Emily Chan
When The Little Mermaid was released in 1989, Ariel became every girl’s favorite Disney princess. The mermaid movie has become so popular that even now, it continues to get multiple film and television adaptations.
However, if you’ve only heard of the Disney version of this mermaid tale, you may be surprised to learn that the real story is much darker and a lot more frightening.
It also doesn’t actually have the happy ending that Disney movies often portray.
MacKenzie Barmen (@mackenziebarmen) has a three-part series on TikTok explaining the tragedies that really occurred. So let’s explore the dark history of The Little Mermaid.
The Little Mermaid is based on Hans Christian Andersen’s 1837 story. In the original story, there were six mermaid sisters varying in age, and their father was the king.
When the mermaids turned fifteen, they were given the opportunity to go above water and see the shore.
The youngest mermaid, who Ariel was based on, had five more years to go before she could emerge from the sea, and she could hardly wait.
When she finally turned 15 and was allowed to swim to the shore, she spotted a huge ship and a 16-year-old prince (this would be Prince Eric in the Disney version).
TikTok; pictured above is MacKenzie in her video
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