system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
[Disney's The Little Mermaid] Why didn't Ariel just write to communicate while she was mute?

So, Ariel obviously understands English (or Danish, or whatever) and understands what's communicated to her. She signs her name on the contract with Ursula, so she's familiar with writing utensils and with writing itself. Why doesn't she just carry a pen, inkwell, and notebook with her? Or chalk and a blackboard? Why didn't she communicate through text?
gpt
One theory I've always held is that even though the audience is shown Ariel speaking in the same language as humans, it's more logical to assume merfolk have their own language. So while she may have learned English from constantly spying on humans, she would not be able to write in it, having never studied their symbols or literature.