Frozen II: A Lesson in Parenting and Common Sense
I watched the second Frozen movie shortly after it came out, and ever since then I have become convinced that Elsa and Anna's parents are the worst non-malicious parents and monarchs portrayed in probably all of film history.
I know, Cinderella, Snow White, etc., have straight-up abusive family relationships, and there are plenty of other characters, Disney or otherwise, that do also. The thing is, those characters knew where they stood in the family dynamic. They knew that they were unwanted and unloved. I'm not saying that relationships like that are acceptable. They aren't. However, I think it's somehow worse when a parent or someone in a position of authority does something that is in the longterm damaging and then claims it is out of love.
We already knew from the first Frozen movie that King Agnarr and Queen Iduna clearly had no idea how do deal with a troubled child/children. I don't think anyone really knows how to deal with a troubled child no matter how many parenting books they may have read. I feel that it's really is just a matter of trial and error until you find what best suits your child and helps them thrive. The thing is though, Elsa's parents pretty much only tried the, "Let's isolate our magically inclined daughter and teach her to fear her abilities" approach. Not only did this make Elsa's condition worse, but they also completely isolated Anna in the process, causing her to be emotionally hungry and a bit clingy.
During the first movie, I was able to pass it off thinking, "It's magic. It's new and different and they don't know how to deal with it as both parents and monarchs. They're probably trying to protect their kingdom and daughter." Then, we learn in the second movie that Iduna comes from this tribal community with a rich appreciation for magic that they interacted with on a daily basis and suddenly it's like, "What the heck!? How did you fail to teach any of that to your daughter? Why didn't you teach her how to live with her magic? It's not like she was seven when you died! You had plenty of time to do so. Elsa was practically an adult when your ship sank!"
And then you find out that the King and Queen didn't die traveling to or from some diplomatic visit. They literally abandoned their kingdom and daughters to go on a grand treasure hunt together that supposedly was to help Elsa. The whole thing is completely illogical and selfish on the part of the parents.
Firstly, it's a quest involving magic and legends. Only two people entirely lacking in rational thought would decide that the usual high mortality rates of such endeavors wouldn't apply to them And since they're using a ship for the majority of the journey, the odds of one of them surviving if the other doesn't decrease exponentially. If they were any sort of decent monarchs or parents with even low-level intelligence they'd realize that the likelihood of one or both of them dying on such a quest is quite high and that therefore one of them should remain behind. If they actually planned anything out regarding the voyage there should have been at least one moment where they discussed the worst-case scenario, which is ultimately what happened: them leaving their shut-in magically inclined daughter with severe social anxiety completely without a support system and the knowledge that she will be queen once she reaches her majority. (Which also brings up the question: who the heck was regent in the three years before Elsa became queen? Guess we'll never know.) So logically, one of the parents should have remained behind, most likely King Agnarr since he doesn't have the same background with magic that the Queen does.
Secondly, it's a quest involving magic and legends. If you're going to deal with magic you should bring some of your own. Elsa should have gone on the quest too. Even if they never found the answers they wanted Elsa would have been able to experience the world outside the castle for the first time in probably a decade. She would have had the chance to learn from her mother about the magic in the world around them in a way she never would have been able to in the castle even if her mom had attempted it there. She would have been able to experience freedom. And from a completely cynical point of view, if they failed to return from the quest the problem of Elsa's powers is at least solved for the kingdom.
It really makes me mad when Elsa uses her magic to recreate her parents' last moments and they're like, "We can't turn back! This is for Elsa!" when in reality they pretty much committed couple's suicide because they couldn't deal with their older daughter anymore.
I understand that people do stupid things while meaning well. I've done plenty such things myself. And honestly, I think if King Agnarr and Queen Iduna were either good parents or good monarchs, I'd be able to overlook them being terrible in the other area, but they weren't. They were horrible incompetent with all their responsibilities and that really aggravates me, and I'm not entirely sure why.
I know, Cinderella, Snow White, etc., have straight-up abusive family relationships, and there are plenty of other characters, Disney or otherwise, that do also. The thing is, those characters knew where they stood in the family dynamic. They knew that they were unwanted and unloved. I'm not saying that relationships like that are acceptable. They aren't. However, I think it's somehow worse when a parent or someone in a position of authority does something that is in the longterm damaging and then claims it is out of love.
We already knew from the first Frozen movie that King Agnarr and Queen Iduna clearly had no idea how do deal with a troubled child/children. I don't think anyone really knows how to deal with a troubled child no matter how many parenting books they may have read. I feel that it's really is just a matter of trial and error until you find what best suits your child and helps them thrive. The thing is though, Elsa's parents pretty much only tried the, "Let's isolate our magically inclined daughter and teach her to fear her abilities" approach. Not only did this make Elsa's condition worse, but they also completely isolated Anna in the process, causing her to be emotionally hungry and a bit clingy.
During the first movie, I was able to pass it off thinking, "It's magic. It's new and different and they don't know how to deal with it as both parents and monarchs. They're probably trying to protect their kingdom and daughter." Then, we learn in the second movie that Iduna comes from this tribal community with a rich appreciation for magic that they interacted with on a daily basis and suddenly it's like, "What the heck!? How did you fail to teach any of that to your daughter? Why didn't you teach her how to live with her magic? It's not like she was seven when you died! You had plenty of time to do so. Elsa was practically an adult when your ship sank!"
And then you find out that the King and Queen didn't die traveling to or from some diplomatic visit. They literally abandoned their kingdom and daughters to go on a grand treasure hunt together that supposedly was to help Elsa. The whole thing is completely illogical and selfish on the part of the parents.
Firstly, it's a quest involving magic and legends. Only two people entirely lacking in rational thought would decide that the usual high mortality rates of such endeavors wouldn't apply to them And since they're using a ship for the majority of the journey, the odds of one of them surviving if the other doesn't decrease exponentially. If they were any sort of decent monarchs or parents with even low-level intelligence they'd realize that the likelihood of one or both of them dying on such a quest is quite high and that therefore one of them should remain behind. If they actually planned anything out regarding the voyage there should have been at least one moment where they discussed the worst-case scenario, which is ultimately what happened: them leaving their shut-in magically inclined daughter with severe social anxiety completely without a support system and the knowledge that she will be queen once she reaches her majority. (Which also brings up the question: who the heck was regent in the three years before Elsa became queen? Guess we'll never know.) So logically, one of the parents should have remained behind, most likely King Agnarr since he doesn't have the same background with magic that the Queen does.
Secondly, it's a quest involving magic and legends. If you're going to deal with magic you should bring some of your own. Elsa should have gone on the quest too. Even if they never found the answers they wanted Elsa would have been able to experience the world outside the castle for the first time in probably a decade. She would have had the chance to learn from her mother about the magic in the world around them in a way she never would have been able to in the castle even if her mom had attempted it there. She would have been able to experience freedom. And from a completely cynical point of view, if they failed to return from the quest the problem of Elsa's powers is at least solved for the kingdom.
It really makes me mad when Elsa uses her magic to recreate her parents' last moments and they're like, "We can't turn back! This is for Elsa!" when in reality they pretty much committed couple's suicide because they couldn't deal with their older daughter anymore.
I understand that people do stupid things while meaning well. I've done plenty such things myself. And honestly, I think if King Agnarr and Queen Iduna were either good parents or good monarchs, I'd be able to overlook them being terrible in the other area, but they weren't. They were horrible incompetent with all their responsibilities and that really aggravates me, and I'm not entirely sure why.
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