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Favis

Julia Favis

Professor Clark

ENGW1111

8 November 2020

Tale as Old as the Time it Was Made For

The tale as old as time has gone through many iterations over the course of history.

Starting from its beginnings as a tale passed down by word of mouth, the story of a beautiful

woman falling in love with a hideous beast is one of the most well-known narratives in literature.

The story even has international iterations, as the original story is told around the world to

include beauties and Beasts of different cultures (Deutsch 2). As the ancient story of Cupid and

Psyche by Apuleius of Rome, the tale was transcribed in writing for the first time. The classic

French tale by Gabrielle-Suzanna de Villeneuve written in 1740 is the first iteration to take place

in its most famous setting: rural France (Craig 4-7). The classic French film La Belle et La Bête

directed by Evan Cocteau in 1946 is the first iteration to be seen on screen. The Disney

animation directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise in 1991 is the most recognizable iteration,

as it is part of the iconic Disney Princess franchise. Now, most recently with the Disney live

action film directed by Bill Condon in 2017, the story is told once again for a modern audience.

Since the story is so old, it is bound to have changed from generation to generation as the norms

of society and culture change, particularly towards women’s place in society and representation

of social class in literature. Beauty and the Beast is a romance story that has taught generations

of people about the importance of looking beyond appearance in others, but the surroundings in

which the message is carried in have changed to match the ideals of the current society is being
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told for. The iterations of Beauty and the Beast (1991) and Beauty and the Beast (2017) present

the same story but differ in the representation of gender and class.

Firstly, there is contrast in the depiction of gender stereotypes between both films. In

Disney’s first iteration of Beauty and the Beast from 1991 (animation), a traditional, objectifying

view of women is prevalent, as the era it was made in had not yet experienced the aggressive

campaigns against sexism of the current times. Sexism is physically portrayed in how Gaston

assumes that Belle’s greatest desire is to marry him, he describes her as “My future wife. Belle is

the most beautiful girl in the village. That makes her the best”, and barges into her house and

arranges their wedding venue without asking her (Trousdale). This scene, which may have been

just comedic can be interpreted as a sexist microaggression exemplifying disrespect for women.

There are also various scenes of hyper-sexually drawn female background characters fawning

over Gaston, further adding to the objectification of women. A lot of the costuming in the

animated movie is exaggerated and not historically correct, especially the female background

characters. Similarities that exist in both iterations include how Belle is portrayed as an outcast

because she is intellectually inclined, described by villagers as how there is “no denying she’s a

funny girl that Belle”, this plays into the narrative that women were expected to not pursue

academics, and extenuates the presence of traditional female gender roles. The film also has male

gender stereotypes, most evident in Gaston who even has a song where he is described as “there's

no man in town half as manly/ Perfect, a pure paragon” which extenuates the archetype of toxic

masculinity, in which men are expected to suppress emotion and critical thinking in favor of

being dominant in physical strength. These portrayals of gender roles in the animation are also a

product of their time, as the film was made in 1991, before the U.S. experienced a great wave of

feminism brought on by social media. On the other hand, in Disney’s latest live action iteration
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of Beauty and the Beast from 2017 the representation of gender is taken into more account, and it

is more evident that Belle is a role model for young girls. The updated Belle is now an inventor

apart from her original love of reading, there is even a scene of her teaching a little girl to read as

her clothes-washing invention turns in the background. The dialogue around Belle is also

updated to be more socially conscious, as Gaston describes, “That’s what makes Belle so

appealing; she hasn’t made a fool of herself just to gain my favor. What would you call that? ...

dignity” (Condon). Belle’s mother is also mentioned to be a progressive strong woman in the

updated film and is described by Belle’s father as “ahead of her time. So different. People

mocked her. Until the day they all found themselves imitating her”. Women are also given equal

representation to men in village and mob scenes which were previously male-dominated, and the

women seen fawning over Gaston now have appropriate, historically accurate appearances. In

addition, the remake includes representation for people attracted to the same gender, as the

character LeFou is updated to have romantic affection to Gaston apart from being his loyal

sidekick, demonstrated by wrapping Gaston’s arms around himself while singing “Every guy

here'd love to be you, Gaston/ Even when taking your lumps”. The representation continues to

the end of film, when LeFou asks “shall we dance” to a male partner after Gaston’s demise. Even

though the updated remake is more progressive in terms of gender, there are still sexist aspects

like Gaston and the villages’ view of Belle that exist as plot points for the story. It may be

impossible to completely modernize how gender is portrayed in a story set in 1700s France, but

the updated film makes sure to portray them as inoffensively as possible. The two films have

much difference in their portrayal of women, but it is not the only contrast between them.

