Daisy Buchanan is a feminist, writer, and author of the forthcoming book How to Be a Grown Up.

Hans Christian Andersen’s short story Den lille havfrue (AKA The Little Mermaid) is the tale of of a mermaid who sacrifices everything for the love of a handsome prince, by making a deal with a Sea Witch. Nothing goes to plan. In the original story every step she takes on her new feet feels ‘like knives’, she’s threatened with death (from a broken heart) and she ends up plunging a knife into herself instead of killing the prince and breaking the curse. The Disney version was always going to be different. The mermaid is named Ariel, and the closest we come to any knife imagery is the site of her combing her hair with a discarded human fork. Most importantly, we never doubt she’s getting her prince.

Ariel’s father, King Trident, is proud, patriarchal and desperate to curtail his youngest daughter’s freedom. Everyone in the kingdom is part of a giant propaganda campaign to distract Ariel from her constant craving for dry land Her crab pal Sebastian sings one of the catchiest tunes in the film in order to persuade her to stay where she belongs, delivering the awkwardly immortal line “Darling it’s better, down where it’s wetter!” We assume Disney didn’t sign off on the innuendo, and it’s all from our filthy minds. Still, Ariel escapes the ocean and falls instantly in love with Prince Eric, rescuing him from a sinking ship and singing him back to life. Go Ariel!

Her kickass prowess is undermined by her mopiness - such is her longing to see the Prince, who she barely knows, that she makes a deal with sea witch Ursula, who is so fierce she could turn RuPaul to dust with the flick of a tentacle. Ursula persuades Ariel to swap new legs for her voice, arguing she’s too pretty to need it anyway - “It’s she who holds her tongue who gets a man!” Ursula’s “baddy” status turns this bad advice into a stealthy feminist message

Eric is intrigued by the silent stranger, but confused by evil Ursula who transforms herself into Vanessa, a brunette version of Ariel, with Ariel’s beautiful singing voice. There’s a matrimonial near miss, a giant storm and a happy ending, with the King waving his daughter off to her new life on land in the arms of the Prince.

Despite shipping Ariel and Eric, it’s disappointing that her opportunities for freedom are so limited. She’s courageous, clever and in possession of an enquiring mind, but the only way she can stop one man from controlling her life is to forge a relationship with another. However, the main message is that nothing good comes from silencing female voices - and it’s refreshing to have a hateable female villain as well as a genuinely heroic heroine.

Feminist rating: 2/5

Four female writers assess the feminist credentials of classic Disney princess films