Mulan is the 36th Classic Disney movie, it is inspired to the legend of Hua Mulan, the Chinese heroine who enlist as a soldier to save her father and the Chinese Empire from the Huns’ attack. The movie was released in 1998 and was successful; a sequel was released in 2004 titled Mulan II.
In 2020, a live-action version was released and it was more faithful to the legend, Mulan’s Ballad written by the Chinese philosopher and writer Lian Tao in the VI century. The film was directed by Niki Caro with Liu Yifei as the protagonist.
In all these movies, some elements of the Chinese Culture appear and they have a symbolic meaning. In this article, we are going to analyze what elements of the Chinese Culture appear in Mulan’s movies and what is their meaning.
THE SYMBOLIC MEANING OF THE ANIMALS
In both the animated movie and the live-action one, many animals appear. Animals in the Chinese culture and tradition have specific meaning. Moreover, they are the protagonists of many legends and stories. Therefore, we start with the analysis of the meaning of the animals that appear in Mulan’s movies.
THE HORSE
It is the seventh animal of the Chinese zodiac, it is the symbol of strength, speed and perseverance. In the Chinese mythology, there are many stories about famous horses like that of Emperor Han Wudi.
The story tells that the Emperor had been fighting for three years to get some Arabic horses that were considered celestial. It was said that who possessed them could ride them for eternity and that they were able to “sweat blood”.
Another legend is that about the eight horses of Emperor Wang Mu with whom he travelled to the Goddess XI Wangmu’s garden to get the fishing of immortality.
As we can see in both classic animated and the live-action of Mulan, the horses were the main vehicle to travel and transport things. Mulan herself has a personal horse that belong to her family with a black and white mantle named Khan. It appears in both the animated and the live-action movies.
THE CHICKEN
It is the tenth sign of the Chinese zodiac, it keeps the evil way and it is the symbol of bravery and reliability because it announces the beginning of the day every day. It is also the symbol of the male vigor, of fame and personal realization.
In the 1998 classic movie, chickens and hens appear at the beginning of the movie when Mulan has to feed them before to prepare herself for the meeting with the matchmaker. They also appear in the live-action movie, always at the beginning, when a young Mulan plays with them.
THE DOG
It is the eleventh sign of the Chinese zodiac; it is symbol of loyalty and altruism. If a dog come to you wagging, it means that a great fortune is about to come. Mulan, in the animated version, has a dog named Little Brother that helps her to feed the chickens.
THE PIG AND THE BULL
The pig is the twelfth sign of the Chinese zodiac, it is a symbol of prosperity and fortune because it is the condition who can afford it.
It appears in the animated movie during the song of the marching soldiers when Chien Po describes is ideal woman who has to be good at cooking. In the sequence sang by Po, a pig and a chicken appear.
The bull instead is the second sign of the Chinese zodiac and it represents qualities like loyalty, reliability, resistance, firmness and determination. It is also symbol of virility, fortitude and hard work.
THE CRICKET
In China, there is an old tradition about crickets breeding that are kept in the so-called hulu, that are little transport cages. In China, possessing a cricket is like in the West possessing a dog or a cat.
There are two types of crickets in China, the little black ones for fights (ququ) and the big green ones for company (guogo). The first ones are usually very aggressive and expensive; the second ones are instead meeker and more pacific with longer life.
For what concern the symbolic meaning, the cricket in China has three different meanings of birth, death and resurrection. Its singing is also a symbol of happiness and fortune because if a cricket sings it means something good is about to come, on the other hand if it stops singing it is a negative presage.
It is also believed in China that if someone can catch a cricket, he/she can make a wish.
In the animated movie, Mulan’s grandmother give her a cricket named Cri Kee as a lucky charm. To demonstrate its efficacy, she walks across the street with her eyes closed and the little terrified cricket closed in its little cage. Cri Kee will accompany Mulan through her journey together with Mushu.
In the live-action, Cri Kee is not an animal but one of Mulan’s comrade, an archer called Cricket.
