#Hua Mulan

[artist-issues]

Look I know Rapunzel paints and Tiana cooks, but if you guys don't think Mulan is the Most Creative Disney Princess, you're wrong.

She's literally introduced in this perfect scene that highlights her whole character, flaws and strengths:

The first time you see her she's:

Cheating, which is totally the opposite of what honor-code General Shang would do.

Undisciplined, which is what going to the army fixes.

Problem-solving—by writing the recitation she can't remember on her wrist—

BUT LISTEN. That last one is the first hint you have that she's the Most Creative Disney Princess. Because guess what? She's not the first young woman to cheat at the matchmaker test. The Matchmaker specifically checks to see if she's cheating when the test begins. But the rest of them wrote their cheat sheet on their fans.

The Matchmaker was prepared for the usual kind of tricks. But Mulan's full of her own ideas, not everyone else's.

You guys know the rest. She dresses up like a soldier—nobody suspects her because the idea that someone would do that never occurs to everyone else. She climbs the pole by tying the medallions around each other when none of the other recruits can figure it out. She lights the cannon by grabbing Mushu instead of searching for flints. She creates an avalanche instead of just taking Shan Yu out. She tricks the Huns by dressing her friends up as concubines. She defeats Shan Yu with his own sword and a bunch of fireworks.

But even beyond problem-solving, Mulan never does things like other people do. She doesn't even do things like other women do.

She doesn't just walk across a bridge, she jumps from pillar to pillar. She doesn't just bring her father tea, she puts a spare teacup in her sleeve because she knows she's clumsy.

Mulan is creative. But you know what that moment proves? That she's not just a representation of all women-versus-men. Mulan is representative of a human, who sees where she has strengths, and sees where she has weaknesses. She uses her strengths to her advantage and works to improve or make up for her weaknesses. She doesn't try to be exactly like a man. She just tries to use what she's got to do the right thing. And finding ways to use what you've got, even if it's not like what everyone else has, is creativity.

[supercap2319]

"Y/N?" Ben asked, walking towards the son of Hades and Chernabog.

"Yes?"

"Lonnie's mother would like to meet you. She's visiting Lonnie for a few days, and she'd like to speak with the man who stole the heart of her dearest godson." Ben explains.

"I...I...I'm honored, but...."

Ben frowns slightly. "But what? Is something wrong? Talk to me." He pats a nearby bench for them to both sit. Y/N sits down and sighed before looking at Ben.

"As much as I would like to meet Fa Mulan, I don't think it's a good idea. After all, I am my dads kid. I'm a villain, Ben, and I'm—"

"You're nothing like your parents, and neither am I. Oh, Y/N. When are you going to see yourself the way I do?" Ben asked, placing a gentle kiss on Y/N's cheek.

The young man blushed hard as Ben took his hand into his and lifted him up. "Come on. I promise you'll love it."

[misespinas]

I feel like the thing Mulan (1998) accomplished better than any other Disney ‘princess’ film was how her society valued women based off 1. their attractiveness and 2. their ability to be submissive.

Other Disney movies (ex. Beauty and the Beast) make references to the misogyny women face for being unable to fulfill traditional female roles, but the disgusting standards aren't explored nearly as much as they are in Mulan. The entire song “You'll Bring Honor to Us All” focuses on all these horrible beauty standards she is expected to uphold:

“With good breeding/ And a tiny waist”

“Like a lotus blossom/ Soft and pale”

“a perfect porcelain doll”

But the song also reflects the social status of women and their roles in society:

“Boys will gladly go to war for you”

“A girl can bring her family/ Great honor in one way/ By striking a good match”

“Men want girls with good taste/ Calm/ Obedient/ Who work fast-paced”

“A man by bearing arms/ A girl by bearing sons”

Mulan’s reflection of this caricature she is meant to become is so much more powerful and sticks out even compared to other more recent Disney movies (Frozen, The Princess and the Frog, etc.)

