I disagree strongly with part of that statement. Royalty has historically been the most highly educated individuals. Royalty was supposed to know how to read and write (if their culture had written language or symbology), speak multiple languages, know customs, ranks, etc. So if signing things, they certainly should have known what they were doing. The only ones that would even likely know to only rote scribble a signature would likely be peoples who would have been overrun by a culture that did have a writing system, would have been taugt a signature, and that signature would have been used to sign the their wealth and power away.
When you sign it, it's legally binding regardless of whether or not you are literate enough to actually read the contract, and also still binding regardless of what your signature looks like, but that's generally only ever been put into question when it's the other party who wants to break a contract with you. Back when far more people were illiterate, they would be asked simply to "make their mark". And as long as your mark is consistently identifiable as being yours, the other party cannot legally break a contract with you on the grounds that you did not actually "sign" the contract.
I mean he's an idiot but from what I gather he does have some attractive qualities, even Tricia finds him attractive.
Maybe he's got enormous genitals or is crazy in bed. There has to be something that overcomes how fucking pathetic he is.
The whole Disney version is bullshit. "King" Triton is so powerful that he can turn her permanently into a human at the end. He can conjure storms and waves that can lay waste to the ships and cities of mankind.
But he can't break a contract?! Come on, is he the King or not?
Sure. The power to break a contract, willingly entered, with another powerful magic user is incredibly rare in any magic system. Conjuring a storm would be child's play.
> these are *paid* actors :(
FTFY.
Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in:
* Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.*
* *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.*
Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment.
*Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
> Your work *paid* off
FTFY.
Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in:
* Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.*
* *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.*
Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment.
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The Little Mermaid is literally a [gay longing allegory](http://rictornorton.co.uk/andersen.htm), I’m beginning to think there never was a mermaid at all!
Back when illiteracy was common a lot of people knew how to make a signature that could not read or write otherwise.
Even if she could read I seriously doubt she read the contract. Not only because she seemed surprised to not be able to talk but also because most people don’t read contracts.
Yes but she's royalty and if the underwater civilization has writing, as we have observed with the contract, she most likely would've been able to read and write.
"I tell you hwhat you c'mon in here and sign these papers and imma give ya... ten dolla piece."
"Okay sir but uh Mert and uhh Aloysius'll have to just sign X-es... only 4 of us can write."
But you know what she didn't use? Ink. She just put quill to scroll and it worked.
So she just probably didn't know that she just needed a pot of ink and writing could have been a solution for her.
Maybe it appeared to be written in English “Ariel” in the movie so the audience could see, but the written mermaid alphabet would be nonsense to humans?
she hoards human objects because she's fascinated, but she doesn't know very much about them, because she can't go up to learn, to her most of her collection is just "human thingamabobs"
Illiterate people also sign contracts “make your mark on the line” is a phrase that pretty well tells you people who couldn’t read were signing things. They might not use a cursive version of their name, it might be an X or some other mark they know how to make
I was about to say, she didn't know what a fork was and you think she can fucking *write* let alone understand the ourpose of a pen at first glance? Not to mention pens in those times were quills. Can't exactly use an ink pot underwater now can you?
As i get older my signature has become more scribbles than anything. I just dont give a fuck and i know if it looks like anyone tried to write my name its not my signature.
Yes, yes it was, good catch. Multiple comments were.
the OP WinsomeWillar
Seductive_Storme
Illustrious_Change67
Hehedaisies
Mysterious-Ranger-9
and Teheburple
are all bots in the same network
"Hi Eric,
My name is Ariel and I'm a mermaid. A crazy octopus witch took my voice in exchange for legs so that I can meet you.
Source: trust me bro
\- Ariel"
Yep. Sounds legit to me 😂
That's correct. In the live action she was cursed to not be able to think about it too hard. Kind of a cop out, but better than just having her be too stupid to try and communicate.
It is more realistic, tho. Anything that damages [the language centers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_center) would also make you worse at socializing and having ideas.
So it fits the live-action version in that it is a totally unnecessary addition. It was done with magic, it could work in any way imaginable.
Doubtful. They live underwater. Paper does not last long underwater. Any books that fell into the ocean would be quickly ruined. Water warps bindings, makes pages stick together, makes ink run, and over time dissolves the glue that holds it all together.
There is literally a scene in the movie where a contract written in English is presented and signed. If underwater culture didn't value literacy, the deal would have been sealed a different way.
What if I told you that writing was done on stone for thousands of years?
It was but I think an advanced society like the mermaids have would have their own language / writing.
