The Little Mermaid is a fun and creative story involving love, witchery, and adventure. Ariel, the protagonist, falls madly in love with Eric, a Prince. Unfortunately, Eric is a human and Ariel is a mermaid, so therefore Ariel goes to Ursula, the sea witch, in order to ask her to transform her into a human. Ursula agrees, only if Ariel gives Ursula her voice. In addition, if Ariel doesn’t kiss Eric after three days then Ariel is transformed into one of Ursula’s sea creatures. As the story progresses, Ariel must overcome a variety of complications, but in the end Eric and Ariel fall in love and begin a happy life together.
While the
story of The Little Mermaid is
overall whimsical and innocent, Ursula’s character adds a threatening
and destructive
role that may be compared to the evilness demonstrated by a
stereotypical witch.
Although Ursula appears as a large, black and purple octopus, which
differs
from the stereotypical green skinned, pointed hat, ugly
witch, her powers
reveal a witchlike quality. While she does have intimidating, and dark
features, her overall character does not mirror the way a witch is
stereotypically portrayed. Even though Ursula may not look like a
witch, her
powers surely reflect that of one. Ursula illustrates her witchery when
she
transforms Ariel into a human. Also, the way in which Ursula has turned
many
mermaids into sea creatures and has caged them reveals Ursula’s evil
capabilities. She can take different ingredients and perform certain
rituals in
order to provoke a change. Her character is viewed repeatedly
construing
different potions and mixing certain solutions in order to fulfill a
negative goal of hers. These villainous spells clearly stem from
the
abilities and powers tied to witches.
In addition
to Ursula’s destructive use magical powers, she also has the ability to
change
her appearance, which illustrates an abnormal behavior. She not only
can
transform others, but she can transform herself into what seems like a
completely different person. In the story, she changes herself into a
human in
order to prevent Ariel from kissing Eric. This scenario shows that
Ursula poses
a threat to innocent characters. She is manipulative, and she has the
power to
devastate her inferiors. Her character is loaded with negative
attributes,
which creates a similarity between her and stereotypical witches. Not
only does
she possess these dominant abilities, but she also uses them to take
advantage
and trick others. The menacing quality attributed to her character is
only heightened by the presence of two eels that follow her
around. These slimy, slithering animals compliment Ursula's
ruthless demeanor. Like Ursula, they manipulate, and deceive less
aggressive characters like Ariel. Ursula the sea witch coupled
with her eels exemplify many characteristics
of a
stereotypical witch. Her threatening and harmful qualities create a
perfect
villain and an excellent counter part to Ariel’s character.
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