I'm a fan of creative revisions of the classic "Keep
Calm and Carry On" poster, and I particularly enjoyed this one because
Belle is obviously my favorite Disney princess (I was also Belle for Halloween
4 years ago.)
Has anyone ever actually read the "original"
version of The Beauty and the Beast? Being a traditional fairy tale, it has
many versions, but the oldest published version is "La Belle et
La Bête" by french authoress Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve. Her version, published in
1740 in La Jeune Américaine, et les
Contes Marins, or "The Young American and the Sailor's Tales,"
was over 100 pages long, and the beast was actually a true savage, changed from
a prince by an evil fairy, not Disney's "beautiful enchantress."
Belle was also the youngest of six daughters and six sons, who were vain and
selfish like Cinderella's stepsisters.
Villeneuve's work was later pared down and republished by
another french novelist, Jeanne
Marie Leprince de Beaumont, in 1756 in Magasin des enfants, ou dialogues entre une sage gouvernante et
plusieurs de ses élèves, or "The Children's Magazine, or Discussions Between a Wise Governess and Several of Her Students." This abridged
version was republished in many magazines and became more widely known.
Its more simplified, archetypal story is closer to the Disney version, though
still very different.
Below are links to both Villeneuve's and Beaumont's
versions, for our comparison and reading pleasure.
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