Frozen In Love

One of the things I love about Frozen is the way that it explores the various kinds of love there are. This is going to be an arts student essay on love in the movie Frozen, so obviously there will be spoilers. If you're OK with that, strap into your sled!

Elsa - Self-Sacrificial Love

In the movie, Elsa demonstrates self-sacrificial love. She doesn't fall in love nearly as quickly as her younger sister, and doesn't show exuberant, passionate love. She is willing to give up her own desires for the sake of the people she loves. This is the kind of love you tend to see from parents, who will sacrifice their needs for the sake of their children. This is also the kind of love that leads to the trope: I want my beloved to be happy.

After Elsa strikes Anna with her powers the first time when they are children, she is hidden away from Anna.

She is constantly told, "Conceal it, don't feel it. Don't let it show."

Even though we can see that she wants to reconnect with her sister, she doesn't because she wants to protect Anna from herself. This is shown subtly at the end of the song Do You Wanna Build a Snowman? when Anna sings, "Do you wanna build a snowman?" and the music has three notes that would coincide with what Elsa would sing if she were to respond, "Yes, I do." However, she says nothing instead, because she knows it's better for Anna if she stays away.

When the two of them finally meet again at the party for Elsa's coronation, they start talking again like old friends, and Elsa looks happy for the first time since she strikes Anna with her powers. But she remembers that she has to keep her distance for Anna's sake.

Anna: This is so nice. I wish it could be like this all the time.
Elsa: Me, too. But it can't.
Anna: Why not?
Elsa: It just can't.

When she ends up revealing her powers to the party-goers and nearly hurts Anna again, rather than remove everyone by force, which she has the magical power and authority to do, she flees to save them all from herself. She builds a giant ice palace and decides that everyone is better off if Anna is left in charge of Arendelle.

Elsa:
Anna,
Please go back home, your life awaits
Go enjoy the sun and open up the gates

Anna:
Yeah, but - 

Elsa:
I know
You mean well, but leave me be
Yes, I'm alone, but I'm alone and free
Just stay away and you'll be safe from me
- For the First Time in Forever (Reprise)

How Elsa manages to get food in her ice palace remains a mystery to me.

Even at the end, when it seems that she knows Hans is there to kill her, her only request is that he takes care of Anna.

When Hans tells her that Anna died of a frozen heart, she loses the will to fight, whereas previously, she was willing to fight back (though she never killed anybody).

Elsa: Just take care of my sister.
Hans: Your sister? She returned from the mountain weak and cold. She said that you froze her heart.
Elsa: No...
Hans: I tried to save her, but it was too late. Her skin was ice. Her hair turned white. Your sister is dead. Because of you.
Elsa: No...

This kind of love is admirable, but it comes at the risk of losing sight of what the person you love needs. Or burning yourself out.

Anna - Idealistic Love

The main theme of love that features in the movie is Anna and her idealistic love. She loves quickly, and believes in the best of people, seeing through flaws that would put off others. This is the kind of love that's typical of Disney princesses and young children (before they have the life experience to become cynical). It's the kind of love that seems magical, and fills you with the belief that everything will work out, as long as you love each other.

Anna is one of the few people to love Elsa and her powers, not despite them. It might be because she's too young to understand jealousy at this point, but she seems perfectly happy enjoying the fact that Elsa has powers.

She is also perfectly comfortable telling Olaf that she loves him, moments after he was created.

Despite the fact that Elsa is now shunning her (for a reason she doesn't know), Anna constantly yearns to spend time with her, even as the years go by and Elsa continues to rebuff her.

When the gates of Arendelle are open for Elsa's coronation, Anna becomes hopeful that she'll meet "the one".

I can't wait to meet everyone!
What if I meet. The one? 

Tonight, imagine me gown and all
Fetchingly draped against the wall
The picture of sophisticated grace 

I suddenly see him standing there
A beautiful stranger, tall and fair
I wanna stuff some chocolate in my face! 

