beaulolais
I do wonder at the absolute lack of mothers in most Disney tales, though. Can you name one with a present mother?
Bambi: We all know how that ends...
Sleeping Beauty: Comatose
Little Mermaid: MIA
Snow White: Dead
Cinderella: Dead
Lion King: Just the beginning
Aladdin: MIA for both
...
Enchanted: MIA
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead
I think the most present mother is that Pegasus in Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony for Fantasia!
...Sorry, that was a bit of a hijack.
that is very interesting!
and you often find foundlings or orphans as the central character too.
my guess is that the kids see it is about them and not somebody else, that they, if they play this role, have to solve their own problems and not cry for help.
in some sense, that seems to be what Spirited Away is all about too, come to consider it.It's fascinating that it seems to be across cultures, too. Spirited Away is a Japanese story, right? I've also been reading a lot of Native American literature right now and they all seem to be interested in the role of the orphan.
Think back, too, when you were a kid, were your hypothetical parents always MIA, too? I know ours were and I can guess that the Disney films and fairy tales had something to do with it.