Mythological roots in the iconography of the Sleeping Beauty. The case of Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty

Abstract

Sleeping Beauty is a story we can all tell. A cursed princess who pricks herself and falls into a deep sleep until her prince wakes her up. But, like all stories, she has evolved into this form. If we trace its origins, the first time it was put down on paper was in the 13th century. Later, in the 14th century, three more versions were added. In the 17th century Giambattista Basile popularized it, but in that same century Perrault adapted it to his own way and in the 19th century the Brothers Grimm simplified it. 

            Through all these forms there remains an essence, a common narrative, some characteristic elements that allow us to identify this story as the same one. And in them we can see the mythological nuances appearing, sometimes in something as subtle as the names, and sometimes in something as evident as the presence of a mythological god. 

            The stories have been analyzed from different disciplines: from linguistics, anthropology, philosophy and even religion, among others. In this article we will start from two key methodologies: firstly, we will apply comparative mythology (whose main representative is Max Müller) to compare the different versions of the stories, as well as the myths with which we relate them. Finally, we will use the iconographic method of Art History, paying attention to the primary sources to explain the presence of an icon or element in the artistic work analyzed.

            This is the procedure of this article: to break down the primary sources in order to fully understand their presence in the Walt Disney audiovisual.