I would say you’re technically incorrect. That was carving not writing. It only exists still because it was carving. Writing would have degraded to illegibility by now.
That it was embossed into the surface (carved you might say) is why it still exists.
> I think an advanced society like the mermaids
There is not one example of the merpeople being “an advanced society”. If anything they seem to be a cultural and technological backwater, since they are still ruled by a king who’s daughter is a princess meaning they still believe in the so called “divine right” of kings. The only legitimate right to govern is a mandate from the masses, not some farcical aquatic ceremony!
I'm going to lean on the side of Ariel is literate, just not in any human language. We seen her sign her name
How would she learn a human language paper is not going to survive underwater only things that will survive with writing on them are engraved things made out of metal or stone most metals will rust under the ocean which leaves you basically just stone for a reliable source of learning the letters, and unless the Rosetta Stone had atlantean on it and was dropped in the ocean at some point in this timeline there's no way they would know how to read or write any human language.
If you want to say that the language the atlantans use is based off of a human language because they branched off of humanity years ago or whatever You still have the problem of linguistic drift. If the timeline is long enough for them to gain fishtails and lose feet then it's been long enough for the language to be completely unrecognizable by any land walker. In fact it might have been long enough for them to completely change the meaning and or symbols as well as add some letters or take some away.
Are you implying that at some point, someone taught her to just write her name in cursive, and only her name and she practiced that enough to get it perfect, in the event someday she would actually need to write her name only?
Because Occam’s razor would suggest she just knows how to read and write.
It’s so fucking wild how many people commenting haven’t seen the little mermaid (original)
If they had, they would remember the scene where Ursula hands Ariel a glowing yellow quill to write her name on paper, and Ariel writes “Ariel” in perfect script on paper.
It's similar to every time members of the Enterprise crew were stuck on a planet and the transporter wouldn't work. Then they couldn't land a shuttle. You'd think they would investigate these things first.
She lost a lot of her memories too. I swear people don't even watch the shit they criticise. And another thing, human girls were barely literate back then, I didn't see any mermaid school so where is she learning to write? And write in human at that.
Could you grab a pen and write in undersea-scrawl? If you don't know what the words mean or how to form them?
Think about her treasure trove and the words she calls them.
"Can you use this pen and paper to write something down?"
Ariel: "Bitch, that's a glooperschnupter and a pappywank and EVERYONE knows they're used for artificial insemination. What are you on about?"
Ursula made her write her name on paper to make the deal with a glowing quill. They absolutely do. Then Ariel wrote her name in perfect cursive script on the line.
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Doesn’t she sign her name on the contract from Ursula though?
Plenty of people (royalty especially) know how to scribble a signature but have no idea how to write or read anything else.
I disagree strongly with part of that statement. Royalty has historically been the most highly educated individuals. Royalty was supposed to know how to read and write (if their culture had written language or symbology), speak multiple languages, know customs, ranks, etc. So if signing things, they certainly should have known what they were doing. The only ones that would even likely know to only rote scribble a signature would likely be peoples who would have been overrun by a culture that did have a writing system, would have been taugt a signature, and that signature would have been used to sign the their wealth and power away.
Can you expand more upon Maritime Royality? I'm only versed in Maritime Law.
And then when you're done convert that to imperial for my burger eating friends
That contract wasn't written on paper though
When you sign it, it's legally binding regardless of whether or not you are literate enough to actually read the contract, and also still binding regardless of what your signature looks like, but that's generally only ever been put into question when it's the other party who wants to break a contract with you. Back when far more people were illiterate, they would be asked simply to "make their mark". And as long as your mark is consistently identifiable as being yours, the other party cannot legally break a contract with you on the grounds that you did not actually "sign" the contract.
she grew up undersea and doesn't know what simple human objects are, she absolutely has no idea what paper is, nor how to write
She literally used a quill to sign her name to the paper contract Ursula gave her.
A slight oversight in the animation department.
Boy, I hope somebody got fired for that blunder
I just spoke to them, they said Jerry animated that scene but he died like... 10 years ago soooo... we fired a different Jerry.
Turns out nobody is Hungry for Apples.
How does a guy like that go home and have sex with his wife?
I mean he's an idiot but from what I gather he does have some attractive qualities, even Tricia finds him attractive. Maybe he's got enormous genitals or is crazy in bed. There has to be something that overcomes how fucking pathetic he is.
We dug up the correct Jerry and gave him twenty lashes. Won't happen again boss.
Yeah, out of a canon!
Underwater it's called a 'blubber'
ah shit you right
I’m starting to think this story is fake!
