Thursday, September 14, 2017

What's So Wrong With This Provincial Life?

Okay 90s girls, I know that you loved Beauty and the Beast and would pretend to be Belle belting out, "There must be more than this provincial life!" I know I did. It's a theme we see often in the modern Disney movie - a female protagonist wishing for more than what her current life is offering. Belle wants adventure and excitement, Mulan wants to be more than a housewife, Moana wants to explore the sea, and Ariel wants to be a different species all together. While I really enjoy these movies and I understand that great stories almost always have a call to adventure for the hero, (check out this video about the hero's journey, also known as the monomyth), lately I've been wondering, "Hey, what's so wrong with this provincial life?" 



First let's look at the definition of provincial. Dictionary.com says that provincial is an adjective meaning having or showing the manners, viewpoints, etc., considered characteristic of unsophisticated inhabitants of a province. Something provincial could be a rustic living space, or a narrow minded person. Ouch. For a movie that seems to be teaching a message about not judging others without getting to know them, Belle is being pretty judgy in her opening song. For the most part the inhabitants of this little town seem to be perfectly nice people living perfectly nice lives, working hard to provide for their families and offer goods and services to the other townspeople. Sure Belle, you may not be able to discuss literature with them, but does that make you better than them, somehow above living a simple life with your family in a quiet town? I know Gaston thinks you're better than everyone else, but he's the villain so...

Disney princesses of the past like Snow White and Cinderella are often viewed as not being as good of role models for girls as the more modern princesses because of their passivity. The story happens to them rather than them taking the initiative to kick butt and take names. I find this comparison troubling. Saying that Snow White is a worse role model than Mulan is just replacing one stereotype of what a girl should be like and what they should want with another. If a girl wants to wear blue t-shirts, play with trucks, and take karate that's great! More power to her. By all means, go for it. But if a girl wants to wear pink dresses, play with dolls, and take ballet, that's great too. Heck, a girl can even do both! We need to stop thinking of  traditional expressions of femininity as inferior - but that could be another post altogether.


I think Snow White and Cinderella actually have some pretty admirable traits. In both stories they are treated horribly, forced to wear rags and basically used as slave labor. They have hope that things will get better and certainly won't pass up any opportunities that come along; but also accept that this is the situation they are in right now and deal with it as best they can - facing the world with a positive attitude and treating others, including those who treat them poorly, with patience, kindness, and selflessness. To some this may seem provincial, but I think that this attitude is much more sophisticated than whining about your perfectly nice life, being aggressively rude to your parents and engaging in dubious dealings with witches just to get what you want - I'm looking at you Merida and Ariel!

Let's take a look at the most recent Disney princess movie, Moana, (I know her princess status is not official yet!). In the song "Where You Are" Moana keeps being drawn to the sea and her father explains how the island provides them with everything they need and that she can find happiness where she is. Hey Moana, I get it. I'm drawn to the water too. Looking out on the horizon of Lake Michigan is one my favorite things in the world, but your dad's song is actually incredibly wise! There is value in realizing that you have everything you need and being thankful for it. If you are always trying to find happiness outside of yourself and where you are, it is going to be very difficult to be happy. I like how even though it is difficult at times, Moana does her best to obey her parents and find happiness on the island, only setting out to sea when it becomes necessary to save her people and restore their history. She doesn't go just because it's what she wants. She goes when she realizes there is a purpose outside of herself for her desire.


 The truth is, we are all called to something more. But it's not a magical castle, becoming a war hero, or you know, legs. We are all called to union with God in heaven - we are all called to be saints. The way we get there will vary. Some of us may be called to set off on a grand, exotic adventure, and some of us may be called to love our spouses and raise our kids in a quiet town, and that's okay. Through the saints the Church gives us examples of warriors, scholars, spouses, parents, religious, royalty and peasants in grand variety who were all living out holy lives striving to be the best version of themselves. Remember that. Not the best version of someone else, but themselves. While St. Therese of Lisieux desired to be a missionary traveling the world, it was not what God had planned for her, and the impact she's had on the world by doing small things with great love inside the convent walls is awe inspiring.


Sometimes it's easy to break into song about how you wish your life was different when you feel more like that lady who needed eggs than the effortlessly beautiful Belle. But trust me, whatever else you do in your life, marriage and family is one of the greatest adventures there is. While my husband staying home to watch the kids while I work at an online school is certainly unconventional, our focus on faith and family and a desire to stay close to home may seem provincial to outside eyes.  Sometimes on a bad day I may wish for something different or more, but this is where our family is at right now and we are doing our best. Sure, camping in the next county may be our current idea of a big vacation and no one may ever make a movie of my life, but I find happiness in a loving husband and children, being close to my family, and the beauty of my faith. And if that makes me provincial, so be it.

This post is linked up at the #WorthRevist link up at reconciledtoyou.com/blog. Check it out!
 

4 comments:

  1. Belle is judged by the towns people right before she sings this song. No towns person ever tried to talk to her, about any subject. They only talked about what they think she’s worth and what they assume she’s like. No sence of understanding that they’re ignorant. Just “stuck in their ways” HENCE, “provincial.”

    ReplyDelete
  2. A provincial person is unwilling to accept new ideas.

    ReplyDelete
  3. It could be argued the townspeople, and Belle were both stuck in their ways. Belle grows as a character, as she first starts a friendship with the Beast Prince, and then falls in love. Belle recognizes that she wasn't as sophisticated as she thought she was, as she enters a world that is unlike her own. The Beast Prince and many other characters grow as well. I find it funny that the original Disney film didn't actually give the Beast Prince a name, Belle never asks, which is kind of surprising, and bends negative gender stereotypes. But yes, Belle was arrogant and condescending in the beginning, and becomes less so, just like the Beast Prince was. Belle is treated differently by the townspeople because of her attitude, and the Beast Prince is made to face this reality as well when the enchantress gives him a gruesome physical form. His inward condescension that he could hide in his castle, is made known to all.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Terrible post, hate from Washington ❤️

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...