The representation of social classes between both films has ample contrast. In Beauty and

the Beast (1997), class is acknowledged in a lighthearted manner, as the animation is targeted to
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appeal to younger audiences and is rated G, and aspects of the film that have directly to do with

class, such as Belle and her Father’s reason to be in the village, the Beast’s former personality,

and Gaston’s high position in society are not given context. There are moments where the divide

between social classes is depicted physically, such as when Gaston rests his feet on top of LeFou

while he sings “There's no man in town as admired as you You're everyone's favorite guy”,

(Trousdale) shown here is the divide between Gaston who is admired and high class, and

everyone else, who is figuratively (and literally) beneath him. Apart from Gaston and LeFou,

another point of physical contrast of class shown in the animation is Belle’s poor yet lively

village against the Beast’s ornate yet empty castle, it is an allusion to how riches did not bring

true happiness to the Beast. The Beast’s servants-tuned-household-items are also an example of

the portrayal of class divide, as Chip complains to his mother Mrs. Potts, “do I have to sleep in

the cupboard again?”, signifying that the servants live in lesser conditions than the Beast. The

identity of the servants is portrayed in a live-to-serve manner without taking other aspects of

their personality into consideration, as Lumiere sings “life is so unnerving/ for a servant who’s

not serving”. As the Beast becomes more accustomed to Belle and becomes a better person, the

surroundings of the castle become brighter as an attestation to the Beast’s personal

transformation, which includes treating his servants more respectfully. The divide between ‘us’

and ‘them’ is extenuated by Gaston, who rallies the poor villagers into storming the Beast’s

castle out of fear, as they sing “Raise the flag, sing the song, here we come, we're fifty strong,

and fifty Frenchmen can't be wrong. Let's kill the Beast!”. In both productions, social class sets

an initial premise for the story, it begins with the origin of the Beast’s curse, as the narrator says:

“Repulsed by her haggard appearance, the prince turned the woman away.” this blatantly classist

action is the onset of the plot, and the message of the story in which the Beast’s internalized
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classism is unlearned during his time with Belle. On the other hand, the theme of social class is

delved into deeper in Beauty and the Beast (2017), which is rated PG and is aimed at life-long

fans and young audiences alike. Most evidently, depictions of class are used to give more context

to the characters backstories, which influence and explain their intentions. For example, the

Beast is now explained by the enchantress to have “taxed the village to fill his castle with the

most beautiful objects, and his parties with the most beautiful people.” (Condon). This additional

detail is important because it gives insight to his character before he became a Beast, which

makes his transformation before meaningful. Another added detail is that Belle’s father is

imprisoned by the Beast for attempting to steal a rose from the garden’s palace, while in the

animation he is imprisoned simply for trespassing. When Belle sacrifices herself for her father’s

freedom, the Beast exclaims that “She's the *daughter* of a common thief. What kind of person

do you think that makes her?” on the assumption that Belle’s father is a thief, this further makes

evident the Beast’s internalized classism before his transformation. Further, it is revealed that the

reason for the poverty of Belle and her father is that they were running away from the bubonic

plague in Paris, which claimed the life of Belle’s mother; this detail gives context as to why they

are feared as outcasts by the rest of the village. The divide between the social classes is also seen

visually in the production, beggars are seen on the streets of Belle’s village. Gaston is now

depicted to be a wartime hero, which gives context to the respect the village has for him as well

as his ego, he himself a classist as he pursues Belle and attempts to gaslight her into marriage by

explaining to her “do you know what happens to spinsters in the village after their fathers die –

they turn into beggars”. In summary, class is used to set up the initial premise of the relationship

between Belle and the Beast, and it is depicted with more sensitivity and detail in the live action

remake.
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In conclusion, given the story’s setting in 1700s France, there is no denying that there are

traditional aspects of the representations of gender and class that have to portrayed in the film to

make it historically accurate, but the way the themes of gender and class are handled by the

creators of the films differ through generations, and through the transition from animation to live

action. It is important to analyze the representations of gender and class through iterations of this

production because they are relevant social issues which impact how each film is a product of its

time; for gender, it is the representation of young girls in the story’s heroine, and for class, it’s

the context given to characters’ backgrounds which reveal their motivations. The franchise of

Disney princesses is seeing many live action remakes of the classic films in this modern era

where CGI can bring to life what was once only possible by hand drawn animation; it is

important to analyze the discrepancies of critical themes between the original films and their

remakes in order to have a full comprehension of the story. In the next wave of upcoming

remakes, it is important that they keep the original soul of the story while updating how it is told

for modern times.

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Works Cited

“Beauty and the Beast (1991).” IMDb, IMDb.com, www.imdb.com/title/tt2771200/.

“Beauty and the Beast (2017).” IMDb, IMDb.com, www.imdb.com/title/tt2771200/.

Condon, Bill, director. Beauty and the Beast. Disney, 2017.

Craig, Amanda. “Beauty and the Beast: the Dark History of a Literary Fairytale.” The Guardian,
Guardian News and Media, 10 Mar. 2017,
www.theguardian.com/books/2017/mar/10/beauty-and-the-beast-the-dark-history-of-a-
literary-fairytale.

Deutsch, James. “The Storied, International Folk History of Beauty and The Beast.”
Smithsonian.com, Smithsonian Institution, 15 Mar. 2017,
www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/storied-international-folk-history-
beauty-and-beast-180962502/.

Trousdale, Kirk and Wise, Bill, directors Beauty and the Beast. Disney, 1991.