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This morning my son was watching Disney's Hercules, a movie which could foster all sorts of interesting discussion. It wasn't nearly as well-received as the films that preceded it, probably because it attempted a peculiar blend of humor that only adults would appreciate and, simultaneously, a high level of sheer silliness. Then, of course, you have its appalling deviations from the original Greek myths, but Disney is famous for taking massive liberties with its source material, so that shouldn't have come as such a surprise. In any case, I think one of its most problematic elements is the heroine - and perhaps at times anti-heroine, Meg.


Meg was clearly written to be the polar opposite of the stereotypical Disney princess. This deliberate contrast is pretty much addressed directly when she responds to some cute woodland creatures, the usual sidekicks of sweet, singing heroines, with unapologetic snark - and then it turns out they're not really adorable animals anyway, deconstructing the trope entirely. She's sarcastic, cynical, and most shockingly, works for the bad guy. While that allegiance is, in fact, against her will, she's bound to Hades because of a rash decision she made to sell her soul for someone else. And here's where it gets really interesting. That someone was her boyfriend.

Because Meg is the first sexual Disney love interest. Oh, it's pretty mild, nothing explicit enough to move beyond a G-rating, but for a Disney movie, wow. There's mention of curves, there's innuendo. Meg uses her physical attractiveness as a tool - almost a weapon - to try to draw Hercules's secrets out of him. Pretty shocking for a company that seldom gives us more than chaste kisses. Yes, other heroines have had more skin exposed (Ariel got away with wearing nothing more than a bikini top!) but the girls themselves were innocent, with only a child-like level of bodily awareness. Meg is experienced.

Why? I find it interesting, maybe a little troubling, that when creating a morally ambiguous woman the movie-makers ended up adding a sexual element. I see in this the age-old virgin/whore dichotomy. Either a woman is pure and chaste and inspires men to be virtuous, or she is a licentious trollop who brings men down into sin and degradation. Dichotomies are dangerous because they're limiting. There are not only two types of women in the world. Each is an individual, with her own personal circumstances. In Meg I see the false notion that a sexual woman and a morally unsettled woman are one and the same. Now, that's not to say that I'm an enthusiastic fan of promiscuity. Quite the contrary. I don't believe a woman who sleeps around is happy and fulfilled any more than I believe a man who does so is happy and fulfilled. Personally, I'm for monogamy. :) But my point is that moral alignment and sensuality are not equivalents. There are many morally ambiguous male figures without a sexualized element to their characters. I can't say that I can think of so many females in the same vein.

Is it because men find the bad girl inherently sexier? Possibly. I've also seen that in some venues, moral alignment is pretty much irrelevant, as long as a woman is sensually attractive. Her allegiances bounce back and forth apparently at random, and it doesn't seem to bother people that there's no logic behind it, because in all cases she's, you know, really hot. So I guess I should be glad that Meg's allegiances are in fact important, that she sees a reason for optimism again and experiences actual character growth. Once she's free of Hades, she's loyal to Hercules....but then, arguably, becomes a little less interesting. Certainly less sarcastic and snarky. I have to say, I do enjoy the snark. It provides a nice balance to Hercules being kind of bland. Does his fresh-faced optimism cure her of her world-weary cynicism? That trope shows up so often with the girl as the innocent and the boy as the cynic, so it's kind of fun to see the roles reversed. Still, I'm not sure what to take away from the character of Meg. She can't be easily categorized, and perhaps for that reason people are too uncomfortable to find much enjoyment in her role or the movie as a whole.
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