“Even though you don’t have pretty clothes, you are still a princess”: Unpacking princess images in picture books

Robinson, A. (2016).“Even though you don’t have pretty clothes, you are still a princess”: Unpacking princess images in picture books. Talking Points, 27(2), 11-16.


When it comes to gender roles and the ways our society portrays them, it sometimes seems that the more things change, the more they stay the same. On the one hand, we are seeing increasing openness to diversity in how people live their gender identities. On the other hand, some gender images that can shape gender identities in stereotyped ways seem to be as ingrained and pervasive as ever.

The princess images that Ariel Robinson examines here are an example of things not changing as much as we might hope. If you visit your local chain bookstore or your local toy store, you will find ample evidence that the princess images (a la Disney) are very much alive and well, and are being ever more aggressively marketed to young girls.

Robinson spent time with one of her female prekindergarten students, reading picture books about princesses and talking about what they read. They read and discussed a book based on the popular Disney movie, Frozen, which portrayed the usual Disney images of princesses: beautiful girls in pretty dresses and sparkly accessories, and maybe with magical powers, and a happily-ever-after ending. Then they read and discussed The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch, which disrupts princess stereotypes: in Munsch’s book, the princess loses her pretty clothes and is rejected by a prince for that, even after she has rescued him. The princess decides to live without the Prince.

Robinson’s young research participant responded differently to the two books. She was animated and excited when talking about the Disney book, and knew many of the details of the story. With the Munsch book, she seemed less engaged, though one could not say her response to that book was negative. Though she did focus especially on the picture of the princess and prince when the princess still had her pretty dress, she did state that the princess was still a princess even without the pretty clothes. Robinson describes the child’s demeanor when discussing the Munsch book as transacting “thoughtfully” with the text (p. 15). However, the child clearly preferred the Disney book. In my view, the Disney book was experienced as more engaging and recreational reading; with the Munsch book she seemed to move more into a “school reading’ mode or perhaps a “reading for an adult” role. She clearly wanted Robinson’s approval though she did not love the Munsch book. The Disney book, conversely, was a “reading for me” kind of book for her.

What’s a teacher to do? Even at the tender age of five, princess images were a big part of this little girl’s life. How much do educators need to worry about this? What should be the place of these images in our schools and classrooms? We want children to engage with reading and to enjoy reading. All readers have occasionally engaged in “guilty pleasure” reading that may not be mentally challenging or of high quality, but is still a relaxing and pleasurable experience. For a young reader, that kind of reading can build fluency and also motivation to read.
The question might be, what kinds of texts do we want to make available in schools, and what kinds of texts do we want to limit, or even exclude? In Robinson’s school, the books in the popular Pinkalicious series were seen by teachers as problematic—Robinson uses the term “girlie-girl narcissism” (p. 11) to describe them. Is removing such books the key? Princess images are everywhere in our society, from fairy tales to movies to licensed products to games to clothing—it goes on and on. Tune in to reality TV, and you’ll see what that “girlie-girl narcissism”can look like when it grows up.

I have to ask myself if Robinson (and I) are making more of this than we should. Are children really internalizing these images? I asked a mother and teacher I know about this, and she told me that for her daughter, it really was just about enjoying the pretty dresses and sparkly things. Her daughter still did all kinds of activities besides princess pursuits and is now pursuing a college and career course that is definitely not princess-like. Her dream does not seem to consist solely of finding a prince and “living happily ever after” with him.

So, what’s the best response to this? I’m not comfortable with pulling books off shelves in most cases, or with restricting children’s independent reading choices. However, I think we can emphasize texts that promote the kinds of diverse and positive images that we want children to have of themselves and of others. We can have conversations about texts like the ones Robinson had with her young participant, and we can have them when children are still very young. I recommend that teachers take a look at the kinds of conversation-prompting questions Robinson used here (see p. 15).

To me, the piece of this whole issue that is most troubling is the influence that corporate marketing has on the ways that both boys and girls see themselves. Disney is, first and foremost, a for-profit corporation. Sports teams are another example. These entertainment entities work to shape our identities, with the goal of selling us things. If you doubt it, challenge anything Disney, and see what happens. I did, and the response was almost what I would have received had I said something blasphemous about a deity. Robinson talked to only one child; I wonder what risks and maybe even dangers would arise if she had the same conversations with a whole class of children? Some of these gender images are cherished, by children and often by their parents. Would parents who have supported the perpetuation of some of the more traditional gender images complain if a teacher challenges those images?

Robinson quotes some eye-opening numbers which show how much Disney made in 2015 (see page 13, but these figures are publicly available). That kind of money brings power, and motivation to perpetuate whatever keeps those billions of dollars rolling in. I think we need to talk with children from an early age about corporate agendas and the messages they are bombarded with daily. That includes the gender stereotypes that corporations sell products to support, but it goes much beyond that. If we can build awareness of the intentions behind the many messages we receive, that is a step toward educating empowered citizens who shape their own identities rather than having them shaped by others.