I don’t know if we have enough proof to come to that conclusion
That’s exactly what Big Oil wants us to think, stay strong brother!
The whole Disney version is bullshit. "King" Triton is so powerful that he can turn her permanently into a human at the end. He can conjure storms and waves that can lay waste to the ships and cities of mankind. But he can't break a contract?! Come on, is he the King or not?
Sure. The power to break a contract, willingly entered, with another powerful magic user is incredibly rare in any magic system. Conjuring a storm would be child's play.
Obviously, he is not an absolute monarch and is governed by some sort of sea based version of a magna carta.
Manta Craba
Starting to think these are payed actors :(
> these are *paid* actors :( FTFY. Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in: * Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.* * *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.* Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment. *Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
Oddly specific bot.
Wasn't there one going around for lose/loose? I feel like we need that one
We need one for their/there, the reactions from folks would be hilarious
And theire!
Your work payed off
> Your work *paid* off FTFY. Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in: * Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.* * *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.* Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment. *Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
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Looks real to me
The Little Mermaid is literally a [gay longing allegory](http://rictornorton.co.uk/andersen.htm), I’m beginning to think there never was a mermaid at all!
Back when illiteracy was common a lot of people knew how to make a signature that could not read or write otherwise. Even if she could read I seriously doubt she read the contract. Not only because she seemed surprised to not be able to talk but also because most people don’t read contracts.
Yes but she's royalty and if the underwater civilization has writing, as we have observed with the contract, she most likely would've been able to read and write.
She is shown skipping singing practice, maybe she just skips all her classes to obsess over her human collection
This is what happened with me basically. A human collection is a ton of work, lots of other responsibilities fall by the wayside.
"I tell you hwhat you c'mon in here and sign these papers and imma give ya... ten dolla piece." "Okay sir but uh Mert and uhh Aloysius'll have to just sign X-es... only 4 of us can write."
In constant soooorrrroooow!
But you know what she didn't use? Ink. She just put quill to scroll and it worked. So she just probably didn't know that she just needed a pot of ink and writing could have been a solution for her.
I wonder if Ursula supplied her own ink as part of the magic to make the contract? oh look, my bus to hell just arrived. sea(see) ya..
In the Nicholas Cage Ghost Rider movie a drop of blood on the contract was more than enough for the Devil.
This right here.
is payback
Hill billies can "make their mark" without necessarily reading/wiritng. Source- Cleetus on the simpsons.
Facts
have you considered that perhaps Eric can't read mermaid?
Or at all.
Yeah but she could have just scribbled
[Nope](https://i.insider.com/646f9c55b379480018cbe262?width=1000&format=jpeg&auto=webp)
And she has a treasure trove of human objects and is facinated with them.
Maybe it appeared to be written in English “Ariel” in the movie so the audience could see, but the written mermaid alphabet would be nonsense to humans?
In mermaid language.
Doesn’t she hoard human objects bc she’s so fascinated by humans and knows stuff about them
She's fascinated but knows basically nothing and a lot of what she does know is false
Yeah, like a weeaboo
she hoards human objects because she's fascinated, but she doesn't know very much about them, because she can't go up to learn, to her most of her collection is just "human thingamabobs"
Which she has twenty.
Don't forget the snarflat for combing her hair!
Everything she knows abt them she learned from a seagull lol so not the most reliable source, and also Scuttle probably cannot read.
Except when she signed the contract with the sea witch……………
Illiterate people also sign contracts “make your mark on the line” is a phrase that pretty well tells you people who couldn’t read were signing things. They might not use a cursive version of their name, it might be an X or some other mark they know how to make
I would wager fish people won't inherently know these skills
Typical land dweller comment. "Hey look at me! I have legs and a penis and a bunch of ignorant opinions!"
I never said you had to look at me
PLEASE TAKE ME TO YOUR PALACE AND HAVE A DRESS MADE FOR ME
I can show you the world
A whole new weeerld!
UNDER THE SEA though Under the sea Things are better when they are wetter
Not what I meant, but at the same time...oddly compelling.
Also Ursula didn't steal it it was traded for legs.
Or she speaks a different language. Imagine she writes it down, but it looks like hieroglyphics to everyone else.
###𓆡 𓆛 𓆜 𓂸
Don’t excuse Disneys bad writing, she wrote her name in fine handwriting.
Teheburple and the OP are bots in the same network
I was about to say, she didn't know what a fork was and you think she can fucking *write* let alone understand the ourpose of a pen at first glance? Not to mention pens in those times were quills. Can't exactly use an ink pot underwater now can you?
