Celebrating Jane Porter

Okay, since I just finished watching Tarzan on this lovely Friday night, I'm going to geek out a bit.

I think that, out of all of the Disney heroines available to those of us who have by virtue of age found ourselves in mentorship and parenting roles, we do not pay nearly enough attention to Jane Porter from Tarzan. 

- Jane has no nasty rebellious attitudes. Jane and her father are probably one of the most adorable parent-child pairings in all Disney. They not only mutually depend on each other, but they have a great deal of friendship and respect for each other, too. When Jane first meets Tarzan and she is overcome with shock and curiosity, she doesn't sit on a rock and sing a solo about how her restrictive world has just burst open; she runs straight to her father and pours out her whole story, with all the enthusiasm of a trusting little girl. And speaking of trust, when Jane begins to feel attracted to Tarzan, she doesn't get all mopey and withdrawn like other Disney princesses do. She trusts her father enough to talk with him about it and seek his advice. He may not be the wisest or most sagely father in the world, but he loves her very much and does his best to encourage her and give what advice he can. Their relationship is definitely one that I wouldn't hesitate to let my daughters (or sons!) watch.

- Jane is content to let the protecting men in her life ... well, protect her. Jane never tries to evade her father's authority or strike out on her own. He is the one who is leading the research team, and she follows him. When he gives advice, she listens to it. Later, during the ending music sequence after she and Tarzan are (married? It's a bit ambiguous because they're living in a jungle devoid of any other humans besides her father), she lets Tarzan lead the way through the vine and branch pathways because he knows them much better than she does. She possesses a submissive spirit - she cheerfully accepts that her father and husband are bigger, stronger, and more experienced than she is, and she is willing to place herself under their protection.

- Nevertheless, Jane is courageous and energetically pursues her dreams. Jane is an artist and scientist, brave enough to travel alone with her father and another man to uncharted Victorian-era Africa. She doesn't mope around about how she doesn't fit in with the other girls or how she's never found true love - she doesn't have time! Until she meets Tarzan, her energy is focused on discovering wildlife, experiencing a new country, and enjoying and drawing the beautiful things she sees. She actually has much bigger goals than most of the other Disney princesses do - and by cheerfully accepting her role as a woman under the protection of her father and husband, she goes much farther in her life than the princesses who rebel and fight against their authority.

- Jane is mature, open-minded, and willing to learn about what's important to others. How many girls would be willing to take the time to get to know a dirty feral man in a loincloth and teach him, not things like to dance or to eat oatmeal correctly, but to speak? To walk upright? And not just to teach him concepts, which could be done with self-righteous condescension; but to take time to actually talk to him, learn from him, and explore his culture and lifestyle, which would be horrific to a proper Victorian lady but vitally important to him? It's easy to fall in love with a gorgeous Prince Eric or a brilliant Flynn Rider; but it takes a thoughtful, mature woman to fall in love with a Tarzan.

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I know she's not a Disney princess, and Tarzan will never get as much attention as the more lucrative girl-oriented princess movies; but you can take Frozen and stick it in your icebox - if I had to choose one of the Disney women to be a model for my hypothetical daughters, she would be my choice any day!

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Your geeky friend,
Vicki