Cinderella Story

My daughter has this DVD and watches many other movies like it. My problem is this: yes, I understand her feelings about wanting to date and have a boyfriend--BUT, I don't want her to fall into the pattern of expecting a prince to sweep her off her feet and take care of her. When I was younger, I bought into the whole "Cinderella Story" bit--but now, I'm much more of a feminist who believes women should stand on their own two feet, prince or not. Instead of singing "Someday my prince will come...", how about "Who needs a prince when I can do it all myself!" I'm all for love and all that, I just think women should be confident enough with themselves before they merge their lives with someone else. I want my daughter to be strong, independent, and autonomous--I want her to feel like she doesn't NEED anyone and can take care of herself--THEN, if she brushes paths with a man and falls in love with him, THEN it can be a beautiful thing. When two independent adults decide to merge their lives together, it should be an equal relationship. No one is sweeping the other off their feet--or they BOTH are. I don't want my daughter to feel like a hopeless princess who needs to be rescued by a prince. I don't want her to feel that she needs to BE rescued--period! Cinderella can still be sweet, innocent, and beautiful--but she doesn't have to be needy or dependent on a prince. I would love to see more movies where women aren't "rescued" by men--I love to see women in roles of independent and confident women who LIKE men but don't NEED men--not in the way a "damsel in distress" does. I know that this is a huge concept that needs more than a tiny blog entry--but for now, that is all I can say. I hope my daughter one day falls in love and merges her life with an equal partner--but I WON'T be pushing her to "get married so a man can take care of her"! Forget about trying to "marry for money" either--make your own fortune! :)