Venezuelan plastic surgery center adopts tagline, ‘we make fairy tales come true’
Little Mermaid surgery – that’s what you call it when Ursula magically gives Ariel her legs, right? Wrong.
A Venezuelan plastic surgery center has launched an ad campaign that features several fairy tale characters, including the Frog Prince, the Little Mermaid, and a witch à la The Wizard of Oz, going under the knife. It’s not just the legs, either. In the Little Mermaid surgery ad, Ariel appears to have augmented breasts and sports a sexy smile above the tagline, “We make fairy tales come true.”
The full ad depicts Ariel escaping Ursula’s clutches only to find herself on a gurney, fish tail drooping over the side as plastic surgeons bend over her partially obscured upper body. The International Business Times reports that the ad “sparked controversy” – no kidding – after it started to appear on Buzzfeed’s Copyranter. Disney princesses have been criticized before for portraying unrealistic feminine ideals, setting up young girls to have a warped sense of body image. Commenters across the Web shared their concerns that the last thing girls need to see is an ad giving the Little Mermaid surgery.
“This is pretty disgusting,” one commenter posted on the Huffington Post. “Little girls actually look up to these cartoon characters. So, what they are saying is: ‘Hey, little girl, you are not good enough for this world with small normal boobs, so get big plastic ones and people will love you.’”
Twitter users also shared their remorse. “This Little Mermaid Surgery ad has ruined my childhood and my favorite princess!!! :'( #Why,” posted one user.
The website SheKnows points out that the ad is “a lawuit waiting to happen.” It remains to be seen what actions Disney will take regarding the Little Mermaid surgery image.
