On Monday, August 11th, 2014, social media blew up with the news of Robin Williams' passing away. It came as a shock to the world and he will be sorely missed as an actor, philanthropist and most importantly, a fantastic human being. This post is dedicated to him.
I actually wasn't planning on taking on the Aladdin meme next as part of my "Defend Disney" series, but in light of Robin Williams' death last week, I felt it was only fitting. After all, he provided the voice of the most beloved character in the entire story.
The original meme stated: "Show Her the World, Then Show Her the D." This is one of the memes that bothered me the most.
First of all, that's one of the great things about Disney films: the characters' relationship isn't supposed to be focused on sex. It's focused on love; even if it is young love a majority of the time. But Disney's able to make good movies without focusing on that (really, no one should have to make sex the focus in order to make a good movie, but, here we are in 2014). Making that the take away point from Aladdin is quite pathetic, to be honest.
And furthermore - who said Aladdin is the type of boy that pays attention to a girl just so he can get in her pants by the end of the night? I mean, come on. Seriously.
Is he physically attracted to her? We assume so, considering he acts twitter-patted the moment he sees her. But, guess what! You can be physically attracted to someone without trying to sleep with that person! I know - mind boggling, isn't it?!
For those out there that truly believe that's all there is to love, I feel for you and I hope one day you have a much different experience than what you have obviously experienced in life so far.
Now for my take away point:
I think this point is more of a reflection of some things that have been on my mind lately than something that I actually understood as a kid, but I still thinks it's important.
Take all three main characters for example: Aladdin feels trapped because everyone looks down on him for being a street urchin, Jasmine feels trapped because she isn't free to make her own choices, and Genie literally is a slave to anyone that happens to rub his lamp. They all have to go on quite the journey before they find themselves free of their metaphorical chains at the end of the movie.
What we don't understand as children, at least what I didn't understand, is that it's cool that Aladdin and Jasmine end up together; but it's REALLY cool that Jasmine gets to end up with someone of HER CHOICE.
Aladdin didn't just save the day and get a girl. He finds someone that's willing to look closer and see that there's more to him than just a poor boy. And, even more importantly, HE discovers what he's made of and who he can be and he knows by the end of the movie that he's more than a street rat.
And let's take a good look at Genie. The essence of Genie's very existence is to be used and abused by other people. (If that's not a cage, I don't know what is.) And yet, even he is able to find someone that sees him as more than that. In fact, Genie uses one of the wishes to save his "master's" life. Why? Because Aladdin becomes more than that. Genie ends up with a friend instead of a master at the end of the movie.
Aladdin should be one of the easiest movies to identify with because everyone struggles with feeling like they're stuck or trapped at least one time in their life. Everyone knows what it's like for society to not see and appreciate the real you. And everyone's felt used before.
But have hope. It works out in the end. Through the very trials we go through, we may find ourselves empowered with the ability to free ourselves from whatever cage we feel we're living in.
First of all, that's one of the great things about Disney films: the characters' relationship isn't supposed to be focused on sex. It's focused on love; even if it is young love a majority of the time. But Disney's able to make good movies without focusing on that (really, no one should have to make sex the focus in order to make a good movie, but, here we are in 2014). Making that the take away point from Aladdin is quite pathetic, to be honest.
And furthermore - who said Aladdin is the type of boy that pays attention to a girl just so he can get in her pants by the end of the night? I mean, come on. Seriously.
Is he physically attracted to her? We assume so, considering he acts twitter-patted the moment he sees her. But, guess what! You can be physically attracted to someone without trying to sleep with that person! I know - mind boggling, isn't it?!
Tell your friends, tell your family, cause it's kind of a big deal.
Now for my take away point:
I think this point is more of a reflection of some things that have been on my mind lately than something that I actually understood as a kid, but I still thinks it's important.
Aladdin showcases a journey of freeing yourself from the cages that society tends to put people in.
Take all three main characters for example: Aladdin feels trapped because everyone looks down on him for being a street urchin, Jasmine feels trapped because she isn't free to make her own choices, and Genie literally is a slave to anyone that happens to rub his lamp. They all have to go on quite the journey before they find themselves free of their metaphorical chains at the end of the movie.
What we don't understand as children, at least what I didn't understand, is that it's cool that Aladdin and Jasmine end up together; but it's REALLY cool that Jasmine gets to end up with someone of HER CHOICE.
Aladdin didn't just save the day and get a girl. He finds someone that's willing to look closer and see that there's more to him than just a poor boy. And, even more importantly, HE discovers what he's made of and who he can be and he knows by the end of the movie that he's more than a street rat.
And let's take a good look at Genie. The essence of Genie's very existence is to be used and abused by other people. (If that's not a cage, I don't know what is.) And yet, even he is able to find someone that sees him as more than that. In fact, Genie uses one of the wishes to save his "master's" life. Why? Because Aladdin becomes more than that. Genie ends up with a friend instead of a master at the end of the movie.
Aladdin should be one of the easiest movies to identify with because everyone struggles with feeling like they're stuck or trapped at least one time in their life. Everyone knows what it's like for society to not see and appreciate the real you. And everyone's felt used before.
But have hope. It works out in the end. Through the very trials we go through, we may find ourselves empowered with the ability to free ourselves from whatever cage we feel we're living in.
No comments:
Post a Comment