Fairy Tale Spotlight: The Princess

Although there are exceptions, the fairy tale princess has generally been the prize for the prince at the very end of the story. If she is the protagonist, her fate often still ends in marriage. The purpose of this spotlight is to showcase the protagonist princess in a similar light to the prince. We'll talk about normal women who become princesses at a later date.

Sometimes, the princess of a kingdom--generally the daughter of a king--must go out on an adventure. There are a number of reasons why she should do this, because in all honesty, that sort of business is not commonly expected of a princess. The most common reason is love. Whether the king approves or not, sometimes the princess will go out of her way to save the one she loves. Sometimes, she will make many sacrificed to make this happen such as never speaking a word for 3 years.

Many of these stories involve the princess being reduced to the state of a vagabond in order to complete her quest. She may live like a beggar looking for a clue that may lead to her lover. In most cases, the old stories do not favor princesses very much. At the very least, she will find the one she loves and achieve a pleasant life as a wife.

If anyone has read more than the first Oz book, they would have heard of a princess named Ozma. This character breaks many of the tropes of the Grim stories. She was a true princess being the daughter of the former king of oz, King Pastoria. Ozma represented everything it was to be a women while at the same time going on grand adventures throughout the land of Oz. I've read 19 of these stories so far and she is tossed out there quite often. Ironically, when a prince ends up proposing to her, she was entirely uninterested.

The point of this spotlight is to show that princesses do sometimes get out and do some of the dirty work, but I am happy when they do. I personally think anyone who strives with all their might for something good deserves it--whether they be man or woman. Don't get me wrong, I think the whole damsel in distress genre is a great trope, but remember that the characters are the ones who drive the story forward. If a woman has the gumption to stand up and be a true heroin, then there is nothing wrong with letting it inspire you.

On one final note, I recommend you all see the new Wonder Woman movie that came out this year. It is a good example of what I've been talking about. I don't want to spoil it, but needless to say, she is a princess and she is most certainly not the one in distress. Enjoy!

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