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As a therapist who works primarily with developmental and relational trauma, also called complex childhood trauma, it can be difficult to explain to others the things I help clients with. Since Disney has been making wonderful stories of healing, joy, and connection lately, I wanted to do a blog series analyzing characters and plots of different Disney movies. The story of Encanto is a wonderful example of the impacts of developmental and relational trauma on an entire family system. We get to see various examples of roles each person fulfills in the system which in turn supports the family system dysfunction. We also get to see how the system heals when just one person steps outside the prescribed roles and challenges the dysfunction and the perpetrators of abuse accept responsibility for causing and/or supporting the dysfunction. The story of Encanto is told from the viewpoint of the character, Mirabel, so I will focus on her experiences within the Madrigal family system. Stay tuned for analyses of other Encanto characters in the future!

A little bit of framework for you: I am trained in an integrative therapy model called Healing Our Core Issues (HOCI) developed by Jan Bergstrom, LMHC, and Dr. Rick Butts, PhD, LPCC. The HOCI model integrates theories of somatic experiencing, polyvagal, mindfulness, core issues, and attachment. I will use this model, or lens, in the analysis of Encanto. Also, if you have not already read it, please read my previous blog post discussing the core issues and birthrights for added context.

Let us talk about family roles and how it corresponds to the six core issues and birthrights discussed in my previous blog (e.g. value, vulnerability, authenticity, needs and wants, spontaneity and joy, and secure attachment). In the HOCI model there are three roles: Hero Child/Mascot, Lost Child, and Scapegoat Child.

The Hero Child AKA the Mascot is a falsely empowered child. They have a false sense of self, and their identity is created to stabilize the family system. They might be seen as the peacekeeper or the “family therapist.” They may be seen at the “best friend” to one or both parents/caregivers. The Hero Child is often in a one-up position for self-esteem and loves themselves better than others. They hold walled in and invulnerable boundaries with others to protect themselves. The Hero Child knows themselves as good and perfect. They are often acknowledged and idealized by the family system. (Does “We never had to worry about you” sound familiar?) The Hero Child often has an anti-dependent way of meeting their own needs and wants, also called hyperindependence. This might translate into never asking others for anything; only way things will get done is if they do it themselves. The Hero Child struggles with moderating themselves and is out of control with control. They are often highly managerial and control others in direct ways. The Hero Child will often present with an avoidant attachment style and may be dismissive of offers for connection. They may present as passive-aggressive to others.

The Lost Child is a disempowered child who has no sense of self. The Lost Child is invisible to the family system no matter how hard they try. They love themselves less than others and view themselves as less than. They do not know how to set healthy, effective boundaries with others and can have no boundaries or be completely walled off. The Lost Child does not know who they are authentically, struggling with trying to be good and perfect while feeling unseen and desperate for attention. The Lost Child often has trouble taking care of their self which can show up as not knowing what their needs or wants are or overdependence on others to fulfill their needs and wants. The Lost Child can have difficulty moderating themselves, meaning they can feel out of control and covertly manipulate others and situations, leading to difficulty connecting the self with others. They may present with an anxious attachment style yet be pursuing of connection. The Lost Child may appear powerless in the family system, may be yielding or enabling within the system, and passive aggressive.

The Scapegoat Child role is a falsely empowered AND disempowered child. This might sound conflicting and confusing, but this role is a person who live in reaction to everything and everyone around them. The Scapegoat Child will love themselves less than others, have walled off/invulnerable boundaries with others, see themselves as “bad” and “the problem” in the family system, be too dependent for meeting their needs and wants, struggle with moderating themselves and seen as chaotic and reactive, and be fearful and unregulated in connection to others (i.e. anxious avoidant attachment style). The Scapegoat Child may appear unavailable or detached and aggressive in the family system.

Now which of these roles describes Mirabel?

Well, this is complicated to answer because any person can fit any three of these roles with different people and different circumstances. I believe Mirabel lives out of a wounded Lost Child part, and she is often seen by her family as a problematic Scapegoat Child. Mirabel briefly lives from this Scapegoat Child role towards the end as the pressure from Abuela gets too much for her to bear.

We see that Abuela and the family hold a narrative of Mirabel as the Scapegoat Child. The perspective of Abuela and the family is made obvious as they all look at Mirabel with horror as if she is contagious because she is “the problem” and they believe she is breaking the Encanto when they learn about Tio Bruno’s last vision. The point is driven home at the end when Mirabel confronts Abuela, the Casita crumbles, and Mirabel runs away blaming herself for the destruction. This is when Mirabel briefly lives from this Scapegoat Child role she was forced into.

