During Christmas break, I had the chance to see Frozen. As far as Disney flicks go, this was pretty good. Many of the songs were catchy, the animation was gorgeous, and I was able to set aside my issues with pacing and development until the show was done. (Although, I do have to say, those trolls singing the fixer-upper song sure were annoying, especially because Anna needed help, not a musical number!)
There was one thing that really surprised me about the movie -- Elsa did nothing to save the day! If Anna had been a prince instead of her sister, then this would have been a typical damsel in distress story where the knight in shining armor swoops in and saves everything.
As I thought about it, I realized that I appreciated it more this way because it was a story about sacrifice rather than good ol' teamwork. Although I doubt this was intentional, I was really struck by how this was a parable of the Atonement, with Elsa representing us and Anna representing Christ.
Though we are born sinless, we are also born weak, susceptible to different temptations. What's more, we all born with personality traits that can be used for good or ill. As we saw at the beginning, Elsa's abilities were not innately evil. However, because Elsa used her powers in sin -- right after she had humiliated and rejected her younger sister -- they became a vice and a heavy burden.
The song "Let It Go" was very interesting for this reason. I wanted to root for Elsa, I really did. Her staircases, chandeliers, and palace were so gorgeous. But I couldn't forget that her powers were also dangerous and destructive, and that people were hurting because of her. Did she want them to hurt? Absolutely not! But she had caused problems by finding her "true self," and no amount of self-acceptance was going to fix it alone.
Enter Anna. I found it strange how well she took things in stride. Sister causes an eternal winter? Oh, no biggie. She's my sister. She wouldn't hurt anyone. She hasn't talked to me in more than a decade, but hey, she's my sister, and me talking to her can make things right. And so with confidence, she went up the mountain, promising Elsa that she would be with her. At this point in the movie, I was kind of siding with Elsa in terms of believing that Anna could do anything to help. How could she fix something so supernatural? Was she going to suddenly acquire the ability to create eternal summer and balance things out, a la Enna Burning? Was true love's kiss going to save things yet again, as in Enchanted?
No. She ended up sacrif-ice-ing herself to save Elsa from a two-faced, incredibly disappointing prince. Because this was Disney, we all knew that the sacrifice would end up saving the day for everyone, including Anna.
But that doesn't make it less meaningful. If you think about it, it really was the most selfless thing done in the movie. And Elsa didn't deserve Anna's sacrifice. She was the one who had not only caused the eternal winter, but also wounded Anna, forcing her into a desperate search for an act of true love. There was no question that Elsa felt remorse, but how could remorse make things better?
And yet . . . remorse is what makes things better for us. Like Elsa, we all have sinned. Though I believe it begins as a conscious choice, it quickly turns into an addiction, an entanglement that we can't escape alone. Although our actions hurt us most, they often affect those around us more than we can imagine. By the time we realize the extent of the consequences, we are completely powerless on our own to change things.
That is why Christ came. He had no sin, so He is able to love us with perfect love. He can see past our prickly exteriors and our hard hearts, caring only that we need His help to escape. For Him, it is not a matter of deserving His help as much as it is a matter of asking for it. He took our place on the cross, just as Anna took Elsa's place, because of love.
And what does this love do? It cleanses us and gives us hope again. Like Elsa, we can move forward in confidence, finally letting go of the fears that once controlled us. Interestingly, Elsa didn't lose her powers because of Anna's sacrifice. Rather, she learned how to harness them, and they became constructive rather than destructive and enhanced the lives of everyone around. And so it is with us -- Christ will not necessarily take away every "thorn in the flesh" in our lives, be it temptations, perceived personality flaws, or other mortal weaknesses we deal with that make us "fixer-uppers." But if we turn to Him, He will be able to use us even with our imperfections to bless those around us and transform us in ways we can't even imagine.
Maybe those trolls knew what they were singing about after all.
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As I thought about it, I realized that I appreciated it more this way because it was a story about sacrifice rather than good ol' teamwork. Although I doubt this was intentional, I was really struck by how this was a parable of the Atonement, with Elsa representing us and Anna representing Christ.
