Sleeping Beauty

Sleeping Beauty

One of the things we first notice about Aurora is her obedience. In the film, she is 16 years old. For her time, she had come of age, but when the three fairy godmothers send her out to go collect berries, Aurora obeys them though we notice a hint of knowingness in her eyes (as if she knows they’re up to something, which also plays on her intelligence). Imagine if Aurora was like many teenagers these days and stomped her foot and refused to go out and pick berries like she did every day. She would miss out on the splendid surprise her fairy godmothers planned for her.

Magic should be used sparingly.

For Aurora’s birthday, the godmothers wanted to do something very special for her. They give a good attempt, but they are unable to bake a birthday cake and sew a dress. As this seemed to be the first time they’d dusted off their wands in 16 years, it begs the question – Did Aurora do all the sewing, cooking, and cleaning? Oh well, they have good hearts, but their overabundance of magic use causes Maleficent to discover Aurora’s location.

Aurora is responsible. All her life, she has been taught, like a good child, to not talk to strangers. So she is very cautious of Prince Phillip when she meets him in the woods. At first, she refuses to speak to him and even tries to avoid him, but he is charming nonetheless, and we see his attempts to woo her do not go unnoticed. So Aurora appreciates when a young man tries to win her heart. And he behaves like a true gentleman, and she can see that. Still, she does not give him her name, but she does agree to meet him in the woods again. And what does she do as soon as she gets home? She tells her fairy godmothers about the young man in the woods.

Again some might accuse Aurora of being a pushover when she is told she is promised to Prince Phillip (who she obviously did not know was really the young man in the woods), but Aurora’s character shines through all this through her obedience. No one can accuse her of being passive. She certainly is upset by the news of marrying a complete stranger and spends a good amount of time crying, which is perfectly normal. But instead of running away in rebellion, Aurora continues to obey Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather. Imagine being in her place. You have just found out that not only are your parents alive but you are truly a princess promised to a prince, and even the name you’ve gone by for 16 years is not your real name. Obeying the fairies and returning to her parents to face the reality of her situation makes Aurora undeniably brave though she does need some time to let her emotions out. Aurora proves to be very mature. She does not run from her problems. 

Her obedience is possibly in question when she pricks her finger on the spinning wheel, but Maleficent does put her in a trance. Could Aurora have forced herself out of the trance? Perhaps…but we will never know, will we?

Aurora also has good taste in men. Not only was Phillip willing to go the extra mile to woo her, but look at the guy – he is willing to fight a dragon for her!

The one negative about Aurora’s situation could be attributed to her parents and to the fairies. Perhaps if they had shared with her the news about the curse sooner, Aurora could have prepared herself more so she could avoid pricking her finger. Obviously, she grew up a very obedient and responsible young woman so she could have been trusted with the truth.

Ultimately, good things come to those who wait. In the end, Aurora and her prince marry and live happily ever after – they are rewarded for their courage and their obedience. 

I would definitely let my daughter watch Sleeping Beauty, but if she’s little, the dragon fight scene could be a tad too scary.

Random Trivia

• Aurora was modeled after Audrey Hepburn.
• In the original version, Aurora was under the sleeping spell for a hundred years.
• Seven fairies were invited in the Charles Perrault version, but the uninvited eighth fairy placed the curse on sleeping beauty.
• In the Charles Perrault version, the prince also had a stepmother who hated the princess and ordered her cook to literally cook the princess, but the cook was compassionate and raised the princess along with her brother in a secluded house in the woods.
• Along with Belle, Aurora is second in command to Cinderella.
• Aurora is the only princess to have purple eyes.
• She is the third youngest Disney princess – behind Snow White (14) and Jasmine (15).
• Aurora was named after the Goddess of the Dawn so her name means ‘dawn’ or ‘sunrise’ in Latin.
• Aurora is the first Disney princess to have both her parents in the film. Rapunzel and Mulan are the others.
• Aurora is the tallest of the Disney princesses.
• Aurora only gets 18 minutes of screen time in the movie – the least amount of all princesses.
• Aurora’s dress flips back and forth between blue and pink, and there is no official statement on what the true color is supposed to be. (When we took a photo with her at Disney World, it was pink) 

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Don't know much yet about this film - Maleficent - but it looks very intriguing and I'm looking forward to it.