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On the surface, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power looks like just another Chosen One story (( “The Chosen One – TV Tropes.” 2019. TV Tropes. 2019. )). The protagonist, Adora, finds a magical artifact and learns that she was selected by ancient and mysterious forces to be the ultimate protector of the entire world. From there, she trains to fulfill this destiny. Yet as it progresses, the show deviates from this formula and offers a more nuanced view of fate and will. The characters of She-Ra learn to embrace the roles they have been given, yet they also refuse to be forced into the rigid paths set up for them.
From Soldier To Savior
When we first meet her, Adora is a skilled and determined soldier in the Horde. During her first time outside of the Horde’s ranks, she ventures into a mysterious forest and stumbles across an ancient sword. This object calls to her, and when Adora wields it, she transforms into a powerful warrior named She-Ra.
Shortly after her first transformation, Adora meets a princess named Glimmer, who shows her how the Horde burns innocent villages and destroys the environment. Although Adora was taught that princesses were evil and that the Horde was protecting people, she finally sees through those lies and joins the princesses, vowing to train as She-Ra and fight the Horde. Her devotion to her new friends pushes her to follow this destiny, but her hesitancy to question it puts her at risk later on.
Becoming She-Ra
Guided by a hologram called Light Hope, Adora learns more about the history of She-Ra. True to the Chosen One trope, She-Ra is a legendary warrior assigned to protect the planet of Etheria. This role is passed down through the generations, but Adora is the first one in a millennium. This is because of the actions of Mara, the former She-Ra, who Light Hope claims broke under pressure and imprisoned Etheria in a shadowy dimension.
Adora works to fulfill her role as protector of Etheria; but as time passes, she learns that Light Hope has an ulterior motive. The First Ones, an ancient civilization that created both She-Ra and Light Hope, are long-dead; yet they left behind a superweapon at the core of the planet. Light Hope’s purpose is to activate it, and She-Ra’s destiny is to channel the energy and fire the weapon. Not only are the First Ones and their enemies gone, but the weapon is so powerful that it would likely destroy Etheria and potentially the entire universe.
Adora is horrified to learn this truth, but by then it is nearly too late. Her actions show that destiny becomes more of a trap the longer one follows it. All she wants is to protect her friends and do what was right, but by following someone else’s vision for what that means, she is nearly forced to destroy everything she worked for.
The Dangers Of Destiny
Light Hope’s plan underscores an overlooked aspect of the “ancient prophecy” trope: times change (( “The Prophecy – TV Tropes.” 2019. TV Tropes. 2019. )). The Etheria of Adora’s time and the Etheria of the First Ones are vastly different, yet Light Hope fails to realize this and continues a war that no longer exists. Although the weapon may have served a purpose in another time, it becomes a liability later on. The show uses this to argue that an ancient destiny shouldn’t dictate modern life. Adora may have been the Chosen One, but the fate for which she was selected is outdated and dangerous.
Furthermore, Light Hope manipulates history to force Adora’s cooperation. She tells Adora that Mara was unstable and treacherous, and that Adora must fulfill She-Ra’s destiny by doing what Mara could not. However, Adora eventually discovers that Mara gave her life to prevent the weapon from being used because she knew it would destroy everything. Even though she is over a thousand years old, Light Hope lacks hindsight and looks at the present age from an obsolete viewpoint, which drives her to force Adora into this antiquated fate.
Roles Come With Responsibilities
In the context of She-Ra, destiny is determined not by the stars but by the people and institutions that surround us. Societies, through magical or mundane means, assign expectations that are similar to destinies. These destinies include fate, which is a specific path that a person is expected to take. But they also assign roles, which are part of a person’s social identity.
Fate can be rigid and stifling, making it an undesirable part of destiny. But roles are tangible expectations that others might rely on. The show does not encourage viewers to cast aside this responsibility and set out on their own paths without regard to the people that surround them. Instead, Adora’s actions reveal that destiny should be reconciled with, not replaced by, personal ambitions and wishes. As She-Ra, Adora’s role is the protector of Etheria. But Light Hope and the First Ones assign her a fate: activating the superweapon.
