"Mend the bond torn by pride." Merida thinks it means the tapestry, the audience realizes it means the rift between her and Elinor. But there's more...Merida's flat refusal to participate in the marriage tradition came close to severing the alliance between the four clans, and on top of that, there was Mor'du, whose pride had destroyed his kingdom and his own brothers, and even denied him reconciliation with them in the afterlife. All these problems were solved by the events of the film.
As the king tells the story, one of the boys is silently acting it out right along with him. He's not mocking his dad, he's memorizing the story to retell in the future.
The tapestry.◊ The redheads are all grouped in one cluster; Elinor stands apart, connected only by holding hands with Merida. Given that Elinor almost certainly stitched the tapestry herself, it may show that, for all her fierce love towards her family, she feels somewhat...isolated.
Also, notice the triplets are in what looks like a crib. Elinor may have been working on this tapestry for maybe about three years.
Even better, if you look closely at the tapestry, at the different corners of the rectangle that surrounds the circle with the family in it, there are four smaller circles that each show from clockwise; A sword, a harp, a carved stone, and a cauldron. Those objects are notable for being of important value in Gaelic and greater Celtic myths, as they are best notable for being gifts given to humanity by the Daoine Sìdhe (Men of Peace) of Scottish myth:
The sword on the top left is likely the Sword of Light (An Claidheamh Solais), notable for being held by various heroes of ancient legend.
The harp on the top right is possibly the magic harp once held by Aengus of the Ever Young (Aonghas na h-Òige), the pre-Christian Gaelic god of summer. His harp is made of a gold body and silver strings, and when it is played it attracts the attention of youthful women and animals.
The stone on the bottom right is the Stone of Destiny (An Lia Fàil), a type of stone which the ancient kings of Scotland and Ireland were crowned upon, and that whenever a rightful king steps on it, it is said to call out in joy.
And finally, on the bottom left, is likely the Cauldron of Plenty (An Coire Nam Leòr), a mythical cauldron that when used to feed others, it would cure them of malnourishment, and have them feeling fulfilled for a lengthy time.
Why does Merida keep what happened to Elinor a secret from Fergus instead of just telling him the truth? First, Fergus doesn't believe in magic, which he makes very clear in the prologue by mocking the existence of Wisps. Second, he hunts bears for sport in the hope of one day killing Mor'du and avenging his leg (much like Captain Ahab was with Moby-Dick), to the point that he's called the Bear King. Merida even has to remind Elinor about that. Third, even though the whole problem is Merida's fault to begin with, she's too stubborn to admit it.
What’s a good word to describe how Merida sees her mother’s opposing of her lifestyle…… un"bear"able.
During the tournament, why does Fergus easily side with Merida over trolling the suitors when he should be on his wife's side? Bear in mind, Fergus is a father, and as with most fathers who have daughters, he's very protective of Merida and isn't quite ready to see her married off to just any suitor.
Why did Mor'du change right in front of his whole family and destroy throne room and clan, while Elinor has time to make it up to her bedroom and writhe around for a while first? Aside from the fact that Mor'du didn't have anyone who was in on the spell to help him hide, Elinor only ate a very small piece of the cake. Mor'du, greedy as he was for power, ate the whole thing in one bite.
A bonus short on the Blu-ray indicates that he got his as a potion, not a cake. But as he basically swallowed it all in a few gulps, all at once, the brilliance stands.
Additional brilliance: Mor'du drank a raw potion, which was basically the direct-to-bottle magic spell from the cauldron. Elinor, meanwhile, had a cake, which had more ingredients than just "magic" and thus heavily distilled.
Which actually becomes more brilliance when you think that the Witch was the one who gave the spell to both parties. Looking at the short, it seems that Mor'du's bear form is much larger, stronger, and more animalistic than Elinor's, hinting that the magic, when given directly, causes you to act more beast-like and override your human instincts a lot quicker. If the Witch remembers Mor'du (and, knowing how well that particular sale turned out, she almost certainly does), then she's likely using a weaker version this time around to prevent the same outcome for Elinor.
