Friday, December 20, 2013

Day 278: Confessions of a Disney Princess Fan Part 1



The third piece I had to write for that class required me to write a profile piece on a person after I interviewed him or her.  I didn't feel comfortable doing that, so I took the second approach and interviewed a group of my classmates on a fun topic we all loved: Disney.  This piece turned out to be a class favorite for a couple friends.

Confessions of a Disney Princess Fan

     Disneyland is home to one of the largest fan conventions, admitting thousands of fans from around the world every day.  Dressed in Disney character t-shirts and sporting Mickey Mouse LeSportSacs and Goofy hats purchased at the Mad Hatter shop, young and old eagerly wait in line to ride the attractions.  The children’s highlight of the trip is being able to meet their favorite characters.  They are willing to stand in line for hours just for one minute of a costumed stranger to scribble something in their autograph book and pose with them for a quick photo.  Young girls especially yearn to eat at Ariel’s Grotto.  They don sparkly princess dresses and realistic plastic tiaras as they fidget at the table, waiting for when their favorite Disney princess will make her appearance.

     While it is easy to love multiple princesses, most fans have a certain attachment to a particular princess.  This attachment might have stemmed from a fascination when they were younger that has turned into a nostalgic fondness for the princess now.  When they were little, they had princess-themed birthday parties, owned dolls and play sets of that special princess, and decorated their bedrooms with matching bed sets, lamps, alarm clocks, and curtains.  A good majority of Disney princess fans gravitate towards the princess that looks most like them, as a way to relate to them.  This made it easy when the girls dressed up as them. 

     Disney possesses a certain magical quality- Peter Pan syndrome, if you will- that excuses it from every rule about growing up.  Most girls reach a certain age where they trade dolls and games of pretend for make-up and dating.  But you’re never too old for a Disney movie, and women won’t get judged if they express their love for Disney through wearing Disney t-shirts or jewelry.  In fact, as they grow up, the affinity young ladies have for their favorite Disney princesses matures with them into meaningful lessons that can improve their character and self-esteem, and this princess love can be manifested in several different ways.  I interviewed several of my friends, ranging from late teens to twenties, to find out how their ways of expressing their emulation for Disney princesses has reflected their characters.

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