love at the crucial moment, she is actually gifting herself. 'I love you,' is saying, 'I love that part of myself that I must have and that manifests as you, the animus.'
By his efforts to change, to smoothing his mane, to lead Belle in the dance (of life), the beast has already expressed his love for her (his anima) and welcomed her into his psyche. They redeem each other.
Just for the record, Gaston is another beast, the unmoderated, unintegrated animus (no books, brutal, violent, insensitive).
It took me half way through my PhD, which involved applying Campbell's hero myth to a female hero, and a lot of reading of Jung, to realise that I was doing the same thing, even though I am a feminist.
I haven't seen the latest version, but I saw the animated one, which I believe is very similar. To read the story through a non-masculinist/patriarchal lense, you need to put aside how women are treated in our present social/economic systems, and focus on other things.
It is pretty obvious that, a lot of the traditionally female gendered qualities result in women being second class citizens, in many, if not most societies. I am certainly not disputing that, and I think it really impacts our judgement on notions of love and reward, sacrifice and benefit.
I want to look at these four things in terms of being a whole human being, emotionally and spiritually, in offering this different reading.
The young prince is cursed by a crone for his lack of hospitality. In other words, he does not welcome into his psyche, the wise woman, the wisdom of the anima (the female aspect of psyche we all have), which will allow him to be open to love (take a wife) and be complete (animus [male aspect] +anima), He is trapped in his previous, immature life-stage.
His outward appearance (the beast) now mirrors the unmoderated animus at its worse. He is not all bad though. He has a libraray (higher understanding, logos, creativity),
Meanwhile, Belle is likewise trapped in her immature life-stage. She must move from daughter-love, to wife-love ie become an adult, welcome the addition to her anima, of the male animus.
Push comes to shove (as it often does when the psyche is frustrated) when the beast and her father fight for her. She must choose between them when her father is captured by the beast. In effect, she trades the father for the mate (or potential mate). The film suggests she takes the father's place as the beast's prisoner, actually, she chooses to pass into the beast's domain and out of her father's.
The sexuality of the mate is frightening, better the gentle care of the father, but it is time to mature, and so she goes bravely forward. It is a sacrifice which will reward her handsomely, with a mate that is worthy of her. By working to integrate his animus with her anima, she grants him the opportunity to integrate her anima with his animus.
They will become adults worthy of each other. The dance motif, just before the beast dies to his old self (is killed by Gaston) is a lovely way of showing how they have come into step.
Belle has already redeemed the beast before he 'dies'. In verbalising her love at the crucial moment, she is actually gifting herself. 'I love you,' is saying, 'I love that part of myself that I must have and that manifests as you, the animus.'
By his efforts to change, to smoothing his mane, to lead Belle in the dance (of life), the beast has already expressed his love for her (his anima) and welcomed her into his psyche. They redeem each other.
Just for the record, Gaston is another beast, the unmoderated, unintegrated animus (no books, brutal, violent, insensitive).
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