THE DRAGON
It is the fifth animal of the Chinese zodiac, it represents the male element (yang 阳) and it is also the emblem of the emperors since the Han dynasty. Two dragons often appear on the covers of the swords and they represent bravery and military ardor. When instead a dragon is portrayed with five claws, it represents the power of the emperor and of the court to dominate the five elements.
The dragon is also the symbol of fertility and it is associated to the phoenix that represents the female element (yin 阴).
In the animated movie, Mushu, a little red and exuberant guide spirit with the aspect of a dragon, accompanies Mulan in her adventure. Moreover, the statue of a dragon appear in the garden of Mulan’s house, near to the ancestors’ temple. A dragon is also portrayed on the medal that the emperor gives Mulan for saving the Empire. In the live-action of 2020, the dragon does not appear, in its place there is the phoenix.
THE PHOENIX
The Phoenix represents the female element (yin 阴); it is indeed the symbol of the Empress and the beauty. It appears only in peaceful time. This creature is the second of the four supernatural creatures with the dragon (the first), the unicorn (the third) and the turtle (the forth). It is always preceded by a group of birds when she flies.
The phoenix is the animal that takes the place of the dragon as a guide spirit in 2020 the live-action. The missing presence of Mushu has been object of many critics but there is an explanation for it. In the live-action version, the phoenix represents the empress and it emphasizes the role of Mulan as a woman warrior, strong and brave.
THE PANDA
It is a very important symbol in China, with is colors black and white it is the perfect representation of the Yin and Yang, of the balance of the energies. It is said that giving to someone something with a panda helps to balance his/her life.
The panda is also a symbol of fragility, gentleness, danger of extinction, of disassemble of the family and the breaking of the bond with the ancestors. It is the main character of many legends like that titled The bowl of rice.
According to the legend, a day a panda with a straw hat and a bowl of rice arrived at the door of a couple without children asking for the husband. The wife answered that he was at the market so the Panda walk away to reach him but he could not find him. The animal went back and forth many times carrying the bowl of rice so the people of the village made him symbol of prosperity and fertility.
A panda appears in Mulan as a steed with whom Mushu and Cri Kee, masked as a soldier, deliver a message. It also appears in Mulan II as a peluche that Yao gives to Princess Mei. There aren’t pandas in the live-action.
Moreover, a panda is also the main character in the Dreamworks cinematographic series of Kung Fu Panda, which follows the adventure of the lazy panda Po that loves food and kung fu. Even in this series, there many elements of the Chinese culture and tradition.
THE FISH AND THE CARP
In China, the fish is a symbol of fortune, health and fertility due the multitude of eggs it can produce. A couple of fishes symbolizes the wedding and the marital happiness. The carp has a similar meaning.
The carp represents profits in business and sometimes it is portrayed with a dragon referring to the saying “the carp has jumped over the dragon yard” where the dragon yard represents “the door of the court”. This saying is used when a man can get a higher position at work.
Some fishes appear during Mulan’s training in the animated movie of 1998 when the heroine has to learn how to fish. The shape of fishes reminds that of carps that are an original species of Est Europe (Persia, Asia and China) that lives in lakes and rivers rich of vegetation.
THE SYMBOLIC MEANING OF FLOWERS AND PLANTS
Like the animals, in the Chinese culture, plants and flowers have also a specific meaning, they communicate messages and many festivities are dedicated to them. Now, let us analyze what flowers and plants appear in Mulan’s movies and what are their meaning.
THE CHERRY BLOSSOM
It is one of the most important symbol of the Asian culture, above all the Japanese one where the cherry blossom is a symbol of good luck, happiness and love.
The flowering of the cherry blossom marks the beginning of spring, the season of rebirth. In China, the cherry blossom is a symbol of beauty and female sexuality.
In the classic animated movie, cherry blossoms appear during the conversation between Mulan and her father, Fa Zhou, after the meeting with the Matchmaker. The meeting is a rite of passage from adolescence to adulthood like the flowering of the cherry blossom is a rite of passage from winter to spring.
