I have a particular distaste for the Disney version. I see it as someone selling her soul to get her man. Throw in yet another bumbling Disneyesque parental figure, lots of innuendo inappropriate for the target audience, some subtle fat jokes and well, yeah.
YES! That was most notable in my brain when I was little. Sebastion's predicament made me avoid my (then) beloved shrimp and crab meats for nearly a year after watching that movie. My parents thought I'd gone mad.
yes you're right. but, i used to have an Ariel shower curtain in my bathroom...i guess when i was little i didn't notice the things in Disney movies that now kinda piss me off. those kind of things can shape attitudes of children to some degree. TV and movies have a powerful effect on kids, especially young ones because they tend to believe the characters and stories to be real. i used to re-enact the stories with my dolls.