Some more talk about Disney's "Hunchback of Notre Dame"
I know I've probably discussed this topic to death, but I've been thinking about it again.
I just went onto Disney+ and rewatched all of Quasimodo and Esmeralda's interactions in The Hunchback of Notre Dame, as well as scenes where Quasi talks about Esmeralda when she's not present. Having refreshed my memory, I can safely say this, one and for all:
To call Quasimodo's feelings for Esmeralda "toxic" is nonsense!
Their friendship is lovely. Quasimodo is never anything but polite, friendly, and helpful to Esmeralda, while she feels nothing but warmth and esteem for him. In no way does he ever make her uncomfortable. In no way is it his own fault that she doesn't love him romantically.
Yet the fans call his love "toxic." Ad nauseam and again ad nauseam, they claim that he objectifies and dehumanizes her by putting her on a pedestal as a perfect angel, "just like" Frollo demonizes her as a temptress and a witch, while only Phoebus sees her as the real woman she is. If you dare to discuss any aspect of the Quasimodo/Esmeralda/Phoebus love triangle, in any capacity, you can expect at least one person in the comments to chime in that Quasi "sees Esmeralda as a Madonna, while Frollo sees her as a Whore, and only Phoebus treats her like a human being." Quasi and Frollo are lumped together as "the bad choices" for Esmeralda, in contrast to Phoebus as "the good choice," when the movie's actual main contrast is between Quasi and Frollo, the "man" vs. the "monster," with Phoebus not even part of the equation. And again and again, people say that the reason why Esmeralda falls in love with Phoebus instead of Quasi is because she "doesn't like the way Quasi treats her," as if they all saw some alternate version of the movie where he makes her uncomfortable by worshiping her too much.
And why? Because just once, in the song "Heaven's Light," when Esmeralda isn't even present, he calls her "an angel."
My dad used to call me "my angel." Does that mean he was a toxic parent who didn't see me as a human being? And my mom used to call our dog "our little angel." Does that make her a toxic dog owner?
I don't disagree with the claim that Quasimodo idolizes Esmeralda just a little too much for an ideal romance, or that of the three men who have feelings for her, Phoebus is the only one who relates to her entirely as an equal. But I think there are other reasons why Quasi and Esmeralda might not work as a couple... more on her side than on his. She doesn't relate to him as an equal either, but pities him as a "poor creature" and "poor boy" ("boy," not "man") when they first meet, and though she obviously gains respect for him in the bell tower when she sees his artistic talent and gets to know him better, there's always a protective and nurturing motherly aspect in how she treats him. This is fine for a friendship, but for a romance? Not the ideal basis.
Besides, there are two much bigger reasons for Quasimodo not to "get the girl": (1) It lets him prove that he's the "man" to Frollo's "monster," since he accepts Esmeralda's choice and continues to be her friend, unlike Frollo who's willing to burn down all of Paris to possess her and burn her if she refuses. (2) It adds just a hint of bittersweetness to the ending, so the integrity of Victor Hugo's tragedy isn't entirely lost – just like the rewritten ending of The Little Mermaid still has bittersweetness to it, because even though Ariel survives and marries Eric, she still has to say goodbye to her family and friends in the sea. And (3) as the film's creative team has always pointed out, Quasi's dearest wish isn't romantic love, but to be "out there" among the people of Paris and accepted by them, which he gets in the end.
Yet even with all of this in mind, I have nothing against shipping Quasimodo with Esmeralda. Like I said, their friendship is beautiful, and I don't think they're inherently not a romantic match. And while I like Phoebus and Esmeralda as a couple, I understand feeling that they're a little rushed, or preferring Esmeralda and Quasi's mutual tenderness to her snarky banter with Phoebus. You want to ship them? Go ahead, just as long as you don't bash Esmeralda for not choosing Quasi in canon!
Like I said, I've probably rambled too much about this subject. But this movie's online fandom has taken one small kernel of truth – that in his private thoughts, Quasimodo idolizes Esmeralda instead of relating to her as an equal – and exaggerated it to insist that his feelings for her are toxic and just as bad as Frollo's obsession, and that Phoebus isn't just the one she connects with romantically, but the only one who deserves her. None of which is supported by the actual film!
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