The tree under which Mulan and her father discuss is a cherry blossom tree. Fa Zhou compares her daughter to a cherry blossom not bloomed yet, he tells her “The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all”. With that, he means that maybe Mulan will bloom late but when she will do that she will be beautiful and unique.
In the live-action, the cherry blooms appear as a reference in the scene where Mulan take a bath in the night while her other comrades are sleeping.
THE LOTUS FLOWER
The Lotus Flower is considered sacred in many Asian countries. In China, it represents purity, humility, honor, longevity and spirituality. That is interesting if we consider how it is born.
Indeed, the Lotus Flower blooms in the mug, its bud stays under the dirty and swampy water until it rises above the surface. It is a beautiful and delicate flower; its particular birth gives it a deep meaning. It symbolize purity because it can stay clean despite it originates in the mug thanks to the impermeability of its petals.
From the spiritual point of view, the Lotus Flower represents the man’s soul that, despite all the evil of the world, can stay pure, untouched by corruption, evilness and temptation. Like in Japan, there is a festivity dedicated to Cherry Blossoms (Sakura), there is also some festivity in China dedicated to the Lotus Flower.
In both the animated and the live-action movie of Mulan, the Lotus Flower appear on the comb that Mulan uses to brush her hair for the meeting with the Matchmaker.
Its particular birth emphasizes what Mulan’s father tells her in the scene previously descripted and it emphasizes Mulan’s journey. The brave heroine is born, grows up and becomes an adult passing through many challenges and difficulties like the Lotus Flower is born and rises through mug and dirt, both stay pure and humble.
THE BAMBOO
It is a plant able to survive in hard conditions; it is flexible, adaptable and has a long life. For these characteristics, the bamboo is a symbol of strength, resistance, flexibility and longevity. In China, is is believed that the secret for a long life is “follow the flow”.
This plant appear in Mulan II when Mulan is training some young girls, she tells them the “Lesson number 1” that consists in being like the bamboo, that is being flexible. The bamboo appears also in the first animated movie during the soldiers training.
In the live-action, Mulan trains at the camp with a sticks made probably of bamboo.
OTHER SYMBOLS: YIN AND YANG
Besides animals and plants with a symbolical meaning, in both the animated and the live-action movie, there is another symbol with a deep and philosophical meaning: Yin and Yang.
The Yin and Yang is one of the most ancient concept of Chinese philosophy, it represents two opposite but complementary qualities. It originates from the duality of day and night and it represents the duality of man. Graphically, two halves, one black and the other white compose it. The black half is the Yin and the white ones is the Yang. It symbolizes the balance between dark and light.
As we have said before, the Panda is its perfect representation as well as the Dragon and the Phoenix. The Dragon is Ying and the Phoenix is Yang, the first one observes the reality, the second one learns from it. Two opposite but complementary visions, indeed.
In Mulan II, the Ying and Yang is the main theme of the movie. Mulan and Shang are two halves, opposite but complementary and they have to find a balance between them. This concept of duality and balance is also implied in the live-action movie and in the first animated one.
In both these movies, Mulan has to find a balance between who she is, who she has to be and who she wants to be, between distinguishing or conforming herlself.
IN CONCLUSION
To conclude, we have analyzed some of the many symbols of the Chinese culture that appear in Mualn’s movies. In the Chinese culture, many things have a deep and symbolic meaning, even the colors.
Red, for instance, is an important color. It is the color of the national flag and it is central in every festivity, above all the Chinese New Year. It means prosperity and fortune in business. If it is linked to the female face, it means beauty, youth and womanhood. A woman with red cheeks is considered a beautiful woman.
For the meeting with the Matchmaker, Mulan wears a strong make up that includes white foundation cream, black eye liner and red bluch.
White in China is a symbol of purity and innocence while black is a symbol of elegance and honor. The songs that accompanies Mulan’s preparation is indeed named “Honor to us all”.
So, we could talk for hours about symbols and symbolic meanings because everything can have more than a meaning and an interpretation, as we can learn from subjects like anthropology or semiotic.
If you want to see all Mulan’s movies, we can find them on Disney Plus.