Is Gaston from Beauty and the Beast not actually bad? Where did he go wrong? Thoughts on life's crossroads

In my previous article,“The Original Story of ‘Beauty and the Beast’ and Its Differences: Why Disney’s Adaptation Was Perfect” I introduced the original story of the Disney movie 'Beauty and the Beast'.

Many of you may have been surprised to read that article, but that Gaston does not appear in the original story. He is a completely original character created by Disney's adaptation of the source material.

And in that previous article, I called Gaston a 'lovable macho man'.

Some of you might have read that part and thought, 'How can you call the villain Gaston lovable!' But conversely, some of you might have thought, 'I get it!'

That's right. In fact, Gaston is an interesting character who divides opinion. He is so popular that the phrase 'Gaston is not bad' even appears online. There is no doubt that he occupies a unique position among Disney villains.

As for me personally, since I call him a 'lovable macho man,' I basically think of him as a guy you can't hate. However, that is strictly 'conditional.' The Gaston in the second half of the story is completely out of line. I can't say I like him either. He goes too far into villainy.

Nevertheless, there are times when I think that perhaps Gaston could have avoided falling into darkness. In this article, I would like to try writing a letter to that Gaston.

A letter is the best way to express one's thoughts directly to someone.

So, let's get started right away.

“Dear Gaston,

Sincerely,
To the lovable macho man, Gaston. Gaston, who played such a vital role in my favorite Disney movie, 'Beauty and the Beast.' Thanks to you, Belle and the Beast were able to have a happy ending. You fulfilled your heavy responsibility as a villain and demonstrated a magnificent performance as a bad guy.

My dear Gaston. I like you. You're amazing, Gaston.
However, there is something I really want to ask you. Let me be clear about this.

Are you truly a bad person?

There are those in the world who speak ill of you, and those who adore you.

It is true that you schemed to get Belle and incited the people to attack the castle. Those evil deeds cannot be denied. Nevertheless, I just don't think you are a villain at heart.

Here, I would like to take the liberty of considering the path you followed.

First, it was love at first sight for you with Belle. That is understandable. She is the most beautiful woman in the village. Everyone in the village acknowledges that. It is precisely because she is a beauty that everyone acknowledges that you fell in love at first sight.

However, that was all there was to it. That was where things went wrong.

You are a hunter. You never let your prey escape. Is it the same with women?

In other words, you only saw Belle as prey. Didn't you fall in love with Belle as a beauty that everyone acknowledges, as a trophy? To you, didn't Belle's inner self not matter at all?

You say you fell for Belle's strength in not being swayed by you? No, no, weren't you simply chasing prey that wasn't easy to catch? Doesn't that mean you weren't actually interested in Belle's inner self?

It is true that you are popular. The women in the village are head over heels for you. The men respect you as their leader. I can understand why you would be strongly interested in a Belle who wouldn't easily be swayed by someone of such value.

However, you are still arrogant and conceited. Even though Belle didn't look your way at first, didn't you assume that “once she realizes my charm”you would surely be able to have her? And didn't you assume she would become the wife you wanted her to be?

What do you say, Gaston?

You were doing something quite ridiculous. Everyone in the village praises everything you do. But I am different.

You threw away Belle's precious book, didn't you? You misunderstood what it meant to be a man and put your feet on the table with your shoes on. Didn't you assume that Belle would like that kind of manliness? There is no need for me to point out your other boasted displays of manliness here. I won't even mention eating 60 eggs. I'll keep quiet about the power of your spit. I'll overlook the deer antlers as well.

Anyway, you are ridiculous. Your boasted manliness and popularity might work on the villagers, but they don't resonate with Belle at all. Yet, you continue to misunderstand. Yes. You are innocent. It is that innocence-filled ridiculousness that makes many people, including myself, adore you.

My lovable macho man, Gaston. It is this side of you that I admire.

You are not a bad guy. It’s just that the other party was wrong. Belle is a different kind of existence. She is a resident of a world where your common sense and the village's common sense do not apply. You should have understood that. That was your fatal flaw.

But there is no point in saying such things. Because you are who you are. I cannot help but laugh at and love the purity of you, an innocent, misguided man.

However, between us, you actually had a chance, Gaston.

You had a chance to be with Belle. There is no doubt about that.

You proposed to Belle and were flatly rejected. Then, you were deeply embarrassed and slumped over in the tavern. This was the moment. This moment! You were at a crossroads of fate at this very instant.

Huh? You don't know what I'm talking about?

