Everyone wants to be a mermaid; I want to be a dragon
For the longest time, there was quite a romantic idea about being a princess and being saved by a brave knight in armor. To be fair, a lot of fairy tales were written by men, so there’s no question that the man in the story would be the one doing the saving.
This isn’t a bad thing, and it makes sense. People tend to write in a way that puts the protagonist in a “savior-like” role, and typically, the protagonist is a reflection of the story’s writer. So it’s understandable that at the time most fairy tales were written, their stories would be about knights saving princesses.
But this post isn’t about knights or princesses. It’s about the new age stereotype: the mermaid.
In almost every department store around the country, I’d wager there is at least one “I’d rather be a mermaid” shirt. For the past few years, mermaids have become a huge hit in media and pop culture. Why? Well, according to some sites like Odyssey, who posted an article about why people might want to be mermaids, it’s all part of our efforts to escape reality. Nylon posted a similar article about unicorns, mermaids, and the color pink expressing that it’s possible that people have fallen for mermaids due to the hints at queer culture that exist in the tales of many mermaid stories (ha, see what I did there?).
What do I think?
Well, I’m not sure I 100% agree with the above two conclusions. However, they are definitely good answers to the question.
Personally, I think it has something to do about being a protagonist in your own story.
If this doesn’t make sense, hear me out.
Mermaid culture is a thing. Just as princess culture used to be a thing. When I was kid, every girl I knew wanted to be a princess. I don’t know if it was because of Disney, The Barbie Movies, The Princess Diaries, or a culmination of all three, but in the early 2000’s princesses were all the rage.
Back then, people had a more idealistic sense of hope. I know a lot of people aren’t into generational traits and many disagree with how the generations are categorized, but for arguments sake, let’s discuss millennials in the early 2000’s. Around that time, many millennials were young, around the age of 12. (I’m basing this on people born in 1988 as it is in the middle of the millennial generation. This is not based on demographics or populis). Being a 12 year old would be the perfect age for people who are beginning to seek their own individual identity while at the same time still retaining the ability to be influenced by what they view in the outside world.
In the early 2000’s, I would argue that the reason princesses were such a bit item was because they aided in defining a generation.
Princesses stand for nobility, integrity, courage, honor, generosity, and much more. Does anyone remember Disney’s “I am a princess” sequences? The princess was a character that had a number of redeeming qualities, was a hero in her own right, and still had a Prince Charming who saved her as equally as she saved him. Why is this important? Because the protagonist of many princess stories is a princess who must embark on some sort of mystical and challenging journey to find herself arriving at a happy ending and a prince by her side. The princess culture wasn’t a weak culture.
However, it made a big impact on what the next protagonistic stereotype would be.
Mermaid culture is everywhere now. Though, I personally see it dying out in preparation for the new age. Millennials are about 22-37 years old as of 2019. I, myself, am not a millennial. Though, I get categorized as such anyway.
As far as mermaids go, they are on T-shirt’s everywhere, on makeup products, hair products, and even the Starbucks logo. And we know millennials love Starbucks. And mermaid hair.
I think mermaid culture is so prominent in millennials because it is an attempt to hold onto something they had in their youth. Of course, I can agree that it could also be an effect of needing an escape from reality, or in connection with the LGTBQ+ community. Though on a bigger picture, the mermaid represents more than that.
Mermaids are seductresses, sirens, lurers of the sea. Mermaids hold a sort of independence from man, and the world in a literal sense. Often women. Often powerful in their own right.
Mermaids stand for beauty and grace, but also for power and persuasion. Millennials are well known for their rallies and persuasive nature as a generation. Not only that, but mermaids have been known for centuries to be LGBTQ+. There are so many stories of mermaids being trans or gender fluid. So it makes sense that a mermaid protagonist would be relatable to a generation who fights for rights such as the one above.
Now, why do I want to be a dragon in a world of mermaids? Especially since a mermaid protagonist isn’t even close to weak or dainty?
I find unicorns, mermaids, princesses, and glitter to be a little tacky. This is just my personal opinion. They are fun at times. Maybe I’ll indulge in some “sparkle” every once in awhile. But I’m not a big fan of the mermaid movement. I grew up with princesses just the same as the millennials, though I was five years old in 2005, as the princess rave was going out of style. So my princess hype was short lived.
I was about 12 years old when mermaids became a thing. And at that time, I had a number of friends who became obsessed with the mermaid aesthetic. However, I didn’t fall into the trend.
Why? I’m not sure. Maybe I thought it was tacky back then too. I don’t quite remember.
But what I know now, is the protagonistic story for my generation.
My generation is classified as gen Z which takes place between 1997 and the present. Though, I have found that people born between 1997 and 2001 are stuck somewhere in a grey area between millennials and gen z. (I will most likely write a post on this later because it is something I’m passionate about and a lot of people my age relate to this. Many of us were born with sidewalk chalk and then handed iPads and social media as we entered puberty). But the point I need to make here isn’t about generational dates and alignments; it’s about being a motherf***ing dragon!
The dragon as a protagonist would be a character that exudes power. Not in the way princesses did with their soft nobility. Nor in the way mermaids did with their sly cunning. No. A dragon is raw power. It is a voice. It is a might. A dragon protagonist would be about change and transformation. It would be about throwing a middle finger up to the world with the nihilistic attitude of gen z with a dash of millennial idealism.
I want to be a dragon rather than a mermaid because I know I have a voice. I know that there is a power in me to make changes to my world that I see fit. And I don’t need to be alluring or noble to attract it. I don’t need a prince or a knight in shining armor. I don’t need colorful hair or a beautiful voice. I’m not bashing anyone who wants to be a princess or mermaid, because such protagonists ARE necessary in this world.
I just think that I relate to a dragon more than a mermaid.
I relate to being an individual unapologetically, while still viewing myself as part of the whole.
I don’t know what the next big icon will be. I’d like to put money on dinosaurs or dragons. But it could honestly be anything.
People write protagonists as a reflection of themselves.
A mermaid protagonist is a reflection of a generation who is unique and had something to say about it.
A dragon protagonist is a reflection of a generation who was so done with the way things were that they took it upon themselves to make the change they wanted to see.
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