According to the article about the archery in the movie, Young MacGuffin's "arrow should have hit the dirt about 10 feet in front of the target" but it manages to hit it despite him "doing all the work with his hand, wrist and forearm, not using his considerable back muscles at all". Of course, this was also the suitor that was capable of using a very long wooden bench as a weapon. He is literally strong enough to use just his hand, wrist and forearm to hit the target [though it did nothing for his aim]. Of course, given that one of the first things young MacGuffin does when being introduced is break a solid log with just his hands, it's likely he handled the bow that way because he was afraid he'd break it.
Or it could be another form of Fridge Brilliance: Young MacGuffin didn't actually want to win Merida's hand. None of the clan heirs do. It's entirely possible that he has a girl back home he'd rather be with, and deliberately assumed a stance that would look like he was trying not to break the bow with his incredible strength, but was actually intended to just plain miss.
When I received my Disney store Elinor and Merida dolls, I was at first surprised at how young Elinor looks (the doll lacks the character's gray hair in the movie). At first, I was annoyed, but then I realized: it's entirely possible that Elinor's as young as 30. Considering the time frame, she could've been married at fourteen and given birth to Merida at fifteen (or sixteen). If Merida is around the same age now, and expected to marry already, it makes sense that Elinor really is quite young.
The fact that Elinor has grey hair at all is strange to me, the wrinkles as well. Especially when you contrast other Disney and Pixar moms; for example, Rapunzel's mom has a daughter only 3 or 4 years older than Merida, but she still looks youthful and completely without grey.
The woman's trying to raise Merida and the triplets. Her children are giving her gray hair.
Some people just start to go gray as early as 20, just like those who go bald.
That's a case of Fridge Brilliance for Tangled: Rapunzel's mom still looking young is a side effect from the flower's magical properties. If you notice, Rapunzel's dad has aged a lot, but her mom looks exactly the same as she did when Rapunzel was born.
Merida complains early in the film that Elinor doesn't listen to her and that she thinks she knows best. When the "Woodcarver" tries to dissuade Merida from getting a spell to "change her fate", she doesn't listen even when the "Woodcarver" outright says that many people tend to be disappointed by the spell. Apple never does fall far from the tree, does it?
The same can be said of the ranting scenes. Not only do they both feel exactly the same way towards each other, they organized their rants the same way.
Merida wasn't the only one that needed to mend the bond broken by pride, Elinor had to do so as well, which she accomplishes by easing back and letting Merida break tradition and giving her the freedom to marry on her own terms.
This is symbolized by Elinor's hair. Before she got turned into a bear, she wore it tied back and perfectly neat. Once she changed back into a human, she lets it down.
Everyone seems to be debating on whether the witch is good or evil based on her habit of selling Bear curses. The evil side argues that if she was good she wouldn’t give them in the first place, the good side argues that she is just a batty old lady who works on a different moral standard and was good in giving an escape clause. Both have good points, but has anyone considered that she might be a Stealth Mentor doling out Karma? With the Bear curse, it seems that if you’re a good person who can admit your mistakes then you can overcome the spell, but if you’re a stubborn person who can’t find it in yourself to admit to and overcome your flaws then your stuck in a life of punishment and penance as a bear.
The early parts of the movie demonstrate Merida's skill with archery, riding, climbing, and other physical skills. We also see that she disdains the "girly" skills her mother insists on pounding into her - sewing, public speaking, etc. But it is the girly skills that actually break the curse - while her combat skills, though formidable, are almost useless against Mor'du.
At the same time, none of Elinor's finesse and royal bearing can help her when Mor'du is about to tear her daughter apart. Charging head first into a situation without a second thought is a rather Merida style of thinking, don't you agree?