Rather than give in to this narrow purpose, Adora breaks her sword and loses her ability to transform into She-Ra. Even so, her refusal to follow her fate does not mean she can also ignore her role as a guardian. She continues to fight the Horde without her powers, because she knows she has a responsibility to her allies and the people who rely on her.
Near the end of the series, Adora realizes that she can still become She-Ra. The sword was a piece of technology meant to control her, but it wasn’t her entire identity. When she transforms on her own, she has a new outfit that better reflects her personality. It is more elegant and streamlined, which resembles the soldier’s attire she normally wears. It also includes her trademark ponytail. She even creates her own sword, which symbolizes her control over her identity. She no longer needs the First Ones’ technology to be who she is.
Just as she updates her look, she also updates the purpose of She-Ra as the protector of the modern world, not the First Ones’ Etheria. She accepts the role she was chosen for, but only on her terms. With this new understanding of what it means to be She-Ra, Adora is no longer reliant on the dying wishes of an ancient civilization to give her a purpose.
Not Everyone Is A Chosen One
Although Adora’s journey is steeped in fantasy tropes and ultimately still about a Chosen One, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power offers relatable examples of characters fighting against the real-life forces that control them. One such character is Bow, one of Adora’s closest friends. He has no powers, but he is a skilled archer, and his cheerful personality often holds the group together. But in one episode, Adora and Glimmer learn that he’s been hiding his life from his family.
They follow him to a library in the woods, where they meet his dads and learn that Bow is pretending to be at boarding school, studying to become a historian. Bow’s dads are loving and enthusiastic, but they have been pushing him into taking over the library without realizing how much he hates the prospect. He is reluctant to tell them, but when his friends and family are threatened by a monster, Bow reveals his archery skills and finally comes clean about who he really wants to be.
Bow’s story is a common example of real-life destiny: the paths that are laid out by family. Many people grow up with certain expectations, like following in their parents’ footsteps or taking over the family business. Sometimes, this works out well and creates a strong family bond. However, there is also a chance that the child will feel trapped by their fate and wish to pursue something else.
In these cases, speaking up is often painful, laden with guilt and fear of disappointment. Bow’s dads care deeply about him, yet he is reluctant to tell them his true feelings because their excitement over the fate they chose for him drowns out his concerns. Difficult as it is for him, Bow is finally firm with them about forging his own path. Instead of submitting to his parents’ wishes or fulfilling his own by running away, Bow reconciles his role as a family member with the path he has chosen for himself.
The Chains Of Nature
Fate is not always thrust upon individuals. Sometimes it encompasses entire groups and passes as nature. In the real world, this includes stereotypes that are falsely considered biological and undeniable. Fighting against this type of destiny is arguably the most difficult, because it is often seen as impossible or unnatural. Yet She-Ra argues that this is not the case. Light Hope’s struggle between her programming and what she knows is right emphasizes this concept.
Light Hope was created to activate the superweapon at the heart of the planet. Her entire purpose revolves around getting She-Ra to harness the energy in the core and let it loose. Yet before the weapon goes off, Adora reminds her of Mara. Light Hope has been trained to say that Mara was a traitor, yet at the same time she remembers Mara’s kindness towards her. In the end, she stops the weapon at a critical moment and allows Adora to break the sword, the only firing mechanism.
Because Light Hope is a computer program, she does not think she has free will. Despite her initial resignation from her status as a machine, her memories of Mara allow her to reject the purpose given to her by her creators and do what is right. Even though a hologram resisting their programming seems to contradict the laws of nature, Light Hope looks past this static idea and gains the strength to make her own decisions.
Everyone Has A Choice
The characters of She-Ra, whether they have grand destinies or family troubles, provide a new perspective on the idea of fate. Their given roles are not something that can just be tossed aside and forgotten, yet the ways in which they inhabit these roles do not have to fit a pre-ordained path laid out for them.
For Adora, her status as She-Ra gives her a duty to protect Etheria, but it doesn’t lock her into an outdated definition of the job. For Bow, being part of a family means he needs to be open with them about his life, but it doesn’t mean he has to let them control him. Finally, Light Hope sees falsehoods in her programming and takes her fate into her own hands. Most people may not have destinies as glamorous as these characters’, but everyone benefits from realizing the choices they have in their own lives.