The Little Mermaid:
A Treasured Tale for
Reading, Writing, and
Thinking
Sarah Conrad
Carolyn L. Cook, Ph.D.
cook@msmary.edu
SoMIRAC March 30, 2012
Overview of the Session
• Connection to CCSS
• Mermaid stories
– Compare and contrast
• Critical literacy
– What and why
• Activities
– How to read, write, and think
Common Core State Standards
• Reading (CCSS 4.7)
– Make connections between the text of a story
or drama and a visual or oral presentation of
the text, identifying where each version reflects
specific descriptions and directions in the text.
• Writing (CCSS 4.9)
– Draw evidence from literary or informational
texts to support analysis, reflection, and research
Andersen’s Original
(1837)
Disney Version
(1989)
little mermaid no name
Ariel
Five sisters, father
Grandmother
No grandmother
Sea witch – not evil
Sea witch (Ursula) – evil and
manipulative
Visits surface on 16th birthday
Visits surface whenever
she wants
Saves prince from a shipwreck
Seeks humanity for a soul
Seeks humanity for love of
the prince
Andersen’s Original (1837)
Disney Version (1989)
Potion from sea witch turns her fin into legs for the price of her voice
Prince marries another princess
despite his growing affection for
the little mermaid
Prince plans to marry the girl
whom he thinks saved him, but
actually is the sea witch Ursula in
disguise
Sisters procure a knife for the little Scuttle cracks the seashell hiding
mermaid to use to kill the prince
Ariel’s voice so it can return to her
and return to them
Little mermaid sacrifices herself
for the prince’s happiness and
joins the daughters of the air to do
good de eds to gain a soul
Triton grants her wish to be human
after Eric defeats Ursula, so that
she can marry her prince and live
happily ever after
Goals of Critical Literacy
•
•
•
•
•
•
Read, write, and think in a critical manner
Take a questioning stance on texts encountered daily
Consider social, political, and ethical issues in text
Learn to read the text beyond the words on the page
View texts from a new perspective
Analyze all texts
– Books, Movies, Signs, Artifacts, Magazines, Newspapers…
Critical Literacy
Encourages “students to use language to
question the everyday world, to interrogate the
relationship between language and power, to
analyze popular culture and media, to
understand how power relationships are
socially constructed, and to consider actions
that can be taken to promote social justice.”
(Lewison, Leland & Harste, 2008, p. 3)
Situated Context
Personal and
Cultural Resources
Critical Social
Practices
Critical Stance
(Lewison, Leland &
Harste, 2008)
9
Situated Context
More than just
reading a book
10
Situated Context
Personal and
Cultural Resources
TOOLS FOR LIVING:
Personal experiences
Social issues
Popular culture/media
Social issues
Books
Textbooks
Oral texts
Desires
Community concerns
11
Situated Context
Personal and
Cultural Resources
Critical Social
Practices
• Disrupting the
commonplace
• Seeing multiple
viewpoints
• Focusing on the
sociopolitical
• Taking action to
promote social justice
12
THINK
Situated Context
Personal and
Cultural Resources
Critical Social
Practices
Critical Stance
14
Taking a Critical Stance
• Involves an attitude, a way of thinking
and teaching
– Being consciously engaged
– Trying new ways of viewing things
– Being responsible to solve the situation
– Being reflective to challenge common
assumptions
Critical Literacy
Is “a transaction among the personal
and cultural resources we use, the
critical social practices we enact, and
the critical stance that we and our
students take on in classrooms and in
the world.”
(Lewison, Leland, & Harste, 2008, p. 5)
Consider Little Mermaid Text
• Read selected text from Andersen’s Little
Mermaid
• Complete graphic organizer
• Discuss findings
Reading, Writing, & Thinking with
Andersen and Disney
Andersen’s Original (1837)
Disney Version (1989)
Potion from sea witch turns her fin into legs for price of her voice
Prince marries another princess
despite his growing affection for
the little mermaid
Prince plans to marry the girl who
he thinks saved him, but actually is
the sea witch Ursula in disguise
Sisters procure a knife for little
mermaid to use to kill the prince
and return to them
Scuttle cracks the seashell hiding
Ariel’s voice so it can return to her
Little mermaid sacrifices herself
for the prince’s happiness and
joins daughters of the air to do
good deeds to gain a soul
Triton grants her wish to be human
after Eric defeats Ursula, so that
she can marry her prince and live
happily ever after
Consider Little Mermaid Movie
• View video clip from Disney’s Little Mermaid
• Complete graphic organizer
• Discuss findings
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyFVG4Vf
Pmg&feature=related
Discuss and Write
Discuss
- What did you notice?
- What questions do you have?
- What ideas have been challenged?
Write
- How could you use critical literacy in your
classroom?
Share
Using Critical Literacy
• Reading and Viewing
• Talking and Thinking
– Text vs. Film
– Role of Females
– Differentiation of Motives
• Writing
– Persuasion: tell Ariel what to do
– Description: describe female role
– Comparison: compare and contrast motives
Read, Write, and Think Critically
• Use critical literacy in all classrooms
• Model taking a critical literacy stance with all
types of texts (books, media, advertisements)
• Question assumptions, see other
perspectives, analyze language and power
structures, seek to promote social fairness in
all things
References
• Andersen, H. C. (1993). The mermaid In
Andersen’s Fairy Tales (p. 9-29). Great Britain:
Wordsworth Editions Limited.
• Disney, W. (2006). The little mermaid – 2 disc
special edition [Motion picture]. Burbank, CA:
Walt Disney Pictures.
• Lewison, M., Leland, C., & Harste, J. (2008).
Creating critical classrooms: K-8 reading and
writing with an edge. New York, NY: Lawrence
Erlbaum Associates.
The Little Mermaid:
A Treasured Tale for
Reading, Writing, and
Thinking
Sarah Conrad
Carolyn L. Cook, Ph.D.
cook@msmary.edu
SoMIRAC March 30, 2012