Beauty and the Beast : The Prince

The Prince

Once upon a time, in a faraway land, a young prince lived in a shining castle. Although he had everything his heart desired, the prince was spoiled, selfish, and unkind. But then, one winter's night, an old beggar woman came to the castle and offered him a single rose in return for shelter from the bitter cold. Repulsed by her haggard appearance, the prince sneered at the gift and turned the old woman away. But she warned him not to be deceived by appearances, for beauty is found within. And when he dismissed her again, the old woman's ugliness melted away to reveal a beautiful enchantress. The prince tried to apologize, but it was too late, for she had seen that there was no love in his heart. And as punishment, she transformed him into a hideous beast and placed a powerful spell on the castle and all who lived there. Ashamed of his monstrous form, the beast concealed himself inside his castle, with a magic mirror as his only window to the outside world. The rose she had offered was truly an enchanted rose, which would bloom until his 21st year. If he could learn to love another, and earn her love in return by the time the last petal fell, then the spell would be broken. If not, he would be doomed to remain a beast for all time. As the years passed, he fell into despair and lost all hope. For who could ever learn to love a beast?


Now that is the whole opening narration for the movie, so do you think that the Prince deserved to be turned into a beast, even through he was being punished for having no love in his heart, so do you think he deserved his punishment yes or no and why or why not?

Re: The Prince

No, I don't think he deserved to be turned into a beast. If the only reason was that he was being nasty, then the enchantress could've been nasty in return. Such a punishment should be reserved for real criminal like rapists, pedophiles and murderers. It might also be a fitting punishment for those who abuse animals.

Re: The Prince

I chalk it up to a change in times.

In certain cultures, turning away someone from shelter was a huge, for lack of a better word, sin. Especially back then, as it could be a death sentence for the wanderer.

A feudal lord/prince/king/whatever would definitely know this.

So while modern audiences might see his punishment as overkill, other cultures might see the Prince's actions as the equivalent of not throwing a life preserver to a drowning person for no reason other than she was ugly.

Seize the moment, 'cause tomorrow you might be dead.

Re: The Prince

Good point about the not throwing a life preserver to an ugly, drowning person comparison. :) It was freezing and she was an old woman. She would have most likely died had she been a real old woman. Just literally thought about this less than a minute ago. A fitting punishment would have been to turn HIM into an old man since he has no compassion for old people.

Drake is repetitive. He just raps the same thing over and over as if he is in an insane asylum!LOL:D

Re: The Prince

Yes, I get the change in times. If you look at old fairy tales, it's clear that turning away beggars or not offering old or sick people a helping hand was considered a sin. And certainly the nobility were expected to take care of commoners in need. I get the enchantress' motivation. But personally, I find it too harsh to turn someone into a beast for the rest of his life just because he's not hospitable. And I can't say I really agree with some stranger passing moral judgement on others.
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