Beauty and the Beast

The protagonist of Beauty and the Beast, Beauty is thoughtful, kind, and intelligent: “[A] generous and tender heart was visible in all her words and actions” (17), meaning that she acts tenderly and generously at all times. Beauty represents both a woman’s situation and ideals at the time the book was first published. Society expected women to marry young to a man who provides the greatest advantage with no consideration given to love or a woman’s opinion. Marriage was a contract, and a woman had little to no say in the matter. In the story, Beauty voluntarily goes to the Beast’s castle to save her father. In real life, she likely would have ended up at the castle under duress, married off to a gruff, hideous man in exchange for the merchant’s freedom. Beauty’s ability to make this choice for herself represents the decisions women didn’t have the power to make, and Beauty choosing to go to the castle exemplifies her tender personality. The fact that she goes because the merchant picked a rose for her shows that Beauty is willing to take responsibility for the situation her request created, but it’s also a