I personally feel like Mulan is the only ‘princess’ who does not fall into the society's expectations of feminity in come category. She does not seek to become an object, and she defies the roles her society wants her to uphold. Mulan is the only Disney film that shows the impossible standards women are given. The only film that comes close to this would be Brave.

[city-of-ladies]

Women warriors of China (2nd to 6th century CE)

"Warfare defined the age of disunion. Women sometimes had a role in war, and they even undertook certain forms of military service. People respected prowess in the martial arts—in women as well as men—and even empresses and noblewomen honed their skills in horseback riding and archery. For a time, it was fashionable for southern ladies to wear ornaments of gold, silver, ivory, and tortoiseshell in the shape of miniature weapons. People from earlier eras had regarded any female participation in warfare as a gross violation of the fundamental distinction between the sexes. But society had become so thoroughly militarized that it became acceptable for women to have a role in war.

During the Zhou dynasty, the military class of minor aristocrats called shi had been considered a moral elite, and strict ritual rules enforced high standards of conduct. Given the ancient connections between military service, high rank, and virtue, a female warrior could gain admiration for her moral superiority. Traditionally, women fought for the sake of Confucian virtues such as righteousness (yi) and filial piety. Han dynasty writings describe female role models noted for both bravery and virtue. Moral principles sometimes spurred women to violence, as they sought vengeance on behalf of a wronged kinsman or fended off unwanted sexual advances. Six Dynasties authors continued to celebrate virtuous female fighters. A woman who beat her husband’s murderer to death received an imperial amnesty due to her righteous behavior. And when one man wanted to force a woman to marry him, she fended him off with a sword, earning praise as a model of female integrity.

Other women took part in military operations. Emperor Wen of Jin and Empress Wenming conducted an important military campaign together, and she received equal credit for managing important military matters. Northern rulers sometimes employed women from the steppe as palace bodyguards. There was also the case of a woman who became a general, albeit under unusual circumstances. Her father, a noted military officer, had been ordered to lead an army while still in mourning for his deceased mother. He did not want to violate his mourning obligations, so he appointed one of his daughters to be general and another daughter as a high-ranking officer so that they could serve in his place. Historical records do not reveal whether these women prosecuted the war themselves or merely acted as figureheads on their father’s behalf. Either way, the soldiers consented to taking orders from a female general.

In wartime, large numbers of women found themselves pressed into military roles. During a siege, female inhabitants served alongside men on the city walls, fighting and also repairing the fortifications. And women born into military households lived a martial life. As these families tended to intermarry, their women spent their lives immersed in war. With conflict so frequent, they often accompanied their husbands on campaigns and lived in army camps. When war loomed, entire families would embark on a military campaign. 

Even though classical ritual forbade women from participating in war, some nevertheless took on military roles. As the Han dynasty disintegrated, women began to have a more visible presence in military camps. Both the warlord Cao Cao and his foes used female troops on the battlefield, where they brandished spears, halberds, and bows. In that era, soldiers became a distinct social caste. The daughter of a soldier could only marry another soldier, so a woman born into a military family had no choice but to spend her life in a military environment.

The law sentenced men convicted of certain crimes, and their wives, to military service. Under the Northern Qi, both convicts and their female family members became soldiers. Like their husbands, women pressed into military service lived under strict discipline. If a man committed an infraction or absconded, authorities punished his wife as well. As in armies elsewhere in the world, most of these women lacked special skills or fighting ability. Instead they provided support, constructing fortifications, handling provisions, mending weapons, defending their camp, and doing domestic chores. Only occasionally did they go out on the battlefield.

Although the north lacked an institutionalized system of military communities, the women of military households often followed their husbands off to war. The Xianbei traditionally expected their women to be strong and to fight when necessary. The militaristic values of nomadic conquerors gave rise to the famed ballad of Hua Mulan, composed by an anonymous northern poet. In this story, when Mulan’s father is drafted, she disguises herself as a man to serve in his place. She becomes an exemplary warrior and distinguishes herself with outstanding heroism. Mulan is even offered an official post in recognition of her courage, which she modestly declines. Instead she returns home, dons female attire, and resumes conventional female life.

