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Sydney Dippel
Professor Kendra Parker
English 113-03 The Wonderful World of Disney?
21 April 2015
Essay 4 Critical Summary
In Romancing the Plot: The Real Beast of Disneys Beauty and the Beast, June
Cummins rehashes multiple issues she and other critics find prevalent in Disneys version of
Beauty and the Beast. Cummins begins the article describing criticisms of how Disney portrayed
Belle and her aspirations. She argues that by stripping the original fairytale of virtually
everything but the romantic storyline, the film teaches viewers that women can only be happy in
the arms of a prince so they must pursue this goal at all costs. Disney frequently shifts the plot
and characters of various fairytales to transfer the focus of the movie onto the romantic storyline,
despite losses in moral complexity. The original fairytale by Madame Le Prince de Beaumont
situates Belle as one of three sisters in a middle class family, who loves music, books, and
learning. The original author was trying to empower her intended audience to become intelligent
and well instructed, instead of counting on falling in love to be happy. Cummins claims that with
this shift, Belle becomes merely a plot device, seen primarily as the object that the Beast and the
bewitched household characters use to break the curse. She sees the story as being predominantly
about the Beast and his transformation, a version of the story that seems oversimplified
compared to the original fairytale. In this case, Belles beauty and usefulness as a woman are the
aspects that attract both the Beast and the castles inhabitants. Cummins does recognize that
Belle is seen as an intellectual at first, but even the books she reads centers the focus on the
clich fairytale story. During the song at the beginning of the film, Belle gushes about a prince in
disguise in one of her books, seeming swooned by the idea. The romantic plot is engrained so
deeply into the story that it penetrates even the intellectual aspect of Belles character. In
addition, Cummins describes a scene later in which Belle is reading to the Beast, but even then,
the book is helping to develop the romance between the two instead of aiding in Belles learning.
One of the main arguments of the article is that Belles value is derived from her capacity to
nurture, doing do for both her father and the Beast. She takes on the responsibility of taking care
of her father, as well as tending to the Beasts physical wounds after he is attacked by the
wolves. This aspect of Belle motivates her actions throughout most of the story, despite her
strong passion to see far off places and experience new things for herself. Although Cummins
acknowledges that Belles actions toward the Beast teach a good lesson of not judging a book by
its cover, she also worries about the more prevalent lesson being taught in this film: that women
should also put their desires second in order to serve their Prince Charming.
Growing up with the Disney movies, I had never really considered the negative lessons
portrayed in Beauty and the Beast. However, Cummins article really opened up my eyes to
some alarming truths about this beloved story. Her point about the subtle connections to the
romance, such as Belles favorite story at the beginning of the film, examine how young people
are taught about desires. In addition, Belle continuously putting up with the abuse from the Beast
paints a picture of an unhealthy relationship. The various points Cummins makes about Belles
value coming from her ability to break the curse and take care of the Beast could possibly teach
young girls that it is their job to change their abuser into someone less abusive. While Belle is a
more rounded Disney princess than there has been in the past, Cummins is right; Disney still has
a long way to go before they achieve a truly realistic heroine. To achieve this goal, Disney must
carefully consider all aspects of a princess before projecting her onto the big screen.

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Work Cited
Cummins, June. Romancing the Plot: the Real Beast of Disneys Beauty and the Beast.
Childrens Literature Association Quarterly. 20.1 (Spring 1995): 22-28. ProjectMuse.
Web. 16 March 2013.