Though we are born sinless, we are also born weak, susceptible to different temptations. What's more, we all born with personality traits that can be used for good or ill. As we saw at the beginning, Elsa's abilities were not innately evil. However, because Elsa used her powers in sin -- right after she had humiliated and rejected her younger sister -- they became a vice and a heavy burden.
The song "Let It Go" was very interesting for this reason. I wanted to root for Elsa, I really did. Her staircases, chandeliers, and palace were so gorgeous. But I couldn't forget that her powers were also dangerous and destructive, and that people were hurting because of her. Did she want them to hurt? Absolutely not! But she had caused problems by finding her "true self," and no amount of self-acceptance was going to fix it alone.
Enter Anna. I found it strange how well she took things in stride. Sister causes an eternal winter? Oh, no biggie. She's my sister. She wouldn't hurt anyone. She hasn't talked to me in more than a decade, but hey, she's my sister, and me talking to her can make things right. And so with confidence, she went up the mountain, promising Elsa that she would be with her. At this point in the movie, I was kind of siding with Elsa in terms of believing that Anna could do anything to help. How could she fix something so supernatural? Was she going to suddenly acquire the ability to create eternal summer and balance things out, a la Enna Burning? Was true love's kiss going to save things yet again, as in Enchanted?
No. She ended up sacrif-ice-ing herself to save Elsa from a two-faced, incredibly disappointing prince. Because this was Disney, we all knew that the sacrifice would end up saving the day for everyone, including Anna.
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And yet . . . remorse is what makes things better for us. Like Elsa, we all have sinned. Though I believe it begins as a conscious choice, it quickly turns into an addiction, an entanglement that we can't escape alone. Although our actions hurt us most, they often affect those around us more than we can imagine. By the time we realize the extent of the consequences, we are completely powerless on our own to change things.
That is why Christ came. He had no sin, so He is able to love us with perfect love. He can see past our prickly exteriors and our hard hearts, caring only that we need His help to escape. For Him, it is not a matter of deserving His help as much as it is a matter of asking for it. He took our place on the cross, just as Anna took Elsa's place, because of love.
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Maybe those trolls knew what they were singing about after all.
I like your posts.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad I'm not the only one that had problems with the song "Let it Go"! It was a lovely song with pretty animation but I couldn't get over the fact that she had just stormed out of her sister's life and run off to live alone in the mountains and was deciding that this was her fate, and now she could truly be herself. That's not the way life works--you don't just storm out when things go wrong, you stay, and make amends, and show love. So I was glad in the end that the sisters got to have a "save the world together" sort of moment (in true deus ex machina Disney fashion) to amend for some of that damage.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, I really love your parable, as well as the awesome sacrif-ice pun in the middle--that one was great :D
I do wonder how she planned to eat.
DeleteKevin said snow cones. Those would get old fast.
DeleteI (Matthew) recently saw an article headline saying that there was a "hidden Christian message" in Frozen. Later, I was reading a different article about how Disney has signed on as a partner of "Family Outfest", a vacation week marketed toward gay families. The article went on to say how Disney has recently done a couple of things in support of this lifestyle while at the same time distancing itself from Christianity - such as removing a part of its Christmas show that spoke of Christ's life. What I found interesting about this article was that it finished with the paragraph:
ReplyDelete"On the flip side, some have claimed that Disney’s latest animated film “Frozen” actually has Christian themes and imagery."
That made me chuckle, because it implies that Disney purposefully made Frozen a Christian parable. I don't believe that. What I think is that it is very difficult to make a movie about a true hero or sacrifice that doesn't have parallels to Christ. Since He is the perfect example of a hero and love, movies around those themes will naturally pull our thoughts toward Christ's sacrifice. That, I think is why Frozen has this symbolism, not necessarily by conscious design of the writers.
In any case, your analysis here is very well done and I liked the points you made. In fact, it's much better an analysis than the one cited in the first article (I now went back and actually read that one) done by a religion professor. I especially liked your point about how "finding ourselves" and "letting go" won't always bring us happiness, but rather can often cause those around us pain.
