Editing Mulan (Disney character) (section)

=== Conception and writing ===
''Mulan'' was originally conceived as an [[Animated cartoon|animated short]] in 1994, in which a miserable Chinese girl elopes to the West to be with a British prince.<ref name=":16">{{Cite book|title = Discovering the Magic Kingdom: An Unofficial Disneyland Vacation Guide|last = Shaffer|first = Joshua C.|publisher = AuthorHouse|isbn = 978-1-4520-6312-6|location = United States|chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=cV50CpKZ4YEC&q=china+doll+mulan&pg=PA52|date = September 22, 2010|access-date = March 11, 2014|chapter = Mulan}}</ref> While developing a series of [[Film treatment|treatments]] based on traditional stories and folk tales, [[children's book]] author [[Robert D. San Souci]] discovered the ''[[Ballad of Mulan]]'', an ancient Chinese poem about [[Hua Mulan]] – a Chinese woman who replaces her ailing father in the army by disguising herself as a man. Fascinated by Hua Mulan's story,<ref name=":2" /> San Souci suggested the poem to Disney;<ref name=":16" /> the studio hired San Souci himself to write the [[film treatment|film's treatment]] and story.<ref>{{Cite book|title = Frame by Frame Three|publisher = Indiana University Press|year = 2007|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=z5qmplifVDIC&q=robert+d.+san+souci+mulan+interview&pg=PA509|editor-last = McCluskey|editor-first = Audrey T|access-date = February 25, 2014|page = 509|location = United States|isbn = 978-0253348296}}</ref>

''Mulan'' explores the age-old theme of remaining true to oneself,<ref name=":0" /> with co-director [[Tony Bancroft]] summarizing the character's role in the film as "the story of a girl who can't help who she is but she exists in a different society that tells her who she is supposed to be."<ref name=":0" /> Because the ''Ballad of Mulan'' is such a beloved and well-known story, San Souci longed to maintain the character's integrity.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url = https://www.angelfire.com/az/linasia/famulan.html|title = Linasia's Exclusive Interview with Robert D. San Souci|website = Angelfire|access-date = February 23, 2013|archive-date = February 15, 2013|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130215061415/http://www.angelfire.com/az/linasia/famulan.html|url-status = live}}</ref> However, certain creative liberties were taken with the story in regards to Mulan's role, such as the character neglecting to ask her parents' permission prior to enlisting herself in the army.<ref name=":2" /> Mulan's surname was rendered as the [[Yue Chinese]] (aka Cantonese) "Fa", though this was to pay respect to the poem being originally written in that language.<ref name=":3" /> Finally, Mulan's true identity is discovered much earlier in the film, soon after the army's initial encounter with the enemy, whereas her comrades remain ignorant throughout their entire 12 years at war until after Mulan has returned home.<ref name=":17">{{Cite web|url = http://www.oocities.org/hollywood/5082/mulanfaq.html#q12|title = The Mulan FAQ – How was the story changed?|website = OoCities|access-date = March 11, 2014|last = Kuo|first = Angela|publisher = Angela Kuo|date = October 2009|archive-date = March 11, 2014|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140311092431/http://www.oocities.org/hollywood/5082/mulanfaq.html#q12|url-status = live}}</ref>

Unlike preceding traditional Disney animated feature films, the developing romantic relationship between Mulan and [[Li Shang (Mulan character)|Li Shang]] is treated as more of a [[subplot]] as opposed to a traditional central plot, as observed by film critic Andy Klein of [[Animation World Network]]. Klein commented, "Mulan isn't waiting for [[Someday My Prince Will Come|her prince to someday come]]; when he does arrive, having known her primarily as a man, and having learned to admire her for her deeper qualities, the romance is muted and subtle."<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url = http://www.awn.com/mag/issue3.4/3.4pages/3.4kleinmulannotmp.html|title = Disney's Mulan: A More Modern Heroine|date = July 1998|publisher = Animation World Network|access-date = February 23, 2014|last = Klein|first = Andy|archive-date = February 28, 2014|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140228135307/http://www.awn.com/mag/issue3.4/3.4pages/3.4kleinmulannotmp.html|url-status = live}}</ref> Throughout the movie they are constantly working towards helping each other change into better and truer versions of themselves in order to achieve their true potential.