公主病：童话故事教坏小朋友？

Given that most little girls love to dress up as princesses, it is difficult to imagine what might be wrong with that.
大部分小女孩都喜欢打扮成公主，很难说这有什么不好。

But one author has written an entire book on how she believes the fairytale fantasies send a dangerous message.
但有作家写了本书，认为童话故事会教坏小朋友。

Jennifer L Hardstein is behind the recently-published Princess Recovery: A How-To Guide to Raising Strong, Empowered Girls Who Can Create Their Own Happily Ever Afters.
这本新书叫《摆脱公主病：女孩怎样自强自立、追寻自己的幸福》，作者是詹妮弗·哈德斯坦。

The child and adolescent psychologist believes that children as young as two are taking away unrealistic ideals from fairytale books and Disney cartoons that can affect their self esteem later on.
儿童和青少年专家认为，两岁大的儿童就可以离开童话书和迪斯尼卡通中的虚幻世界，否则可能会影响到他们日后自我认知的形成。

In her book, Dr Hardstein theorizes that traditional stories like Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella promote the idea that if a girl is pretty enough and has fancy clothes and shoes, she find love and popularity.
哈德斯坦在书中写道：像《睡美人》和《灰姑娘》这些经典童话，可能会让小孩相信，只要拥有美貌和漂亮衣物，她就能找到真爱、受人欢迎。

The author refers to this phenomenon as the 'Princess Syndrome'.
哈德斯坦将这种现象定义为“公主病”。

These kind of messages, she says, have a huge impact on a girl's self-confidence and make it hard for children to understand as they grow up, that intelligence, generosity and passion are more important values.
她说，这些潜在含义可能会挫伤小孩的自信心，使她即便成年之后也很难相信勤奋、大方和热情要远比美貌更重要。

During an appearance on CBS' Early Show, Dr Hardstein explained: 'Girls are getting this message everywhere that... what their worth is based on is how they look and the things that they have and it's very superficial.'
在哥伦比亚广播公司的一期节目中，哈德斯坦解释说：“周围到处都是这样的信息……相貌和打扮就是女孩子的一切。这很愚蠢。”