Aurora is a member of a trifecta known as the "Golden Era" of Disney heroines. Alongside her two predecessors Snow White and Cinderella, Aurora is one of the three original Disney princesses. Kit Steinkellner of HelloGiggles wrote that Aurora continued the "trend of passive heroines who wait around for magic to change their lives," a recurring theme shared by Disney princesses who were introduced both during and prior to the 1950s. Sonia Saraiya of Nerve dubbed Aurora "the apex" of "women who made no choices for themselves". Writing for MTV, Lauren Vino felt that the character "followed the basic princess tenants [sic] of loving animals and sleeping in makeup", while About.com's David Nusair wrote that Aurora followed the "pattern of kind yet helpless princesses", similar to Snow White and Cinderella. Mary Grace Garis of Bustle observed that the original trio "seeks out marriage as both their endgame and salvation", elaborating, "It's literally their own means of escape, and their only final objective." However, Aurora's dreams and fantasies are different in the sense that they are drawn from loneliness and isolation; the character essentially longs "for human connections beyond her three fairy surrogate mothers." The Walt Disney Family Museum volunteer Lucas O. Seastrom agreed that Aurora is more "self-confident" and "more of repose than the usual naïveté of Disney heroines." Observing that Aurora's actions are influenced by the decisions and opinions of those around her, while most of the film's action involves Prince Phillip, Steinkellner joked that the character is so passive that she remains asleep during the film's climax. Dubbing her "a girl of reaction," nerdology.org's Lisa Kaye Cunningham felt that Aurora's "little screen time makes her difficult to classify as a feminist, but her single active decision shows great promise in the evolution of feminist Disney princesses," despite the fact that her agency is constantly undermined by other characters. Cunningham concluded, "By making one active decision to try and follow her dreams, this princess made a big step forward as a stronger feminist than Snow White, though Aurora remains bogged down with passive reactivity." Author Melissa G. Wilson observed in her book Mashups for Teens: From Sleeping Beauty to Beyonce that Aurora's reaction upon learning that she is a princess differs from what one would expect from a young woman.