We also witness the more subtle ways in which Abuela and the family hold a false narrative of Mirabel as the Scapegoat Child in how they interact with and talk about Mirabel. In the opening song, Mirabel is seen singing and dancing, explaining the gifts of La Familia Madrigal when Abuela yells at her “What are you doing?” You can see on her face an expression of judgement and shame towards Mirabel. When Mirabel tries to decorate with homemade candle holders in preparation for Antonio’s door ceremony, she is startled and accidentally knocks the candle in front of Abuela’s door which sets the holder on fire. Abuela speaks at Mirabel and tells her to move aside because she is in the way and problematic to the family’s image. When Mirabel shares her concerns about the cracks in the Casita during Antonio’s celebration, you see Tia Pepa’s face express skepticism in a mocking way to the crowd as if to communicate, “Mirabel is crazy.” In this same incident, we see Isabel scoff at Mirabel and Abuela shush and diminish Mirabel publicly. Afterwards, when Mirabel is talking with her mother, her mother tells Mirabel about Tio Bruno “losing his way in this family” and not wanting her daughter to repeat this. This disclosure covertly communicates that Mirabel is being problematic just like Bruno was, and it is an act of enabling the family’s dysfunction by asking Mirabel to toe the line.

While Mirabel is seen as the Scapegoat Child, she primarily operates or lives out of the Lost Child role. Mirabel values herself as less than and prioritizes the needs of the family and Abuela over her own needs. Mirabel hustles for scraps of love and affection (e.g., “Got to make my family proud!”) because she does not have a gift herself. The internalizing of the shame around not having a gift depletes her self-worth. Mirabel also has porous to no boundaries and struggles to protect herself from skewed and unrealistic views of herself. We witness Mirabel’s porous boundaries as she absorbs everyone’s perspectives of herself and continues to internalize their shame. Mirabel is desperate to be seen and celebrated in the family system and tries to be good and perfect to overcompensate for being seen at a problem. However, her attempts at being good and perfect for love and acceptance backfires as there are numerous times in which Abuela and others shame Mirabel. This lends to her appearing burdensome or needy to others. She begins to struggle to take care of her own needs and wants because no one really has taken care of Mirabel before, so she does not even know how to do it herself. Mirabel is out of control with controlling her emotions. We can see this in her song Waiting on A Miracle as she sings about repressing her disappointment in attempts to seek approval. Mirabel demonstrates this anxious pursuing of connection, which again can be perceived as too needy by others, particularly Abuela.

Adults around Mirabel tried to protect her from Abuela’s abuse, but it often lacked in effectiveness. It first started when Tio Bruno was commanded by Abuela to predict the future to understand why Mirabel was not given a gift. After having his vision, Bruno knew how his mother and the family would react and he knew Mirabel would be treated like a problematic outcast, so he hid the vision and left to protect Mirabel. Unfortunately, it was not enough because Abuela is overly concerned about appearances and still emotionally neglected and abused Mirabel. Mirabel’s mother and father tried and failed to protect and shield Mirabel from Abuela as well. It was not enough.

While adults appeared more concerned about Abuela’s mistreatment of Mirabel, they did not notice how Mirabel’s siblings or cousins, or even how they themselves inadvertently hurt Mirabel. Mirabel ends up with strained relationships with her sisters and cousins because no one stepped in to correct the behaviors. Mirabel’s mother and father also perpetuate and enable the dysfunctional family dynamics. Her father tells her to keep the vision a secret from the family as a well-intended way to protect her, however, secret keeping is a way of enabling dysfunction. Furthermore, secret keeping is unprotective because it teaches Mirabel to not trust herself and her father’s request is a covert way of communicating shame around being in the vision. Mirabel’s mother perpetuates the dysfunction as well when communicating to Mirabel to not lose her way in the family rather than acknowledging the dysfunctional dynamics that are negatively impacting Mirabel. Her mother makes her own worries Mirabel’s concerns.

In the end, we see Mirabel stand in her own truth and cast aside everyone’s perspectives and narratives of herself. She is the healing element in her family system. A dysfunctional family system will often shame and belittle the person challenging the dysfunction and despite this, Mirabel challenged it. The Casita, which symbolizes the family dysfunction, crumbles before us. After Abuela accepts accountability for her behaviors and apologizes to Mirabel, they rebuild the family/Casita with healthier dynamics. Sometimes processing our trauma stories can feel like the house is crashing in on us. The Casita collapsing around Mirabel is a wonderful visual of this experience because to understand intergenerational trauma, we must dismantle it. We must look at every crack before we can heal from it. When we examine our own stories, we begin to see the our truth and the impact the family system has on us. We see how the family system has supported narratives that are not true about us. Mirabel told Abuela her truth as she saw it and the family system (The Casita) was deconstructed in front of us. And the beautiful, happy ending we see in Encanto is the whole family taking accountability for the dysfunction and rebuilding a new home together. I wish more families had this kind of healing, however, even if you are the only person in your family working on yourself, you are creating a new Casita for yourself and your future. You are breaking generational curses and trauma. I see you and the challenging work you are doing, and there is an entire world out here loving you for it.