At the beginning of the movie, Elinor reminds Merida that it is important for a princess to have knowledge of her kingdom, although Merida ignores her mother during that lesson. Later, though, Merida uses her knowledge of the battles her father and the clan leaders fought together to settle the feuding between them and remind them that their teamwork was what made the kingdom strong. So technically, Elinor was right that time, although Merida gets much of the credit for paying close attention to her father's war stories.
One way to look at Elinor's insistence of Merida getting married is that Elinor herself had a Perfectly Arranged Marriage to Fergus. Due to this outlook, she may believe that no matter who Merida would marry, she would eventually come to love them as Elinor had done with Fergus.
It becomes obvious once you listen to the DVD commentary, but Bear!Elinor's switch to her bear mentality is always triggered by the presence of food. The first time, it's a food that would trigger the bear's feared carnivore instincts: fish. The second is when she sees a bowl of apples in the tapestry room. Another layer of brilliance is added here if you apply the common symbology of apples representing discord amongst strong parties; the second switch happens right after Merida had finally calmed the clans down and strengthened their loyalty to Fergus again by communicating with her mother (in secret via charades). The apples then lead to Bear!Elinor going wild, attacking Fergus and Merida, and prompting Fergus and the other clans to hunt down Elinor despite Merida's pleadings. The movie's crowning moment of reconciliation immediately led to its most tense moment of discord.
Overlapping with Fridge Horror a bit; the will-o'-the-wisps' appearances have one other purpose besides leading Merida to the Witch's cottage: saving her from Mor'du.
In the Distant Prologue, the wisps actually lead Merida out of the woods right back to the camp before Mor'du shows up. It's quite likely this actually saved Merida's life then and stopped her being killed by Mor'du in the woods.
When Merida, the triplets and Angus are riding off to stop Fergus killing Bear!Elinor, Mor'du when he spies them is actually in the exact same direction Angus was originally headed towards before the wisps diverted them towards the stone circle. The wisps weren't just making sure Merida arrived in time to prevent Fergus unwittingly killing Elinor, they were also saving the group from running right into Mor'du!
A Will-o'-the-Wisp appears over the dedication to Steve Jobs in the end credits. In some parts of Europe, wisps are considered to be spirits of the dead. Knowing that adds a bit of gravity to the visual. It also gives weight to the idea that the wisps seen throughout the film are relatives of Mor'du's.
The connection between Mor'du and the Wisps makes a lot of sense when you think about the original folklore that inspired the Will o' the Wisp. The story goes that a man was denied entrance to heaven upon his death because of the wicked life he lived, and his spirit was forced to wander the earth for all eternity. Mor'du is very similar. He was cursed for his hubris and effectively turned immortal, unable to move on to the next life. And of course, by the end of the movie, he becomes a Wisp as well!
Merida, at the tender age of five or so, watched her father get his leg bitten off. She probably had to help Elinor stem the bleeding!
Keeping in mind, we see Elinor and Merida riding away as the fight begins so Fergus’ wounds were likely attended to by his men. Still traumatic considering she would see him come home gravely injured.
Little Merida wanders into the forest, and Mor'du is watching her. Even if he did nothing, what would've happened if Merida hadn't found her way back to the camp?
The stone carving of Mor'du's family was broken by a blow from an axe, so why is it covered in claw marks? Well...
It could be the still-human-on-the-inside Mor'du trying, in a futile rage, to mend the broken stone and regain his human form. A dark, brutal undertone emerges: Mor'du is a creature of fury, regret, and pain, and follows his fate to Merida, eats Fergus's leg, and inadvertently sets the events of the movie in motion, all so that he can die and finally know peace.
It could also be a mere act of rage over what had been done to him, lashing out at whoever/whatever was on-hand.
Considering the fact that the claw marks all dragged inwards toward the crack, but the face of the forth son was completely destroyed, it could be a combination of both.
