Who is Princess Merida?

I'll try not to ruin the movie for those that haven't seen it yet, but I do want to do a rundown of who Merida is for those attempting to cosplay her.

Merida is the headstrong protagonist of the feature film Brave released by Disney/Pixar in the summer of 2012.

Merida was born to royalty in the highlands of Scotland and was forced to adopt certain responsibilities and expectations as part of her upbringing.

From a young age, Merida tried to fight the role she was expected to fill.  She related much more to her brave, daring father than to her prim and proper mother, relishing the days when she was able to run free from the confines of the castle instead of learning to be a lady and future queen with her mother.

Merida is very much a free spirit and her character is reflected in every detail of her design from her wild, fiery red hair to her comfortable leather boots.  She's happiest on the back of her Clydesdale Angus, firing her bow into the distance and despises being forced to sit still.

Merida's one downfall is also the thing that makes her amazing; her free spirit.  She is so desperate to be free that it blinds her and leads to a life-changing event that threatens the safety and stability of not just her family, but the entire kingdom.

Merida is stubborn, hard-headed and determined.  She'll do whatever it takes to get what she wants and damn the consequences, but she's also able to begrudgingly learn a lesson, apologize for her mistakes and will do everything in her power to protect her family when the time comes.

Merida is the role model every little girl needs and the headstrong little brat in all of us.  She's the best and worst of every woman and someone we can all relate to.  To those out there cosplaying her, please keep this all in mind and help show the world that there's good and bad in all of us and we all have to learn from our mistakes and that's what makes us all human.

CosPlay with me

-Angi