Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast is a classic and some consider a classic example of Stockholm Syndrome. Or is there something just as fishy going on.
Let's first look at why people think it is Stockholm Syndrome:
So a brief definition of Stockholm Syndrome from good ole Wikipedia. Stockholm is when a captive develops a bond with her captor.
This is a survival mechanism and pretty much screws with your head as the person who is holding you captive is now your ally.
"There are four key components that characterize Stockholm syndrome:
A hostage's development of positive feelings towards their captor
No previous hostage-captor relationship
A refusal by hostages to co-operate with police forces and other government authorities
A hostage's belief in the humanity of their captor, for the reason that when a victim holds the same values as the aggressor, they cease to be perceived as a threat."(Wikipedia)
Others have other opinions. So lets go to the experts.
Here they look at Stockholm and why the human mind might twist to feel empathy for a captor.
Vox goes a little deeper into Beauty and the beast. And they bring up an interesting point about our feminist heroes in literature. It seems they aren't always so much heroes as victims.
Regardless how you read Beauty and the Beast it is now facilitating the conversation of consent and abusive relationships.
Emma Watson who played Beauty weighs in as well in this article.
I'm not convinced but others have been. Here in 7 Reasons why Beauty and the Beast is not Stockholm Syndrome they go into their reasons. They aren't alone.
Like others I find the whole story problematic and not the only one not Overthinking it.
And we can certainly use Beauty and the Beast to spot an unhealthy relationship.
And some argue to the power imbalance.
If you look at other stories I can spot unhealthy relationships like Taming of the Shrew of William Shakespeare. But when I went to the Globe theater and saw their interpretation the story changed for me much like we can see Beauty and the Beast with a different view.
Make a list of fictional couples that are unhealthy.