Monday, August 31, 2015
The Little Mermaid
Whenever someone says, or I read the name Ursula in 100 years of solitude, before I think of the character I instead think of the octopus-like sea witch from the little mermaid. Because of that, I tend to think of Ursula as a villain, even though she really isn't, and is a pretty strong female character in the novel, even though she does engage in some slight to moderate incest. She gives birth to three healthy children, and, out of care for them, is the one who is finally able to find the route out of Macando. Since I felt kind of bad for thinking of her as a villain, I decided to look up what her name really means and found that it derives from the latin "ursa" meaning she-bear ( also its biblical ). I thought this was interesting in that Ursula from the little Mermaid was ferocious like a bear, while Ursula from the story is not. But Ursula from the story is like a bear in her tenacity and the way she cares for her children. Just thought that was interesting/
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I actually thought of Ursula from the Little Mermaid the first time I read "Ursula" in 100 Years, too. I didn't think of doing all this extra research though and I'm glad you did! When I read "she-bear" I though of the Sea Bear from Spongebob. Click on this lick for a picture of the infamous sea-bear: http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/ddcatchphrases/images/4/47/A994f48fbaf8d0_full.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20140729230758
I believe Ursula is like the sea-bear in a couple of ways- embodying both sea and bear. Like you said, Ursula is not a ferocious character with vicious bear-like tendencies. But she is like a bear in that she cares for and protects all of her children while supporting her family. There are several goofy ways to attract a sea bear, such as eating cubed cheese or playing the clarinet badly. The point is, the sea bear will come when it is provoked. Though this sounds negative, what I am trying to say is that you can always count on Ursula, like the sea-bear, to be there whenever you mess up. Ursula relates to the sea in the fact that she literally finds it on accident when she is looking for her son. Like water, she is powerful and a strong, dominant female character.
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