But then we laugh and talk all evening
Which is totally bizarre
Nothing like the life I've lead so far! 

For the first time in forever
There'll be magic, there'll be fun!
For the first time in forever
I could be noticed by someone 

And I know it is totally crazy
To dream I'd find romance
But for the first time in forever
At least I've got a chance!
- For the First Time in Forever

In her defense, the gates will only be open for one day, so this might be her only chance to meet somebody. So when she has her "meet cute" moment with Prince Hans of the Southern Isles, naturally, she falls in love.

Their whole duet illustrates just how much Anna has been longing for love, and she takes every little romantic thing that happens between them as a sign that it's true love.

Hans: I mean it's crazy...
Anna: What?
Hans: We finish each other's-
Anna: Sandwiches!
Hans: That's what I was gonna say! 

Anna: I've never met someone-
Both: Who thinks so much like me!
Both: Jinx! Jinx again! 

Both: Our mental synchronization
Both: Can have but one explanation
Hans: You-
Anna: And I-
Hans: Were-
Anna: Just-
Both: Meant to be!
- Love is An Open Door

So much so that the duet ends with:

Hans: Can I say something crazy?
Hans: Will you marry me?
Anna: Can I say something even crazier? Yes! 

The ridiculousness of the situation is highlighted by both Elsa and Kristoff.

Elsa: You can't marry a man you just met.
Anna: You can if it's true love.
Elsa: Anna, what do you know about true love?
Anna: More than you. All you know is how to shut people out.

Kristoff: So, uh, tell me. What made the queen go all ice crazy?
Anna: Oh. Well, it was all my fault. I got engaged, but then she freaked out because I'd only just met him, you know, that day. And... she said she wouldn't bless the marriage, and...
Kristoff: Wait. You got engaged to someone you just met that day?
Anna: Yeah. Anyway, I got mad, and so she got mad, and then she tried to walk away, and I grabbed her glove.
Kristoff: Hang on! You mean to tell me you got engaged to someone you just met that day?
Anna: (rolls her eyes) Yes. Pay attention. But the thing is, she wore the gloves all the time, so I just thought maybe she had a thing about dirt.
Kristoff: Didn't your parents ever warn you about strangers?
Anna: (edging away from Kristoff) Yes, they did. But Hans is not a stranger.
Kristoff: Oh, yeah? What's his last name?
Anna: (scoffs) "Of the Southern Isles."
Kristoff: What's his favourite food?
Anna: Sandwiches.
Kristoff: Best friend's name?
Anna: Probably John.
Kristoff: Eye colour?
Anna: Dreamy.
Kristoff: Foot size?
Anna: Foot size doesn't matter.
Kristoff: Have you had a meal with him yet? What if you hate the way he eats?

But Anna is still convinced it's true love. Her unwavering love for Elsa and Hans cause her trouble. First, when she confronts Elsa and ends up getting shot in the heart by Elsa's powers, causing her to slowly start to freeze.

Second, when she has to get a act of true love in order to thaw herself, and she rushes to Hans for a true love's kiss. Only to find out that he only loved her for her throne.

Hans: Oh Anna. If only there was someone out there who loved you.
Anna: What? You said you did.
Hans: As thirteenth in line in my own kingdom, I didn't stand a chance. I knew I would have to marry into the throne somewhere.
Anna: What... what are you talking about?
Hans: As heir, Elsa was preferable, of course. But no one was getting anywhere with her. But you...
Anna: Hans!
Hans: You were so desperate for love, you were willing to marry me just like that. I figured after we married, I'd have to stage a little accident for Elsa.

Hans leaves her to freeze to death, planning to kill Elsa and tell everyone that he and Anna said their marriage vows before she froze. Olaf tells her that it's actually Kristoff that loves her, so she races towards him, but notices Hans about to kill Elsa. Rather than run towards Kristoff to save herself, her love for her sister makes her rush to intercept the blade.

