I was just net surfing, and realized that Disney tends to base their stories on other stories. And just how much they "distort" the true story. So I did a bit of "Google-ing" and "Wikipedia-ing"... and this is what I thought. =P (Long, boring post ahead; just warning you guys.)

I’m sure we all know the story of Pinocchio… You know, puppet who was brought to life by the Blue Fairy? The companion and “Conscience”, Jiminy Cricket? Became a “half-donkey” on Pleasure Island, for naughty boys who don’t want to go to school, because he was tricked by the Cat and Fox? Saves his father, Geppeto, from the evil Monstro (that gigantic whale – is it a whale?) and he “dies” heroically at the end after they manage to escape from Monstro by making him sneeze - Geppeto brings him home, where he weeps over Pinocchio’s dead body, and the Blue Fairy comes and says, “You have proved yourself truthful, brave and unselfish. Now you shall become a real boy.” Something like that anyway.

And of course, they all dance at the end and… they live happily ever after.

Typical Disney movies. With all the typical Disney elements, as usual.

But do you know the real story of Pinocchio? *evil grin*

The real Pinocchio is not as “cute” as Disney made him, unlike the original Italian story written by Carlo Lorenzini. I’m sure some of you might have a vague memory or know something about the real Pinocchio. Really, Pinocchio is the worst boy you can ever find, who disobeys Geppeto, who is selfish, naughty and on the extreme end of naughty. Think of the naughtiest and mischievous kids you’ve ever met, and times that by 100. Yes, Pinocchio is that evil. That’s the word for it. Evil.

In fact, while Geppeto was making Pinocchio, in the process of becoming a puppet (the word “marionette” is used in the translation), Pinocchio kept kicking Geppeto (and Pinocchio is made from is very hard wood). And, after he was made, he runs out into the streets, where he manages to get Geppeto arrested by the police (I’m not going to go into details), and then after a whole day, he returns home at night, hungry and exhausted.

At this point in the story, we are introduced to the Cricket, who reveals himself to Pinocchio at and gives Pinocchio some really good advice (for naughty boys who refuse to listen to their daddies XP).

“Woe to boys who refuse to obey their parents and run away from home! They will never be happy in this world, and when they are older they will be very sorry for it.”

And after some retaliation from the stubborn Pinocchio, who tells the Cricket that he hates studying and prefers to playing all day long. The Cricket’s comments make Pinocchio more and more stubborn and angrier as well, and:

“Careful, ugly Cricket! If you make me angry, you’ll be sorry!”

“Poor Pinocchio, I am sorry for you.”

“Why?”

“Because you are a Marionette and, what is much worse, you have a wooden head.”

Hahaha, who knew the Cricket could be so sarcastic.

But unfortunately for him, Pinocchio picked up a hammer in anger, and threw it at the Cricket, “straight on its head.”

And the Cricket dies.

What a radical change from the Disney story. Oh, and the Cricket reappears several time in ghost form to Pinocchio throughout the rest of the story. Hm.

There’s so much more ‘horrors’ (really, and Pinocchio was meant to be a children’s story?). And I can comment so much and analyze the story (but I shall not for the sake of the ppl who dislike Literature). Also, the Fairy in the real story plays a larger role than the Disneyfied version.

In a nutshell, the real story is really a warning to all naughty little boys out there:

1. If you are naughty and don’t listen to your daddy, you shall suffer.
2. You will become a donkey in the end. ^_^ (Not just a puppet with donkey ears and tail. You turn into a full-fledged, “hee-hawing” donkey, ears, tails and all.)
3. You shall be tricked countless times by the Cat and Fox (who you believe to be your friends.)
4. Naughty boys will die (or at least meet some really bad trouble) if they hang out too much with bad friends as naughty as them or even naughtier than them.
5. Bottom line: do not be naughty. Or you’ll become a donkey and die.

Pinocchio isn’t the only original story to become so Disneyfied. If you don’t mind reading e-books and staring at the screen, you can read the whole original story here. It’s not too long, and if you’re free, do take a look. Personally I don’t really like reading books online, as it strains my eyes too much (and the last thing I need is for my degree to become higher) but well, if you want the true "horror" story… go! Read.

Oh yeah, as I said, Pinocchio isn’t the only Disneyfied story; the Little Mermaid as well. The real story by Hans Christian Andersen is just shocking. It’s not as lovey dovey and sweet or cute as Disney turned the story into…

In the original story, the Little Mermaid is called just that: Little Mermaid. No cutesy, unique, weird names. Just the Little Mermaid.

When she goes to the Sea Witch to turn into a human, she drinks that potion and goes all weird, right? The Little Mermaid, when she drank the potion, will suffer the feeling of having a sword pass through her. And at least Ariel didn’t have to go through the eternal, perpetual pain of pins and needles in your feet everytime you walk (as the original Little Mermaid did). Just imagine, everytime you walk, you feel like you’re walking on knives. And I can’t remember, but in the Disney version, I don’t think Ursula didn’t tell Ariel that she’ll die if the Prince doesn’t fall in love with her, right? But yeah, in both stories, they lose their voices in exchange, and can’t talk at all. But the motives and everything are different.

The original Little Mermaid just wants to live with the prince and obtain a soul and go to Heaven. While Ariel just wants the Prince to love her. And vice-versa.

In fact, while the Prince starts to fall for Ariel in the “wonderful world of Disney”, in the original story, he never does. He only loves the Little Mermaid like a parent loves a child, and in the end, falls for another princess from another kingdom (who happened to be the woman who rescued him on the beach after that shipwreck thingie; the Little Mermaid is the true rescuer. But while Ariel sings, the original Little Mermaid doesn’t leave the Prince any memories of her singing. Because she just didn't. ). And while in Disney, Ursula interferes by becoming a beautiful girl to seduce the prince, in the original story, it’s just according to “Fate”.

The thing is, if the Prince doesn’t love and marries the Little Mermaid, then she shall turn into foam and die. That’s the true story.

So, anyway, on the night before the wedding, the Little Mermaid is grieving because she knows that she will die. Her sisters visit her from the sea and tells her that she can become a mermaid again if she kills the Prince with a knife they obtained from the Sea Witch, in exchange for their hair. So obviously, the Sea Witch doesn't play any huge role. (Unlike the power-hungry, psychotic Ursula in Disney.)

But the Little Mermaid loves the Prince too much. She can’t bring herself to kill the Prince, so she throws herself into the sea and dissolves into foam. “But she doesn't die; she becomes a daughter of the air, a being invisible to humans. By striving for 300 years to do good deeds she will earn a soul, and float into the kingdom of heaven. But for every good child a daughter of the air finds she subtracts a year, and for every naughty or wicked child she weeps, and adds a day for every tear.” (As quoted from Wikipedia.) Read the translated original story here. And it’s shorter than Pinocchio, too.



See how evil these fairy tales really are?

Somehow, the original tales appeal more to me rather than the Disneyfied versions. ^^

And no, that’s not because I’m sadistic. O.o