I never would have guessed that in 2018 I would even be thinking about “The Little Mermaid,” that classic released in 1989, but here we are. The storyline, like pretty much every Disney film (let’s be honest) was cute, the villain nasty, and the songs catchy — so catchy that people still sing them. I am known to belt out to my children, “Look at this stuff, isn’t it neat, wouldn’t you think my collection’s complete?”
Well, at least some people still sing them. This week an all-male a capella singing group from Princeton, Tigertones, announced they would stop singing “Kiss the Girl,” one of the catchiest songs from the film, because it offended some kids on campus.
Sophomore Noa Wollstein wrote in a Nov. 26 column in the Daily Princetonian that the song, in which Sebastian, a crustacean, encourages Prince Eric to kiss Ariel to break the spell of her mute tongue, was “misogynistic and dismissive of consent.”
Think this is a joke? Sadly, it’s not. The president of the group, Wesley Brown, in dutiful submissive, woke fashion, said in a guest editorial in the Daily Princetonian that the group will no longer sing “Kiss the Girl” since the message is obviously contradictory to the #MeToo movement.
Like most Disney films until the last few years, “The Little Mermaid” was essentially a love story. Ariel is a mermaid who wants to be a human so she can feel the sand in her toes and the wind in her hair, as one does. After the villain Ursula realizes Ariel wants to be romantically involved with the handsome human prince, she offers the ultimate deal: Give me your fantastic singing voice, and I’ll make sure you get to become human and your chances of true love increase exponentially. Only, sadly, our girl Ariel is as stupid as she is sing-songy and never thinks it might take more than red hair and long legs to woo a guy (Yet, was she wrong? It really didn’t.).
When the two manage to spend a romantic evening rowing in a swamp filled with creatures, the vibe is lusty and lovey and her sidekick sings to the prince (and per Disney magic only he and the audience can hear; Ariel cannot) the catchy chorus:
My oh my
Look like the boy too shy
Ain’t gonna kiss the girl
Sha la la la la la
Ain’t that sad?
Ain’t it a shame? Too bad…
A kiss would release Ariel from being mute and secure true love. Ariel did not give verbal consent, of course, because she literally gave up her actual voice just to lock eyes with her would-be lover (and if that’s not 1950s-style consent, I don’t know what is).
Seriously though, like most Disney films of that era, what it lacked in logic and inspiration, it made up for in cuteness and fun. It wasn’t until recently when people started to get woke that they realized perhaps they should inspire kids in movies to aspire to more than just finding love. I mean, what about finding a job? Friends? Saving your sister from becoming an ice queen?
To banish “Kiss the Girl” from the public sphere (presented, I’m sure, in a lovely way by a group of talented male singers) and calling out its misogynistic themes and lack of sensitivity to women would be like getting rid of every copy of “The Princess Bride” because it makes giants, pirates, and Sicilians look bad.
Both are funny, charming, and have their place in the imaginations of children and adults alike. To that end, the clumsy and paranoid kids at Princeton must ask themselves if every woke, progressive thought must dominate every bit of society, even animated fun. Do we want all of this to be “Part of Your World?”
[Also read: Haters of ‘Baby It’s Cold Outside’ are killing the thrill of the chase in the #MeToo era]
Nicole Russell (@russell_nm) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog. She is a journalist who previously worked in Republican politics in Minnesota.