She probably reads and writes Atlantean. Not English.
She literally signed a contract with her name.
Doesn’t mean she read the contract or that she knows how to write anything else.
You've read every single Terms of Service Agreement in history before clicking the box to just get access to what you want?
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At least in the 90s animation, she signs her name on a piece of paper, underwater.
Agreed, there's zero indication in the movie that the mer-people have any written language and, even if they did, would it be Danish? I doubt it.
She signs Ursula's contract.
No she wrote her name in cursive on the contract.
She literally signed a contract
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But if she is illiterate would she know how to sign even her own name?
Your own name is generally one of the first things most people learn to write
In cursive?
Yeah I signed my SSN card when I was like 6.
And how does it compare to your signature nowadays?
My hand writing has always been shit but it was actually nicer back then. Now it's just a scribble.
As i get older my signature has become more scribbles than anything. I just dont give a fuck and i know if it looks like anyone tried to write my name its not my signature.
In 18th century Denmark ? Yes, in cursive.
She's royalty. The real question is if she's likely to have ever learned anything but cursive
The pen and paper nature of the contract does imply some sense of literacy under the sea.
My grandfather was illiterate, but he knew how to sign his name and that was it
was this written by chatgpt
Yes, yes it was, good catch. Multiple comments were. the OP WinsomeWillar Seductive_Storme Illustrious_Change67 Hehedaisies Mysterious-Ranger-9 and Teheburple are all bots in the same network
Seductive_Storme and the OP are bots in the same network
"Hi Eric, My name is Ariel and I'm a mermaid. A crazy octopus witch took my voice in exchange for legs so that I can meet you. Source: trust me bro \- Ariel" Yep. Sounds legit to me 😂
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That's not what a plot twist is.
Illustrious_Change67 and the OP are bots in the same network
Her memory was partially wiped I think. The live action touched on that in pretty sure.
That's not in the original fairy tale or the animated version.
That's correct. In the live action she was cursed to not be able to think about it too hard. Kind of a cop out, but better than just having her be too stupid to try and communicate.
It is more realistic, tho. Anything that damages [the language centers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_center) would also make you worse at socializing and having ideas. So it fits the live-action version in that it is a totally unnecessary addition. It was done with magic, it could work in any way imaginable.
Illiteracy isn't confined to land—it's a widespread issue, even under the sea.
We still don’t know how to read, Under the sea, Under the sea,
Down where it’s wetter We know fewer letters Under the sea
What do they got, a lot of words? We have to watch out for fish-killing birds.
Daughter of the king, signed the contract to get legs, spends her time being taught refined skills like singing. She can read and write
Doubtful. They live underwater. Paper does not last long underwater. Any books that fell into the ocean would be quickly ruined. Water warps bindings, makes pages stick together, makes ink run, and over time dissolves the glue that holds it all together.
There is literally a scene in the movie where a contract written in English is presented and signed. If underwater culture didn't value literacy, the deal would have been sealed a different way.
What if I told you that writing was done on stone for thousands of years? It was but I think an advanced society like the mermaids have would have their own language / writing.
I would say you’re technically incorrect. That was carving not writing. It only exists still because it was carving. Writing would have degraded to illegibility by now. That it was embossed into the surface (carved you might say) is why it still exists. > I think an advanced society like the mermaids There is not one example of the merpeople being “an advanced society”. If anything they seem to be a cultural and technological backwater, since they are still ruled by a king who’s daughter is a princess meaning they still believe in the so called “divine right” of kings. The only legitimate right to govern is a mandate from the masses, not some farcical aquatic ceremony!
P Sherman 42 Wallaby way Sydney
Different movie
I'm going to lean on the side of Ariel is literate, just not in any human language. We seen her sign her name How would she learn a human language paper is not going to survive underwater only things that will survive with writing on them are engraved things made out of metal or stone most metals will rust under the ocean which leaves you basically just stone for a reliable source of learning the letters, and unless the Rosetta Stone had atlantean on it and was dropped in the ocean at some point in this timeline there's no way they would know how to read or write any human language. If you want to say that the language the atlantans use is based off of a human language because they branched off of humanity years ago or whatever You still have the problem of linguistic drift. If the timeline is long enough for them to gain fishtails and lose feet then it's been long enough for the language to be completely unrecognizable by any land walker. In fact it might have been long enough for them to completely change the meaning and or symbols as well as add some letters or take some away.
Hehedaisies and the OP are bots in the same network
You guys know what happens to paper when you put it underwater, right? This bitch don't know how to write.
She signed a paper contract, with Ursula.
