Final Blog: Self-Conscious Emotions

Giselle is difficult to analyze self-conscious emotions since she exhibits mainly basic emotions (Lewis & Haviland-Jones, 2000). Similar to young children, many Disney princesses do not feature high cognitive processes, leaving them with basic emotions such as joy, fear, sadness, anger, and disgust. Self-conscious emotions (e.g., guilt, shame, and embarrassment) present themselves after children grow older and begin to view themselves as different from others (Turner, 2022).

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Late for work, Robert rushes to his office with Giselle. Giselle takes a sip of water from the fish aquarium and spits a fish out as Robert introduces her to his secretary. The secretary shows complete disgust, but Giselle simply smiles and waves “hello”. Most people would empathize with the secretary’s reaction, yet Giselle does not show a trace of shame or guilt! In addition to being a little featherbrained, Giselle sings very loudly in public, talks to animals, and takes strangers’ advice as God’s honest truth. These are forgivable actions for young children, perhaps even adorable, but not for an adult! 

I surmise that Giselle is about 20 years old. She should be old enough to show shame, guilt, and embarrassment. Let me explain why I think Giselle does not indicate self-conscious emotions until after she develops a complex relationship with Robert. First, I explain attributions to why Giselle does not have self-conscious emotions. Then I show examples of her emotional development and changes in her motivations. I finish this blog with a peek at my anticipations for the character’s emotional and motivational development in the film’s sequel, Disenchanted.

Giselle As a Cartoon

Let me begin with her physical appearance. Giselle used to be a Disney cartoon. She had the most “perfect” hair and figure, complete with a beautiful voice and magical powers. Giselle is either unaware of her body and society’s standards, or she has not attributed her body to society’s standards yet. Thus Giselle has no fear, no shame, and no guilt about her body or singing in public.

A second attribution is Giselle’s confidence in Edward's love for her. Giselle’s adoration of Edward is similar to that of a child to their parent. If I ask a young children who their favorite superhero is, many of them may say, “my dad”. Giselle even has a song where she says she was made to finish his duet. Giselle does not distinguish herself as separate from Edward’s identity.

Giselle As a Human

Giselle finally begins to exhibit complex emotions during her quarrel with Robert. She identifies that she is angry with him. However, in her frustration, Giselle realizes that Robert wishes the best for her, even though he disagrees with her. Instead of feeling disgusted and repulsed, Giselle experiences longing, followed by confusion. Her goal to immediately marry a stranger is being challenged. She has talked with Robert more than with Edward, and her feelings are becoming stronger for him than for Edward.

The next morning, Edward finds Giselle in Robert’s apartment. Giselle seems shy towards Edward. She is excited to see him but does not look relieved or her usual happy self. 

Perhaps she is shy because she is differentiating herself from Edward. Giselle realizes that she has a choice as to who she can marry and where she can live. Self-evaluation is the ability to differentiate between herself and Edward (Turner & Husman, 2008). Self-evaluation leads to the anticipation of reactions. 

In this reunion scene, Giselle appears uncertain of Edward’s reactions to her choices and the possible outcomes. Giselle does not exhibit guilt or shame at this point because she has not fully developed her sense of agency or goals. She is still forming them. She does, however, show beginning signs of embarrassment about Edward as he sweeps her up and starts singing their duet song. Giselle cannot remember her duet song! Edward starts the first line, expecting Giselle to finish the line. Giselle looks slightly embarrassed with her silence and her newfound conflicting emotions.

Although Giselle continues to develop self-conscious abilities, she does not show any shame or guilt throughout the movie. She shows some embarrassment when Edward does not know what a date is, and she explains it to him. She does show some shyness to Robert after meeting him at the ball. When Robert asks to dance with her, Giselle looks away and blushes before taking his hand. Perhaps Giselle is using self-conscious emotions and self-evaluation to guide her motivations. Instead of looking for her one true love, she is on a quest of finding the meaning of happily ever after.

Disenchanted: The Sequel

Disenchanted, the sequel comes out on November 18^th! I expect Giselle to have a highly developed sense of self-conscious emotions, including shame and guilt. Giselle will have had 15 years on planet Earth since her arrival from Andalusia. Social comparisons become important over time, giving Giselle over a decade to explore herself, her emotions, and her goals (Lewis & Haviland-Jones, 2000). Giselle could be relating her newly adapted standards, beliefs, and identities in this new film, making for a fabulous sequel!

References

Images made possible by the fair dealing exception from the copyright act.

Lewis M., Haviland-Jones, J. M., & Barrett, L. F. (2000). Handbook of emotions (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.

Turner, J. (2022). 2022 Self-conscious emotions [Powerpoint Slides]. Learning and Cognition, Florida State University. https://canvas.fsu.edu/courses/218133/files/20113136?module_item_id=4433807

Turner, J. E., & Husman, J. (2008). Emotional and cognitive self-regulation following academic shame. Journal of Advanced Academics, 20(1), 138–173. https://doi.org/10.4219/jaa-2008-864