A key difference between Belle and other Disney princesses was Belle’s love of reading, which is enhanced in the remake of Beauty and the Beast.
Emma Watson as Belle
The casting of Emma Watson may be a little problematic for some reasons (*cough* her heavily auto-tuned singing). However, her public persona importantly enhances themes of Beauty and the Beast.
Growing up with Harry Potter, it is endearing to find out that Emma is just as much of a bookworm as Hermione. In 2014, Emma became a UN Goodwill Ambassador, launching her HeForShe campaign. HeForShe advocates for feminism, by shaping the perspective of masculinity.
In 2016, she took another step by creating the Goodreads book club page, Our Shared Shelf. Each month, she picks a significant feminist book to read and discuss. Further, through Our Shared Shelf, on International Women’s Day this year, Emma went out in New York City as a book fairy. She went across the city placing books written by woman authors at monuments of significant historical women.
This remake would definitely not be as special as it is if its star did not advocate for the same values the movie teaches. The 2017 Beauty and the Beast is not so much of a remake. It essentially exactly repeats the 1991 original, only filling in plot holes, adding character background, and throwing in more songs. Of these changes, Emma specifically made the change that Belle should be the inventor, not her father. Overall, Belle is given more agency, making each of her decisions feel more thought out.
The remake is the same as the original in that Belle is just as much of a bookworm. However, there is a little more darkness added to the remake. In both versions, Belle is thought of as odd for wanting to read, but in the remake, she is actively punished for trying to teach a little girl to read. The villagers’ fear of reading really highlights the power of reading. Reading opens up Belle’s mind to the possibilities outside her provincial town.
Emma now has both Hermione and Belle to back up her cause, which can now reach a younger generation through justifying Belle as a more significant role model.
The Beast can read
One of the biggest differences between the remake and the original Beauty and the Beast is that the Beast can read in the new one. In the original, after the Beast gifts Belle the library, Belle sits and reads Romeo and Juliet to the Beast. Once she finishes, she asks him to read it, and he confesses he never really learned how to read.
This is not the case in the remake. The Beast loves reading just as much as Belle does, enough to mock her for her love of Romeo and Juliet. This makes their relationship feel more natural, as they have a mutual interest to bond over. It feels like their relationship probably would not have gone anywhere if it were not for reading.
In the 2017 Beauty and the Beast, it does not feel like their love stemmed just from close proximity. They are both outcasts connected by reading, even further allowing for cute banter between Belle and the Beast. The Beast’s love of reading causes him to feel more developed and human. This sets the Beast in firm opposition to Gaston. The Beast starts out narcissistic and shallow, but through reading, the Beast is able to learn compassion. Meanwhile, Gaston’s aversion to reading makes him the real beast. Fun fact: both Emma Watson and Dan Stevens (who plays the Beast) studied English Literature in college, which likely could have led to this change.
Gaston as the perfect villain
Belle already challenges the status quo of the town. In the remake, there is no bookseller; Belle has to borrow books from the Priest’s small collection. It is beyond a fear of reading, but a complete lack of exposure. Le Fou mentions in the song “Gaston” that he is illiterate, which would have been common at this time period.
During this current political atmosphere, Gaston feels like the perfect villain. Gaston uses the otherness of Belle and the Beast to strike fear in the villagers. He has no accurate knowledge about the Beast, and makes up the Beast’s villainy to take advantage of the villagers’ susceptible ignorance. Gaston’s fear mongering, which can be easily paralleled to current political events, further highlights the importance of the role of reading in promoting empathy and facts.