That is exactly the kind of person you are, Gaston. You are an unfortunate man. You have no true friends who care about you.

That day, you were slumped over in that place. Even when LeFou offered you a beer, you refused, saying, “What good would that do?” This is it! You refused the beer! This moment is the biggest reason why I adore you!

Weren't you reflecting on “why did it end up like this” at that time? Weren't you asking yourself, “Why doesn't Belle recognize me?”

If it were just anger toward Belle for rejecting you or the shame of having your pride crushed, wouldn't you have just drunk beer to blow off steam?

Instead, you refused it, saying, “What good would that do?” When I heard those words, I thought, how admirable. If you had continued to reflect on your own like that, you might have changed. The world where you were the center might have been turned upside down.

Still don't get it? Gaston. Everything you have done so far has been praised by those around you. You never let your prey escape. Everything goes exactly as you wish.

In other words, you probably never thought for a moment that you were wrong. You were full of confidence, the very definition of arrogance. But you were on the verge of that confidence completely collapsing.

Losing your confidence, your pride, and your values will deal you an incredible blow. However, without going through that, a humble heart can never be born.

But you had the qualifications. You, who turned down a beer, had the qualifications to gain such a humble heart.

If you had admitted your faults here and changed your way of life, you might have ended up with Belle. I really wanted to convey this to you, Gaston. You had a chance, too.

But reality was not that sweet, was it?

Your friend, LeFou, lifted you up by saying, "You're amazing, Gaston," and made you forget the opportunity for self-reflection. The villagers also praised you as usual, making you believe that Gaston was not in the wrong. And, feeling good about yourself, you stopped questioning your own values and began to stop at nothing to achieve your goal of winning Belle. That's right. This was when your descent into darkness began.

It is difficult for me to say this to you, but between us, I believe that LeFou is the most villainous person of all. And the villagers are just as guilty.

Think back. From the very beginning of this story, the villagers were already treating Belle as a strange person. And they were mocking her inventor father as a weirdo, too.

Those villagers give off a conservative atmosphere that values old customs. Belle also said, "There goes the baker with his tray like always, the same old bread and rolls to sell." To such conservative villagers, the existence of Belle, who had an inventor father and, despite being a woman, read books and indulged in fantasies, could only appear strange.

And they praised you and lifted you up like a leader. There is no doubt that they approved of Gaston-like values. Listen, Gaston. You were an individual, yet you were not an individual. You may not have realized it, but you alone embodied the village itself.

Thinking about it that way, it is a pity that you were contained within that small village. You should have gone to Paris. If you had gone to Paris, there would have been countless people more handsome, capable, and rich in spirit than you. After all, you are a frog in a well. Oh, excuse me, that was a bit too much. But in a big city like Paris, there are plenty of women who read books and people with new ways of thinking. Your pride as a hunter, which is your identity, would have been somewhat diminished there. You should have had your nose broken in Paris. If, hypothetically, you were already the person you were after going to Paris, then that would be admirable in its own way. It could be said that your innocence and ridiculousness would stand out even more.

Well, it is no use saying such things, but a person like you is ultimately nothing more than what fits within that village. I think this is an important point in understanding you.

Because, isn't that right?

You tried to send her father to a mental institution in order to marry Belle. The mental institutions of that time were terrible environments equivalent to prisons. Forcing a frail old man into such a place is far too cruel.

However, the villagers showed no sign of raising their voices in condemnation against such a cruel act. In fact, didn't they join in and mock the father?

You certainly came up with this cruel plan. However, if you had thought about it a little, you would have immediately realized how sloppy this plan was! How would Belle feel if her father were subjected to such a thing? Even if Belle had agreed to marry you as a deal, what did you intend to do after that!? Once you are married, you are going to live together, you know?

You no longer see anything. Your initial innocent goal of marrying Belle somehow became a curse. The achievement of the goal became everything, and you were covered by the darkness of a human who justifies any means.

And at that moment, having learned of the existence of the Beast, you fanned the villagers' fear and ran toward violence, saying, "Kill him."

There are some who evaluate you as having "acted with courage to protect the villagers," but I do not think so. Did you really have the idea of protecting the villagers?

You, who have already fallen into darkness, no longer have any way to suppress your own aggression. Moreover, that is not just your own problem, but the problem of the village itself. I said it earlier, didn't I? You are not an individual, but the village itself.

Within the conservative village, the existence of an unknown "Beast" suddenly became known. Even though they didn't know what it was, they fanned the fear. They didn't even try to investigate what it was. Anything different must be evil. Anything that is not like us must be evil. "They are coming to kill us. Let's get them before they get us." It was the moment when the true nature of those who lived peacefully and happily in their ordinary daily lives was revealed in an instant.