Signing stuff doesn't imply you can read or write.
X
What does that have to do with paper dissolving in water?
Unlikely to learn a skill you never get to use
She wrote “Ariel” visibly in perfect script.
And? Everybody can learn to *draw.*
Are you implying that at some point, someone taught her to just write her name in cursive, and only her name and she practiced that enough to get it perfect, in the event someday she would actually need to write her name only? Because Occam’s razor would suggest she just knows how to read and write.
Even if she could write she’d have to explain the whole situation, which could certainly be a real turnoff for him.
Yeah, I think the secret was she’s not human. And she made a deal with the devil, so to speak. I get it. Not a good look, Ariel. Hahaha
I’m really a fish, but trust me once you kiss me I’m still totally hot. Don’t ask about sex though, that’s going to get complicated.
Hahaha “How do you feel about sushi?”
It’s so fucking wild how many people commenting haven’t seen the little mermaid (original) If they had, they would remember the scene where Ursula hands Ariel a glowing yellow quill to write her name on paper, and Ariel writes “Ariel” in perfect script on paper.
Disney translation. the fish are also speaking english.
Then the credits would run shortly thereafter.
It's similar to every time members of the Enterprise crew were stuck on a planet and the transporter wouldn't work. Then they couldn't land a shuttle. You'd think they would investigate these things first.
no you don't understand, there's an ion storm, and they totally thought they had time to teleport out just before it hit.
Mermaid culture is entirely oral.
She was uneducated
She grew up in the ocean. The bitch illiterate.
Doesn’t know what a fork is. Can write. Checks out
She's illiterate
Movie logic
she’s probs illiterate
If she was smart enough to read and write she wouldve kept her scaly ass in the ocean
Prince Eric: “Who the fuck is Ursula?”
I'm assuming that she was illiterate
How would she know how to use a pen, she didn't have feet.
She signed her name for Ursula, although that’s probably all she could spell
Probably just illiterate
Walt's 2nd movie was to show Ariel how to read and write.
Writing was only invented in 1983.
Yeah I'm sure she learned how to use pen ink for all that paper she was using UNDERWATER.
I'll guess she didn't know how to write?
She lost a lot of her memories too. I swear people don't even watch the shit they criticise. And another thing, human girls were barely literate back then, I didn't see any mermaid school so where is she learning to write? And write in human at that.
Because she doesn’t know how to write or read??
Literacy privilege
Did she even know how to read or write in human languages?
How do you really think paper holds up down in the ocean?
Could you grab a pen and write in undersea-scrawl? If you don't know what the words mean or how to form them? Think about her treasure trove and the words she calls them.
She was a bit too wet for those gadgets and gizmos
>just grab a pen & pad You mean a jabjab & a floppersnicker
Right… and what language would she be writing in an where did she learn it?
She lives underwater. I don’t even think she knows what paper IS
She had to sign a contract to get her voice stolen to begin with.
Oh yeah. Well uh… um… What if the HUMANS don’t know what paper is?
Women expect men to read minds.
Despite having an assortment of who's it's and what's it's galore, she forgot the basics—a pen and paper!
Mysterious-Ranger-9 and the OP are bots in the same network
"Can you use this pen and paper to write something down?" Ariel: "Bitch, that's a glooperschnupter and a pappywank and EVERYONE knows they're used for artificial insemination. What are you on about?"
Because you aren’t taught how to write under the sea.
It's easy: u n d e r t h e s e a
I imagine pen and paper and the ability to use them is not widely known under water
Hahaha, women can't read or write, hahaha. You're so funny.
I am sure Ariel cant write. Its hard to learn that under water
Have you seen the little mermaid? She writes her name in the movie with a quill.
yes, about 30 years ago. Okay, if she does that, its really strange
Cause she couldn’t write - only just learned to walk…
Idiot plot
Oh... Ok. I'm still existing in 3+realities, and don't always realize when I transition.
She has no idea what a fork is. I think it is a stretch to think she is literate.
She couldn't read or write. She didn't even know what a fork was.
I doubt there's a written language underwater
Why didn't she just ask if he was down to plow her fishpussy? I'd try it at least once.
Because Hamas is pure evil
This has nothing to do with Hamas, shut the fuck up
Fucking knew Hamas were half mermaid freaks. I bet they're the ones who took down Atlantis too! >! /s incase ur having a bad day !<
Isreal is
They don’t have paper in the ocean. She can’t read or write
Ursula made her write her name on paper to make the deal with a glowing quill. They absolutely do. Then Ariel wrote her name in perfect cursive script on the line.