After Mor'du is killed, his human spirit appears, nods to Merida, then turns into a wisp. So the wisps she's been following this whole time are human souls!
"Too many unsatisfied customers!"
Also notice that every time the wisps appear to Merida, their appearance is tied to either the Witch or Mor'du. It's quite possible that the wisps are the souls of Mor'du's victims killed upon his Redemption Rejection.
Exactly how long was Mor'du under that curse? Judging by the state of the castle, and the story of the four princes being "an ancient legend" which no one but Elinor believes in any more, it must have been a very long time indeed. (The witch referring to the prince as being "the last time" someone came to her for a spell might seem as casual and off-handed as if it happened just yesterday, but between her age and being a Cloud Cuckoolander...) Which means that along with transformation, the spell must have granted a form of immortality. Which means Mor'du would stay like that forever until someone managed to kill him. Even taking into account his greed and desire for power, he didn't deserve that...
If we were to assume that immortality was a part of the transformation, then let yourself remember that Elinor and the triplets could have had the same fate.
Although the film and the cast only really focus on the threat that Elinor will turn into a bear in body and mind permanently if she isn't changed back by the Celestial Deadline, this threat also applies to the triplets. Bear in mind: it's indicated that they ate the spell cake on the same night as Elinor after she and Merida escaped the castle, so when the second sunrise was about to turn Elinor into a bear forever, it was also the triplets' Celestial Deadline and not the next sunrise over.
Now if you're a kid person, imagine the horror of three children who are seemingly only just above toddler age being condemned to The Mind Is a Plaything of the Body fate that Mor'du suffered and Elinor almost suffered due to their bear transformations. Then imagine that if the spell hadn't been reversed in the nick of time on the Celestial Deadline, Fergus and Merida wouldn't have just lost Elinor to that fate, they would've lost the triplets too!
It's also worth noting that when Merida and the triplets arrive to stop Fergus, they do so in full view of Elinor. Imagine how she must have felt, suddenly discovering that her three youngest children were now in the same position as her, and then realizing that if she lost her humanity for good, so would they.
If Mor'du's soul was still with him until his bear-form died, just how aware was he of what he had done? Killed his entire kingdom, family, everything destroyed... ouch.
Take into consideration the witch in the woods seems to have quite a fascination with bears and has given the bear curse to two people on-screen. Well, who's to say she hasn't given the bear curse to others? Now consider that Fergus has quite the passion for killing bears in his kingdom... It gets even worse if you know your history. Historically speaking, Eurasian brown bears and even polar bears have inhabited Scotland, but both were extinct by medieval times, and there definitely weren't any American black bears like Mor'du or Elinor running about. All of Fergus' trophies are, notably, black bears... every single bear he's killed was a human under the bear curse.
Unlikely, as the characters all saw Mor'du's human spirit appear right after his death, yet Fergus from what we see doesn't believe in magic and certainly doesn't believe in humans turning into bears during the film's main time frame, as he would if any of the black bears he killed had a human soul come out of them in front of his eyes.
Brown bears come in colours other than just plain brown, including black, Mor'du and Elinor are definitely not American (or Asian) black bears in their morphological appearance. They are just darker morphs of the Brown Bear.
The witch went off to the Wicker Man festival? Gah.
Merida asks the witch for what is essentially a spell to brainwash her mother into agreeing with her.
Fergus will have to live with the fact that he almost killed his wife.
"Mending the bond" could have meant Merida apologizing to her mother out loud and saying that she loves her, likely the latter, as Elinor turns into a human about a few second afterwards... Right before the sunlight hits her. If that were the case, had Merida been a couple seconds slower to say "I love you" to Elinor, she could have stayed a bear forever...
◊ The redheads are all grouped in one cluster; Elinor stands apart, connected only by holding hands with Merida. Given that Elinor almost certainly stitched the tapestry herself, it may show that, for all her fierce love towards her family, she feels somewhat...isolated.