This kind of love is the stuff Disney movies are made of, but it doesn't always work this way in real life. Real people have flaws and problems, and things don't just magically work out.

Hans - Selfish Love

Once you know about his true motivations, it's hard to describe what Hans and Anna share as love, but it is - love for numero uno. He's quick to fall in love... with himself. If you can't love yourself, who can you love? It gives a whole new meaning to his lines in Love is an Open Door.

Hans:
I've been searching my whole life to find my own place
And maybe it's the party talking or the chocolate fondue 

Both:
But with you...
But with you 

Hans:
I found my place... 

Anna:
I see your face... 

Both:
And it's nothing like I've ever known before!
Love is an open door!
- Love is an Open Door

Love is an open door - a door leading to the throne. To be fair, he's the youngest of 13 boys, so despite being a prince, it's going to be slim pickings by the time it gets to him for inheritances. Despite his selfish nature, he isn't shown to be completely heartless. He does a good job taking care of the town in the blizzard.

Including riding up to confront Queen Elsa when Anna's horse returns to the castle without Anna. He could easily have killed Elsa when she had her back turned and was pre-occupied with two soldiers, but he didn't.

Even though it was for selfish reasons - he needs Elsa to stop the Winter, and in case Anna doesn't make it back, maybe he was hoping he could console the grieving Elsa.

In any case, he does care for the welfare of those who serve his purposes. He is concerned for Anna, telling her it's too dangerous to go after Elsa on her own.

And he stops Elsa from killing the Duke's men.

This kind of love will typically end up consuming the other person. There is such a thing as good selfishness, as not everything that benefits one person is bad for everyone else, but love is a two-way street.

Kristoff - Cynical Love

An unusual way to describe love, but Kristoff has an unusual upbringing. He was raised by trolls. He claims that they're "love experts" and yet the only sign of love we see from him at the start of the movie is for Sven, his reindeer companion.

Kristoff:
Reindeer are better than people
Sven, don't you think that's true? 

Kristoff (pretending to speak for Sven):
Yeah, people will beat you
And curse you and cheat you
Every one of them's bad except you
- Reindeer are Better Than People

As I quoted earlier, he's doubtful of Anna's belief that Hans is her true love, but all he can do is criticise her love, he doesn't have an example of true love of his own. Despite being a "good guy", he is still single. Is it because he was left behind as a child, resulting in him giving up on people?

As an adult, he lives a life of solitude. Selling ice, and spending time with Sven. His adoptive troll family point out that he does want to love (and be loved).

He’s just a bit of a fixer-upper, he’s got a couple of bugs
His isolation is confirmation of his desperation for human hugs
So he’s a bit of a fixer-upper, but we know what to do
The way to fix up this fixer-upper is to fix him up with you!
- Fixer Upper

They are the experts, after all. That's how I would describe cynical love - you want to believe that love exists, but you've been hurt too badly that you can't see it being possible.

At the start, his relationship with Anna is purely transactional - he takes her to see her sister at the top of the North mountain, and she pays for his stuff. He gets more than he bargained for when his sled ends up falling off a cliff and smashing to pieces.

Anna: I'll replace your sled, and everything in it. I understand if you don't want to help me anymore.
Kristoff: (to Sven) Of course I don't want to help her anymore. In fact, this whole thing has ruined me for helping anyone ever again.
Anna: (in the distance) Is it this way?
Kristoff (pretending to be Sven): She'll die on her own.
Kristoff: I can live with that.
Kristoff (pretending to be Sven): But you won't get your new sled if she's dead.
Kristoff: Sometimes I really don't like you.

He agrees to help her, but it's still transactional at this point. After they meet Elsa on the mountain, I think he comes to care for her well-being, but it's still far from "true love". Still, by this point, Anna has saved his life once, and they've been through a lot of life-threatening situations together, so it's understandable that he feels some connection to her.

