Women, Power, and Compromise in Brave

Hanna Rosin's article on the movie Brave caught my eye because its title: "Critics Are Missing What's Radical in Brave." Written by a woman with an 11-year-old daughter, the article went into depth with themes of female power in the movie. However, it did not just focus on questions of leadership (as the author states,"it’s perfectly clear that the Queen is the only legitimate leader."), but rather explored raw female power, edging into violence, in the film.

We associate dominance with physical force, a typically male quality. However, Merida channels pure force, always moving and shooting arrows and fighting her mother, her wild red hair moving just as much as she does.
The juxtaposition of power and compromise is fostered with the inclusion of the bear themes. As Rosin relates, "in original fairy tales, bears are a mortal threat to girls ... [However,] in Brave, females and bears merge in a whole new strange way." Fairytale tropes assign bears to the role of antagonists and monsters. While Brave's Mor'du is in all instances a villain, we see a softer, protective side of animalistic ferocity with Elinor's transformation.
In addition to these notes, what sticks with me is the moment just after Mor'du's demise. His spirit rises up and gives a nod of thanks to Merida before shifting into a will o' wisp. The raw violence of the film can be frightening, but the terror is always reconciled through compassion and understanding.

I looked through a few other articles to see positive, empowered reviews of the movie and came across Amanda Marcotte's review, "The Shocking Radicalisim of Brave." Her article emphasized instances of compromise in the film.

I see the film's overarching theme as one of responsibility - to your country, to your family, and to yourself. Merida struggles to find the balance between all three, and I think that her position as a princess highlights the relevance and importance of her choices.

She finds that her individual actions can make a situation worse, and at the heart of the story, compromise and understanding are most important. I agree with Marcotte when she states, "Only when the female characters start to work together—to take the collective action so beloved by progressive organizers—does actual change occur."

It interests me that a movie can at once be so forceful in its character and dynamic plot, yet at the heart have lessons for compromise and understanding.


Marcotte, Amanda. "The Shocking Radicalism of Brave." The American Prospect. The Prospect, 3 July 2012. Web. 29 Nov 2012. http://prospect.org/article/shocking-radicalism-brave

Rosin, Hanna. "Critics Are Missing What's Radical in Brave." Slate. Slate Magazine, 20 June 2012. Web. 29 Nov 2012. http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2012/06/20/pixar_s_brave_a_princess_with_raw_physical_power.html