Fa Mulan????

Question

What are the likes and diffrences between Mulan the movie and the actual Chinease legend?

Answer 1

The legend of Mulan has already been expanded and altered in various stories, novels, plays, operas, and films. The original poem doesn't get into detail on how Mulan went undetected for so long, or how and why she was such a great soldier. Disney did change one part of the story--Mulan gets discovered while she's in the army and is banished. Of course there's more to the story after that...

Go to this link, they will tell more:

http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/5082/mulanfaq.html#q12

Answer 2

The only likeness between history and the animated movie is the part where she enlisted herself in place of her father during the draft due to his old age, poor physical health and that there were no other eligible male in the family.
Her female identity was only revealed years after the war. She enlisted against imperial rules with no other alternative so as to prevent his father's certain death under the draft. What she did was considered grand treachery and the penalty extends beyond herself to her immediate family for being accomplices.
All the other parts about being the hero, saving the emporor, saving the day etc was made up. Along with the dragon escort and lucky cricket, of course. Hey, it's Disney, remember ?

Answer 3

"The Chinese legend of Hua Mulan centers on a young woman who disguises herself as a man to take the place of her elderly father in the army. The story can be traced back to The Ballad of Mulan. The earliest accounts of the legend state that she lived during the Northern Wei dynasty (386–534). However another version reports that Mulan was requested as a concubine by Emperor Yang of Sui China (reigned 604–617). The film may take place even later, as it prominently features landmarks such as the Forbidden City which was not constructed until the 15th Century. On the other hand, at the time of Northern Wei, the Xiongnu (aka Huns) had been already absorbed into Chinese and other races and disappeared from the stage of history. However, according to the style of dress (traditional Han clothing), the film most definitely takes place sometime in the 15th century or before. The fireworks featured in the movie indicate that the movie is set during the Sui dynasty."

"Disney's Mulan casts the title character in much the same way as the original legend, a rough-around-the-edges daughter of a respected veteran, somewhat troubled by being the "sophisticated lady" her society expects after failing the match maker's training, dishonoring Mulan's family."

"The traditional name for the leaders of the Central Asian Huns was Shanyu. The war between the Huns and China was real. It is called the Sino-Xiongnu War. Hua Mulan probably lived during the Northern Wei dynasty, which is when the last of the Central Asian Huns' states came to an end."

"Although Mulan is set in north China, where the dominant language is Mandarin, the Disney film uses the Cantonese pronunciation, "Fa", of her family name. In Mandarin her name is pronounced "Hua"."

"In the original Mulan legend, Mulan uses her father's name Li and not the name "Ping". "

"The Chinese Army is shown using canons against the attacking huns,although gunpower was discovered at the time, the Chinese did not yet know it's military purposes."

"Mulan : Plot, Trivia" : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mulan

"The story was expanded into a novel during the late Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) [and as a play during the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) EVT]. On June 5, 1998, Disney released an animated movie entitled Mulan loosely based on the story."

"The Ballad of Mulan doesn't give her family name. The Ming scholar Xu Wei offers yet another alternative when, in his play, he gives her the family name Hua (meaning "flower"). This latter name has become the most popular in recent years. Her complete name is then "花木蘭", transcribed as Huā Mùlán in Pinyin and Hua1 Mu4-lan2 in Wade-Giles. The Disney cartoon film popularised the version "Fa Mulan"."

"Hua Mulan" : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hua_Mulan

The original Chines poem with English translation : "Ode to Mulan" : http://www.yellowbridge.com/onlinelit/mulan.html

Answer 4

The 1st story is mostly true, the sequel is not. Nor is the happily ever after, they got married, and who knows? In the south of China, h usually becomes f when it's followed by a or en.
I've lived here long enough, to make that assumption.