When her hair starts to turn white, he takes her to Granpabbie, the troll leader, to ask for guidance, because unbeknownst to him, he saw Granpabbie help Anna as a child.

The trolls, especially his adoptive mother, are excited that he has brought him a girl for the first time. During the entire Fixer Upper song, he never denies being in love with Anna, instead pointing out that it won't work because she's engaged. When it is revealed that Anna is going to freeze unless she gets an act of true love, he doesn't hesitate to take her to Hans.

He doesn't say it, but leaving her behind at the castle breaks his heart. Sven tries to convince him to turn around.

Sven sees right through the BS.

This is the kind of love where you're the last person to realise you're in love, but when you do, it hits you like a ton of bricks. When he sees the snowstorm building up, he races back, sensing that Anna is in danger. He's taking a huge risk riding across the frozen fjord in the snowstorm (I just really wanted to write "fjord" once in this blog), but despite his newfound love for Anna, his first concern is still for his long-time companion Sven.

It's only after he's sure Sven is safe that he continues after Anna. And even then, he doesn't tell her that he loves her (though to be fair, he was interrupted by her getting frozen, and then Elsa discovering how she can stop the eternal Winter).

This kind of love is pragmatic, but if you're not careful, you run the risk of being alone.

Mixing it All Together

All four of the types of love have their pros and their cons. Elsa, Kristoff and Anna all learn from each other, and develop over the course of the movie.

Anna and Kristoff admit their feelings for each other at the end.

Anna: (referring to the new sled) Do you like it?
Kristoff: Like it? I love it! I could kiss you!
(pause)
Kristoff: I could. I mean, I'd like to. I'd... May I? We me. I mean, may we? Wait, what?
(Anna kisses Kristoff on the cheek)
Anna: We may.

Notice how there are no marriage proposals! Anna has learned to take it slower - and with someone she has known for more than a day. Kristoff has finally allowed himself to let someone in.

Elsa realises that by isolating Anna, she's hurting her more than she's helping her. Anna is quite lonely during her childhood.

Do you want to build a snowman?
Or ride our bikes around the halls
I think some company is overdue
I've started talking to
the pictures on the walls
- Do You Wanna Build a Snowman?

When Anna is willing to sacrifice herself to save Elsa, it makes Elsa realise that Anna would rather die than be without her sister (which is contrary to her belief that Anna would be better off without her). By isolating Anna, she inadvertently drove her into Hans' arms. It also makes you wonder what kind of ruler she would be if she kept herself in her room most of the time.

Anna's sacrifice also conveniently leads to the revelation that love thaws, answering Elsa's question from earlier in the movie, "What power do you have to stop this Winter?".

I read a theory that said that Anna's idealistic love is her power. The theory says that Hans actually did love her at the start, but it wore off once she wasn't around anymore. Elsa loved her as a kid, but also exiled herself from Anna's presence. Even grumpy Kristoff comes to love her in the end. I don't think it really holds up though, and to be honest, it's a pretty messed up power to have. How would you ever know if someone genuinely loves you, or if they only love you because you made them love you?

Unfortunately, Hans doesn't seem to learn anything.

Funnily enough, if he had genuinely loved Anna, he would have the throne, as his kiss would have saved Anna, and Elsa would have exiled herself, or at least given up the throne, leaving him to rule with Anna.

That being said, there is something valuable in selfish love, and it's that first and foremost, you need to take care of yourself. It's great to be a giver, but if you give all you've got, then you'll have nothing left to hold yourself up. Elsa was miserable for most of the movie because she gave up so much for Anna. It's only Anna's plot armour that saves her from being raped, or mugged or something - I don't think you can go around in life being that naïve.

The move shows that there's more to love than a "meet cute" moment and a catchy duet. I'm glad Disney is moving away from the "love at first sight" stories, and actually putting in the effort of building up a relationship.