And what I cannot forget are the words of a mother who said, 'Please! Don't let the Beast eat our children!' Using 'children' to incite fear is a classic tactic used throughout history and across the globe. It is nearly impossible to argue against someone in a public setting who says, 'We must defeat the enemy because children are being killed.'

If you were to say, 'Calm down. Be rational! Let's think about this a bit more! Shouldn't we wait until we understand the situation?' you would be treated as a traitor on the spot, and at worst, you could be killed. In fact, in that small village, once you are labeled a traitor, it would be difficult to go on living.

In fact, Gaston, you even locked up Belle, saying, 'Anyone who opposes us is our enemy.' Gaston, you wanted to marry Belle, didn't you? That is already a failure. While there are sympathetic defenses such as 'Weren't you just jealous that the Beast and Belle were getting close?', 'Your actions were just a bit excessive because you loved Belle so much,' or 'You were just helping her because she was brainwashed by the Beast due to Stockholm Syndrome,' Gaston, what is the truth of the matter?

And although it is a pity that I cannot show this to you, as you have already passed away, there is a documentary on Disney+ called Howard that tells the story behind Disney's music.

Howard Ashman was a lyricist who teamed up with composer Alan Menken to create masterpieces such as 'The Little Mermaid,' 'Aladdin,' and 'The Lion King.'

And regarding 'Beauty and the Beast,' in which you played such an active role, Ashman's influence was particularly immense. As I mentioned in my previous article, you, Gaston, did not exist in the original story at all. Neither did Lumiere or Cogsworth. Belle's father was a merchant, not an inventor. And the Beast was a gentle gentleman from the very beginning.

Ashman was deeply involved in the changes made from the original story to the Disney film. In other words, Ashman is one of your creators. Gaston, why don't you call him 'Dad'?

And what surprised me when watching this documentary was that Ashman was gay and passed away early from AIDS. It was this film, 'Beauty and the Beast,' that he produced in his final years, pouring his last remaining strength into it while hiding his illness.

Because Ashman was gay, he suffered from not being understood by society. I believe that the 'Mob Song' may have come from Ashman's own experiences. I don't know for sure because he never explicitly stated it, but the way people are incited to commit violence is something we must think about deeply. Gaston, you were entrusted with something significant by him, weren't you?

Humans can so easily incite and be incited to commit violence. And they do so in the name of justice. Perhaps this horror is what is expressed in that song.

Gaston. 'Beauty and the Beast' is my favorite movie. This film is by no means just an animated movie for children.

The musical approach of Ashman and Alan Menken, which revived the stagnant Disney films, was revolutionary. Furthermore, they wove in elements not found in the original story, creating a structure that resonates with modern audiences. And above all, the charm of the story itself. I cannot help but be filled with admiration for this story, which is far too beautiful.

Of course, I have not forgotten your performance, Gaston. To me, you are undoubtedly a 'lovable macho man.'

However, you fell into darkness. This was unavoidable in the development of the story. You fulfilled your role. Perhaps you are living quietly and humbly in the afterlife now. You might even still be a hunter, but I pray that you are spending your days in peace.

Well then, this has become a long letter.

I love you. I cannot help but smile at your innocent and comical demeanor.

Let us meet again someday at Tokyo Disneyland. Until then, farewell!

Sincerely,

March 13, 2025

Takahiro Ueda, Hakodate Kinshiki-ji Temple

Conclusion

Well, thank you for taking the time to read my long letter.

The reason I wanted to write this article is that Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney movie, and I have always had these thoughts about Gaston in my heart. Being able to write this letter here has been truly meaningful to me. It was such a fun time that I found myself grinning while writing it.

Letters are wonderful, aren't they? You can express your thoughts honestly. I might continue to write articles in this style in the future.

Oh, it was truly a fun piece to write. I hope you all enjoyed it as well.

That concludes "Is Gaston from Beauty and the Beast not actually a villain? Where did he go wrong? Reflections on the crossroads of life."

*Postscript: The Austrian National Library is too beautiful! Could it be the model for that library in Beauty and the Beast!?

Along with the Strahov Monastery in Prague, the Austrian National Library in Vienna is renowned as one of the "most beautiful libraries in the world."

It is said that this place served as the model for the library in Beauty and the Beast.

I introduce my experience visiting such a beautiful library in the article below. Please take a look at it as well.

Recommended Disney reference books are here

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