I really like what you said, especially "movies around those themes will naturally pull our thoughts toward Christ's sacrifice." It's interesting that we've become so obsessed with superheroes -- clearly we still need one!
DeleteJust have to say, I haven't seen the movie but I loved your post! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you! A much better take on this movie than that of it being a pro-gay message. I agree that Disney very well could have intended it to be a pro-gay message, but ya know what? I think we find what we look for. As for Satan and his subtleties, I'm going to talk with my kids about those, teach them to look for them, discuss them openly. I am going to focus equally at teaching them to look for the positive, the uplifting and the fact that types of Christ are all over literature and art.
ReplyDeleteHi there, I'm not sure what denomination of Christian you are, but you seem to be denying original sin in your allegorical interpretation. I see Elsa's powers as representing original sin - you say Elsa's powers were not innately evil, but they ended up hurting her sister even though they were being used out of love. Just as when we try to love our neighbor through our own power, we end up hurting them due to our sinful nature which corrupts everything good we do on our own. (Isaiah 64:6)
ReplyDeleteIn that context, "Let It Go" takes on a new meaning - when we reject God and place our own desires first, we feel free. We don't see ourselves as openly hurting others or ourselves. But Elsa was hurting others (obviously) and hurting herself (this wasn't underlined in the movie, but it's clear that a lifetime of isolation without any of her loved ones would've been tragic). We can feel happy for a time, following our own paths instead of God's, but eventually we will see the effects of our sinful nature on others.
I agree with a lot of your interpretation, but I think by saying we are born without sin you are muddling up the allegory and also Christian theology in general (how do you explain Psalm 51:5, for example?)
Thank you so much for your thoughts on this! As you can see, it's not a perfect allegory, especially since I doubt Disney's intent was for this to be a parable of Christ.
DeleteAs a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (or Mormons), I do not believe in original sin. I understand that this is a theological difference from many other Christian denominations. Our doctrine about original sin can be found in the Book of Mormon. One verse (Mosiah 3:16) reads:
16 And even if it were possible that little children could sin they could not be saved; but I say unto you they are blessed; for behold, as in Adam, or by nature, they fall, even so the blood of Christ atoneth for their sins.
Another scripture, Moroni 8:8 says:
8 Listen to the words of Christ, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Behold, I came into the world not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance; the whole need no physician, but they that are sick; wherefore, little children are whole, for they are not capable of committing sin; wherefore the curse of Adam is taken from them in me, that it hath no power over them; and the law of circumcision is done away in me.
It is further explained in verses 11-12:
11 And their little children need no repentance, neither baptism. Behold, baptism is unto repentance to the fulfilling the commandments unto the remission of sins.
12 But little children are alive in Christ, even from the foundation of the world; if not so, God is a partial God, and also a changeable God, and a respecter to persons; for how many little children have died without baptism!
As for Psalms 51:5, I have a theory about it which does not involve original sin, but it is only my personal interpretation. This whole chapter is about David pleading for forgiveness after he went into Bathsheba. He just committed adultery and murder. His conscience is (rightfully) racked, and he cannot believe how sinful he is. In verse 5, when he says he was "shapen in iniquity," what he's saying is (I think) that he feels so horrible about what he's done that even his sinfulness must spread across all his life, even to when he was just a fetus. That is, he's being poetic rather than pronouncing doctrine. Although I believe my theory is backed up by others of David's psalms in that he often speaks strongly and poetically, I can understand why others may see this as a basis for original sin.
Again, thanks for your comments. God bless.
Thank you for your reply! I didn't realize you were LDS. As a Lutheran, obviously we don't read the Book of Mormon, although I did once back when I was in college.
DeleteI still think it's fascinating that although Disney of course was not trying to make a Christian parable, so many people have read various Christian themes into it. It's a Disney film that parents can discuss on a thematic level with their kids, which is a nice change from "Some Day My Prince Will Come."