From Reject to Role Model: How Tim Burton's 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' Shattered Gender Norms and Redefined Being Different in the Most Unexpected Way!
As a little kid, I had a reputation for being a tomboy. I liked monster movies and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and I only would wear skirts for special occasions. I was thus shunned by the girls for this ungirlish inclination; and shunned too by the boys due to my inevitably remaining a girl . This isn't to say I didn't also like the pretty princess stuff. But, for all Belle in Beauty and the Beast griped about not fitting in, she really didn't seem to have actual issues with being rejected or outcast by anyone -- the bookstore guy loved her so much he gave her free books and the most popular guy in town still wanted to marry her even though she couldn't stand him. I admired and idolized the princess characters, as they're so carefully crafted to make you want to do; but there was always something about their hopes and experiences that didn't really fit with my reality and worldview. They were always perfectly girly and perfectly liked by all "good...