Gulliver would have LOVED Genovia

Genovia's Castle

Gulliver would have LOVED Genovia

As most people know, The Princess Diaries is one of the most influential book-to-movie franchises for members of the millenial-zoomer cusp. It's the classic coming-of-age Cinderella story of a normal American teenager named Mia Thermopolis (Anne Hathaway) and her journey to take over the Genovian crown from her grandmother, Queen Clarisse (Julie Andrews). Of course, as classics usually do, the movie does a fantastic job portraying the book's small European kingdom, and without previous geographic knowledge, it would be easy to forget that the country is in fact fictional. Similarly, Johnathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels shows its reader several fictional islands and countries, all of which have fantastical elements, through the first-person point of view of Gulliver. We are able to see what the protagonist thinks of politics, gender issues, and although maybe subconsciously, the effects that shifts of power and societal norms can have on a person. These concepts are also evident in the first of the two Princess Diaries movies as well. We see Princess Mia struggle and navigate herself through typical stereotyped teenage problems, while balancing her newly found responsibilities of being heir to the throne. In the second film, Princess Mia denounces the archaic, society-driven idea that in order to take her rightful place as ruler, she will have to get married. She of course changes this law, and carries on with her duties, mirroring Gulliver's decision to leave Lilliput after he is accused of treason (obviously not the same law, but you get my point). Plot similarities aside, there are a few additional reasons as to why Gulliver himself would have enjoyed Genovia. The first is the food. Genovia is famous for food, specifically for its national fruit: the pear. In the first movie, the Royal family hosts a feast for the extended members of the royal family and their guests, which means that Gulliver would have most certainly been invited to eat the royal Genovians out of house and home had he washed ashore in a shipwreck, even if that meant he'd get brain freeze from a mint sorbet like Mia does. Another reason that he'd love Genovia is because the people there care about their appearance. After reading Gulliver's opinions towards the beautiful appearance of the Lilliputians and the horrifically ugly appearance of the people of Brobdingnag, it goes without question that he'd be wonderfully impressed that the Genovians (and more specifically the Royal family of Genovia) take care of their appearance. We see this behavior from Queen Clarisse and Princess Mia in both movies when Paolo (their stylist) gives Mia a total makeover to make her look more sophisticated and  professional. The result of the makeover is probably what Gulliver would have wanted for the women of Brobdingnag. Lastly, Gulliver would have loved Genovia because it is very similar to England, except it isn't England which means he would be able to leave his wife and children behind in order to go on yet another adventure.