Aladdin: Street Rat or Diamond in the Rough?

Do You Trust Me?

For today’s Musings Monday, I’m looking at one of my favorite Disney movies Aladdin as well as the stellar live action remake.

I know on the internet, it’s very popular to complain about live action remakes, but I actually really enjoy this trend. I might have to write a whole post on this defense, but for now, let’s talk about Aladdin. When watching a film like this, it’s easy to complain and nitpick about every detail.

Indeed, there were several things about the remake that I could complain about. It’s not the perfect movie, but the movie overall is actually fantastic. Yes, it’s very similar to the original, and yes, Robin Williams is irreplaceable; I get all that.

But Will Smith did an expectation-exceeding job as Genie, the music and visuals were great, Iago was creepy, Jasmine’s hand maiden was a welcome scene-stealing surprise—I’m just saying the movie did A LOT right.

Don’t get me started on the delightfully awkward “yam jam” scene.

There’s a lot here I could talk about, but for this two-part post, I want to zoom in on two characters and their relationship. We can learn a lot looking at both of these characters—We can learn how to excel and be the hero in your own story, no matter your circumstances.

PART ONE: Aladdin — The Diamond in the Rough

I had to talk about the title character. He’s fun, he’s clever, he’s instantly likable…and he’s a criminal.

This up-to-no-good street rat has to steal to survive. While he’s essentially homeless, squatting in the only place in the city he can climb up to out of the local authorities’ prying eyes, at least he has a good view of the Sultan’s palace.

Aladdin is a story of two classes, the haves and the have-nots, the royals and the peasants, with little in between.

Aladdin has nothing. No parents, no friends that we know of. He only has his pet monkey Abu, and let’s be real: Abu is oftentimes more of a burden than anything else.

Aladdin is a young man without opportunity, without options, without hope. As all of Agrabah’s sword wielding guards close in on Aladdin to bring him to justice, he asks,

“All this, for a loaf of bread?”

He asks it rightly, in the middle of an elaborate chase scene which disrupts the entire city. Why do they care that he steals a loaf of bread? Why is the system rigged against him?

Aladdin doesn’t have time to ask such questions. He only has time to survive. Indeed, the prevailing caste system almost breaks him.

Why Should We Care?

While thinking about Aladdin, something about his character was bothering me, but I couldn’t put my finger on what it was. After a while, it finally dawned on me: everything we know about his character is reactionary. Aladdin is likable and mischievous, sure. But what are his desires? What does he dream about? What does he actually want?

Until Jasmine’s in the picture, literally everything Aladdin does is inextricably woven with his lack. His poverty and street rat social status essentially define him.

Aladdin didn’t feel like a fully fleshed out character to me, and its Agrabah’s fault. The systemic injustice of Agrabah’s castes made it so Aladdin lived in a constant fight-or-flight. The street rat doesn’t have time for dreams and hobbies when he’s constantly in survival mode.

Yet we still like Aladdin. We see his personhood, and we pity him.

The Application? There are a lot of real life Aladdins.

Even though I don’t consider myself rich, the truth is I’m richer than most of the world. Even though I have my own struggles and burdens, there are literally billions of people who have it worse than me, millions in America alone living in poverty.

When you see poverty statistics, you have a choice. You can see it as a number and not associate it with real people. You can make assumptions about how they got into poverty and whether or not they might’ve deserved it. Or, you can empathize with them, see them on a human level, and help in whatever way you can.

Now, I’m not trying to guilt-trip anyone about not helping the poor. I understand it’s a complicated issue, and the need is far greater than any one person can fix. But, a little empathy goes a long way.

It’s easy to relate to a character like Aladdin; let’s let Aladdin inspire us to build friendships with those less fortunate, those Jesus called, “the least of these.”

Have compassion, and help where you can. You don’t have to be afraid of the poor or homeless, as if their affliction will somehow rub off on you.

If you’re suspicious about every poor person, your problem is greater than theirs.

Indeed, there’s another lesson you can learn from Aladdin…

Aladdin, a Man of Mercy and Compassion

After Aladdin escapes with the bread, he sees two starving children. It would’ve been easy for him to eat it all himself. As a thief, eating all the bread should’ve been part of his moral framework. I stole it, I worked for it, I’m going to eat it, end of story.

But besides being poor, Aladdin has another important character quality. He shares the loaf with two children. He makes their day, and with that sustenance, those kids have a chance to live, to fight, to make the most of their situation.

Why? Because of mercy. Indeed, Aladdin’s character-defining virtue is mercy. He not only helps the kids, but he helps the economically-ignorant Princess Jasmine.

Even while caught in his seemingly hopeless cycle of survival and making end’s meet, Aladdin makes time for mercy. If Aladdin can be compassionate while going about his daily life, I say we have no excuse.

Help those less fortunate! Don’t be afraid, but be kind. It’s these kinds of deeds that keep the darkness at bay.

You can both be a diamond in the rough and help other diamonds in the rough.

As Aladdin asked, “Do you trust me?” Let’s learn to trust each other, just as Aladdin proved to Jasmine that he’s worthy of her trust.

This is the end of Part One, but in the next post we’re looking at the other half of this iconic Disney couple.