Message: "Re: Ursula" - Behind the Name

This is a reply within a larger thread: view the whole thread

Re: Ursula

by RDNZL

1/29/2018, 1:08 PM

Am I the only one who thought Ursula was the coolest character in that movie? I know she's the villain, but she has charisma, and she's the one I remember the most. Plus, she has one of the best Disney songs EVER, and I will shamelessly sing it in the car, to this day.

Anyway, um, yeah, Ursula by itself is a cool name. It's kind of slick, and it doesn't give a shit. I never read Ursula K. Le Guin, so that has no influence, for me. The only way I've heard it pronounces is the first way. I've never heard oor-soo-lah.

Hmm. Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter.

Replies

- foxgloves +6

1/30/2018, 1:03 AM

i don't remember it so well, but she definitely seemed to have the most personality. i also like the whole octopus mermaid idea...actually, i like many elements of her design (her body shape, the cool rocker hair, the purple), which makes it such a shame that she was portrayed as ugly, and as wanting to look like Ariel (iirc?). if she had a friendlier face, she'd be beautiful.

and that's a cool way to describe the name- it definitely comes off as a little punk lmao.

- RDNZL +5

1/30/2018, 2:57 PM

James Adomian has a great bit about Ursula. There are curse words, so don't click if you're not into that kind of thing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwFasVl8EVE

- noel (glaucous) +4

1/30/2018, 3:51 PM

I read somewhere that Ursula was based on the drag queen Divine.

- Starstrider (Serafina Starstrider)

2/1/2018, 11:58 PM

I love Divine, I wonder if it is true. I can definitely see similarities between the character and Divine.

---------

- foxgloves +1

1/31/2018, 4:09 AM

that's especially awful then, and not surprising at all given Disney loves basing villains off of LGBT people (there's problems with drag culture, but it's of course associated with gay men, like Divine was, and trans people, and so of course Disney saw that as fitting villain inspiration)

- RDNZL

1/31/2018, 2:42 PM

The rest of Adomian's bit on gay/lesbian villains in movies is pretty good. I suggest checking it out, because he goes into all that, and it's pretty funny.

- RDNZL

1/30/2018, 10:19 PM

Makes sense.

This message was edited 1/31/2018, 9:05 AM

View Message

Replies