The story is at least 600 years old with lots of versions, some do a very good job of explaining why the “malificent” character wasn’t invited and no one is really a bad guy- it’s a sort of misunderstanding and some misdirected frustration etc. the Disney version is full of issues of course, and we can discuss just this version since that’s what is topical. To be fair though- we never really were told much about this character in the Disney version. If we ignore the later maleficent film and the narrative it creates for the character and look only at the original- They tell us she is evil and they tell us a little about how she doesn’t know about love or helping people etc- but this is given by another character so it could be opinion. Without knowing the character better it is kinda hard to say wether there was justification in not inviting her.
Examining the fink through modern values I present this scenario- “ask Reddit” style:
“Me and my husband are public figures that just had a baby. We are planning to have a big party to celebrate but there is one of our neighbors who is very toxic. She can be very rude, vindictive, spiteful, and violent. No one is comfortable around her and considers her literally evil because of how toxic she is. She’s a bit of a bully and unpredictable. We are worried if we invite her her behavior will ruin the event or even be dangerous. Are we the assholes?”
Without knowing the character and seeing her on a deep or every day level we can’t really say. Most people can relate to knowing a “toxic person” whom modern wisdom would say to cut out- who ruins events and isn’t someone you want around. Is that maleficent? I can’t say. The situation could have been handled with more tact- but examined through a meta lens without information we can also say that a party guest being so frank might have had…
.. a few drinks, or the history of this persons transgressions might just be so severe or traumatizing that a guest would react that way. So if we look at it from the perspective that Mal is a very toxic person in the community- perhaps it isn’t so clear cut.
Of course we do have to look at the political angle- but it isn’t so uncommon in politics even to this day that certain powerful people get excluded from things to make a statement. A snub and an attack are not proportional really. In the Disney version maleficent’s curse is to kill the child, it is the “good fairy” that lessens it to a sleeping curse. It’s hard to debate proper etiquette between a king and a fairy- the closest recorded analogs would be between kings and religious leaders or mystics- and with exception of religious leaders who were rulers in their own right like popes, evidence would suggest that the king would not be deferential in court to such figures.
But-
Many sides to any story. Many unknowns.
“Me and my husband are public figures that just had a baby. We are planning to have a big party to celebrate but there is one of our neighbors who is very toxic. She can be very rude, vindictive, spiteful, and violent. No one is comfortable around her and considers her literally evil because of how toxic she is. She’s a bit of a bully and unpredictable. We are worried if we invite her her behavior will ruin the event or even be dangerous. Are we the assholes?”
Without knowing the character and seeing her on a deep or every day level we can’t really say. Most people can relate to knowing a “toxic person” whom modern wisdom would say to cut out- who ruins events and isn’t someone you want around. Is that maleficent? I can’t say. The situation could have been handled with more tact- but examined through a meta lens without information we can also say that a party guest being so frank might have had…
Of course we do have to look at the political angle- but it isn’t so uncommon in politics even to this day that certain powerful people get excluded from things to make a statement. A snub and an attack are not proportional really. In the Disney version maleficent’s curse is to kill the child, it is the “good fairy” that lessens it to a sleeping curse. It’s hard to debate proper etiquette between a king and a fairy- the closest recorded analogs would be between kings and religious leaders or mystics- and with exception of religious leaders who were rulers in their own right like popes, evidence would suggest that the king would not be deferential in court to such figures.
But-
Many sides to any story. Many unknowns.