Ariel is a headstrong, flighty teenage mermaid prone to daydreaming. With the help of her friends Scuttle the seagull and Flounder the fish, she fantasizes about the human world and wishes she were a part of it. Ariel's father, King Triton, is the ruler of the seas and disapproves of her daydreaming. He forbids her to go to the surface of the ocean or even think about the "barbarian" humans above the water. Ariel continues to daydream about humans, and this is when she saves the human Prince Eric from drowning in a stormy shipwreck. She pulls him to safety, singing a song and swimming away just as he begins to regain consciousness. Ariel falls madly in love and Eric searches far and wide for the dream girl he only remembers by voice. King Triton's trusted advisor, Sebastion the crab, is on strict orders to follow Ariel closely. When he finds out what is going on, he lets the secret slip to the king, who is furious. Upset from the fight with her father andin love with Eric, Ariel trades her voice to the evil sea-witch Ursula to become human. She washes up on shore outside of Prince Eric's castle. The two become quite smitten with each other, but without her voice there is no way for Eric to know who Ariel is and no way for her to tell him. Afraid that Ariel will succeed in getting Eric to fall in love with her, Ursula takes matters into her own hands. She uses her magical powers to make herself human and uses Ariel's stolen voice to capture Eric's heart.