The tale of Mulan has captured the imaginations of generations of readers, and it continues to be retold in new ways. Although audiences today appreciate this story as an engaging fantasy, it originally seemed much closer to quotidian reality at a time when many women belonged to military households and received martial arts training. Mulan’s respect for Confucian propriety helps account for her perennial appeal. She does not dress like a man or become a warrior out of desire or ambition. Instead she sees these unpleasant actions as a way to protect her father from harm. After succeeding on the battlefield, she refuses to continue dressing as a man and bearing arms. Instead she returns home and resumes a stereotypical female life. The original readers could accept Mulan challenging gender norms and taking on a masculine identity only because she undertook it as a temporary sacrifice for the sake of moral duty. By mixing conservative Confucian integrity with startling violations of feminine decorum, Mulan has captured the hearts of numerous readers and remains an object of fascination both in China and abroad."

Women in early medieval China, Bret Hinsch

[pulpsandcomics2]

Hua Mulan

[cesarescabinet]

The best part of that one story where Gawain goes to China is the realization that I can now make him and Hua Mulan besties. They bond over cool swords and show off their horses like parents do baby pictures. Their sparring sessions are absolutely insane.

[miriasuu]

Fate/ fanservants , Ada Lovelace & Hua Mulan!

Ada looks like ice cream...yummy

[sharksandjays]

Mulan doodles from today. The last pic is my first digital piece from 7 years ago :) I wanted to redraw mulan to see how ive improved. Anyways. The woman the goddess.

[felicitykings]

For twelve years, every day I wake up in the battlefield, my first thought is of you. Knowing you are there gives me the courage to open my eyes. Forever after, it will still be the same every day.

MULAN: RISE OF A WARRIOR (2009) dir. Jingle Ma

[fantastical-and-magical]

from ultimateprincesscelebration on instagram in celebration of world princess week

[womeninfictionandirl]

Mulan by Seda

[heyhopperart]

🌸 HUA MULAN 🌸

美不美 🖤?

[kadiekins]

Happy 25th anniversary to Mulan!

[lovelyllamasblog]

Servants I Want to see in FGO

Catherine the Great (Rider/ Ruler)

Saint Olga of Kiev (Ruler/ Avenger)

Tomyris (Lancer/ Rider)

Hua Mulan (Archer/ Lancer)

George Washington (Rider)

John Henry (Lancer)

Molly Pitcher (Archer)

Harriet Tubman (Rider/ Archer)

Mary Seacole (Caster)

Harry Houdini (Caster)

Judith (Book of Judith) (Assassin)

Abhimanyu and Vrishaketu (maybe Archer for both ?)

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Caster)

Sybil Ludington (Rider)

Deborah Sampson (Archer)

BONUS

Yudhishthira (Saber) - but as a Lily version of himself so that he can be the pampered little brother for once and not have to put up with his younger brothers’ BS. Duryodhana tries to make fun of him for it and Yudhi goes running to Karna, crying. While Karna chastises Dury for making fun of him, Yudhi evilly smirks at Dury from behind Karna, who faithfully plays into the Big Brother role. EVERYBODY is aware that Yudhi is basically playing Karna besides Karna!

Inspo links: (1) @krishna-premi (2) @fanfictionroxs

[dikdikpronouncedxylophone]

I will never get over the fact that throughout Mulan (1998), Mulan continuously calls Zhao the honorable and professional title of “Father” when she was trying to bring honor and appease the patriarch of her family. However, the moment at the end when Zhao dumps the trophies of victory aside and tells Mulan that she is all he cares about when she actually came home from war, she calls him the affectionate familial nickname “baba.”

I’m not crying.

[happypeachsludgeflower]

Avatar Mulan crossover where Suki is Mulan