The biggest enigma in Disney’s Encanto is why Mirabel doesn’t have a gift; one hypothesis contends that it is all a result of Abuela’s errors and Casita’s defence of the Madrigals. The newest hit from Walt Disney Animation Studios is Encanto, which was written and directed by Charise Castro Smith and Jared Bush. Through the Madrigal family, their extraordinary talents, and their legacy in their town, Encanto immerses audiences in Colombian culture.
The Madrigals are shown in Encanto as being led by their matriarch Alma Madrigal, also known as Abuela (Mara Cecilia Botero). Alma was abandoned with her triplets Julieta, Pepa, and Bruno years ago while fleeing a violent battle. By some miracle, her candle acquired magical properties, keeping them safe from their pursuers and constructing a sentient home, Casita, for them. Since then, the candle has burned continuously, protecting Casita, the family, and the entire town while also bestowing unique gifts upon each Madrigal descendent… with the exception of Mirabel (Stephanie Beatriz). Mirabel, feeling left out of the family because she was the only one without a gift, learned numerous family secrets, notably those involving her enigmatic uncle Bruno (John Leguizamo).
By the end of Encanto, Mirabel surprised the audience by not receiving a present like those of her relatives. However, it may be argued that Mirabel’s gift was unique because she is poised to take the family’s leadership. The reason Mirabel wasn’t given a present during her ceremony is still a mystery, giving rise to a variety of hypotheses. One of them is that Casita withheld Mirabel’s gift as a form of “punishment” for Abuela’s past wrongdoings and to force her to consider what she had done to her family.
The hypothesis, which was previously posted on Reddit to explain why Mirabel didn’t receive a present, contends that Abuela pressured Julieta and Agustin to have a third child, despite the fact that they were content with Isabela and Luisa already. Abuela was preoccupied with passing down her family’s heritage and using it to defend the town, so she insisted they have another child in order to increase the family’s power. Abuela, then, doesn’t see her family as individuals and family members but more as powerful gifts that add to the Madrigal’s legacy and role in town. However, because Casita also loved the family, it didn’t leave Mirabel completely powerless and it gave her its own magic, allowing her to communicate with Casita. Abuela had pushed for Mirabel to exist in order to add more powers to the family. As a result, Casita didn’t give a gift to Mirabel because that would have rewarded Abuela for her manipulation.
Similar to Bruno’s prophecies, Mirabel’s door disappearing during her ceremony was a communication from Casita to Abuela, but it was misunderstood. The author also explains that the door Mirabel receives is the door to Casita because the space designated for her was not just a room but the entire house, and that the candle was not the source of the Madrigals’ powers but rather the representation of Abuela’s connection to them when Casita is rebuilt and the family finally sees Mirabel for what she is instead of what she didn’t have. This theory fits well with the themes of generational trauma and finding your own voice that the film dealt with. Abuela’s influence and leadership role in the Madrigal family may have been stronger and deeper than Encanto showed, and the reason behind Mirabel’s lack of powers (or at least, powers similar to her family’s) might be more complex than it seems.
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