Settling The Aladdin Discourse

Settling the Aladdin discourse

Can all the misinformed Americans and Brits pipe down for a second? I’m rolling out the historical carpet from the perspective of someone who’s actually grown up in the Middle East and why none of this matters.

I heard Aladdin or as I knew it, as ‘The Magic Lamp of Alaa el-Din’. It is one of the most popular tales from the region, next to Sindbad, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves and but guess what?

It’s a trainwreck of a tale, so is Disney’s adaptation. Why? Because it makes no sense, culturally or historically. Why? It’s not authentic. It’s not actually a real part of the stories Schehrezade/Shahrazad told to King Shahrayar in One Thousand and One Nights.

It was added in by a European translator, Antoine Galland, then later accepted as part of canon.

BRIEF HISTORY LESSON:

One Thousand and One Nights is a collection of folktales presented in a story-within-a-story context. King Shahrayar of Persia’s wife cheated on him, he then had her and her lover put to death, but her infidelity drove him mad with paranoia. He decided to marry every virgin in the kingdom them put her to death come morning so she wouldn’t have the chance to cheat on him.

Alas, he ran out of virgins, all except for his grand-vizier’s daughter Shahrazad. She agreed to marry the king, assuring her father she had a plan. After their wedding night, Shahrazad began the distraction plot to end all plots. She asked the king if he wanted to hear a story and spent the whole night entertaining him with it, making sure to end with the start of another tale. Once he’s ask “What happened?” she’d tell him, “Wait for tomorrow,” and restart the same process.

She kept him on the episodic hook for a thousand and one nights, spinning so many tales and retelling many until she finally ran out. But, by the time she did, they had developed a good relationship, had children, and he no longer cared about his kill-come-sunrise rule, and they lived happily ever after.

So, why is Aladdin a trainwreck? For starters, it’s set in CHINA. And China is for some reason ruled by a sultan. Sultans are the titles of Ottoman kings, as in Turks. Aladdin is recruited by a sorcerer/Jafar from the Maghreb, which is typically used to refer to Morocco (literally called El Maghreb in Arabic) or all of NA sans Egypt. The Princess is called Badroulbadour not Jasmine, and while she has an Old Arabic name ‘badr al badour / full moon of full moons’, she is described as being from the FAR EAST. She was never an Arab, neither was Aladdin!

Can you tell this was made up by a confused foreigner?

So, we have a Turkish king in China, Aladdin is Chinese, Jafar is Moroccan and Jasmine is Japanese. It’s the same in the Disney movie. The style of the characters and background in Disney’s Aladdin is unmistakably an Persian-Indian fusion with some Ottoman sprinkled in. The concept of a genie/djinni is literally the only Arab part of the tale.

1. Jasmine’s headpiece/tiara, appearance, and pet tiger point to Indian. But she wears harem pants/şalvar, which are Turkish (Indian version shalwar).

Actually, she’s a toned-down version of a belly-dancer. Belly dancing is practiced from Egypt to Lebanon to Persia and India, it was spread by the Ottomans.

2. The Sultan is styled like a merge between a Sikh maharajah (Indian) and a sultan (Turkish).

3. The magic carpet is also an Indian concept (Prince Husain, son of the Sultan of the Indies in OTaON retrieves a magic carpet from India.)

4. The sultan’s palace is based on the Taj Mahal

5. The Genie/djinni is the lone Arabic concept.

Here’s what lots of Westerners don’t get. All of these cultures have bled on one another. From the Maghreb to Egypt, to the Levant, to Turkey, to the Arabian Peninsula, to Iraq, to Persia and India we all share so many traits because of trade, history or, you guessed it, invasion. Cultural exchange is pretty common, I grew up with a lot of Persian stories, Indian products and Bollywood movies in theatres, leftover Turkish culture and food from Ottomans, Arab culture from prior invasions, interaction and language, and so, so many Lebanese pop stars.

It’s actually pretty smart to amass a cast from different parts of the Near, Middle and South East, so to include everyone who likely grew up with Shahrazad and her many, many tales.

If there’s anyone you should have a problem with, it’s Will Smith as the genie. It’s pretty transparent how you all ignored how this is the second time a black man plays the genie (first on Once Upon A Time) but sling hate at Naomi Scott for being Indian.

Oh, and Disney fucked up by blaring Arabian Nights at the start and end of the movie, because One Thousand and One Nights is NOT called Arabian Nights. It’s called Alf Leyla w Leyla - literally ‘A Thousand Nights and One’.

It’s a collection of Persian, Indian, Egyptian, Arabic, Mesopotamian and Jewish folklore that was compiled in Arabic.

Aladdin is being played by the Egyptian Mena Massoud, Jasmine is by the Indian Naomi Scott and the rest of the cultures involved should be cast.

Oh, and to all people saying Naomi is ‘too light’ and ‘half-whitewashing’. Take your racial purity and stick it up your nose. Middle Eastern, Indian and North African girls come in all shades, even if both sets of grandparents are native to the region.

PS. Avan Jogia is seriously out there saying him playing Aladdin would have ‘been wrong’ because ‘he should be Middle Eastern’ but he had no problem playing King Tut, who is EGYPTIAN? As in Middle Eastern??

Quit your virtue-signaling, Rami Malek is still the only Egyptian to ever play one in Western media.

Anyway, POINT MADE.

MBAV fic recommends masterpost

Most of these are from years ago and some are unfinished and left on a cliffhanger (just like the show hahaha)

Benny/Ethan: Just guys being guys, bros being bros, playing spin the bottle and being super uh, good bros: https://archiveofourown.org/works/337760

Cute cuddling, super fluff: http://archiveofourown.org/works/11326176

Benny and Ethan keep making out everywhere, no wonder they keep getting caught: http://archiveofourown.org/works/11313480

Benny and Ethan are finally cool enough to be at a highschool party! This is what they always wanted, right?: http://archiveofourown.org/works/8920516

A wicked snowstorm hits Whitechapel and knocks out the power, these two boys gotta find a way to stay warm: http://archiveofourown.org/works/4080553

Can you believe that Mbav never had a beach episode? If they did it’s probably be like this: http://archiveofourown.org/works/1267774

Sleeping beauty Benny: http://archiveofourown.org/works/734320

Another Sleeping beauty Benny: http://archiveofourown.org/works/1992834

More cute, cuddling boys (but this time with Sarah/Erica on the side): http://archiveofourown.org/works/712488

After knowing Ethan for years, Benny can confidently say, he can easily read Ethan based on his body language: http://archiveofourown.org/works/554162

It was just a normal day until Ethan gets a strange vision of him…. and Benny?: http://archiveofourown.org/works/4601229

The story of all three kisses Benny has ever scored (Ethan didn’t know of any of these, and one of them is especially… shocking to him): http://archiveofourown.org/works/481221

Ethan thinks that maybe, almost becoming a vampire has some… side effects: http://archiveofourown.org/works/1267612

!!!ANGST!!!ANGST!!!ANGST!!! Benny wakes up in a world where he doesn’t know Ethan: http://archiveofourown.org/works/337786

Benny’s having trouble with a particular art project and goes to Ethan for help: http://archiveofourown.org/works/337784

Trans!Ethan (no romantic ships, only platonic): http://archiveofourown.org/works/2472710/chapters/5484503

Title pretty much says it all: http://archiveofourown.org/works/337780

Ethan sees something he shouldn’t: http://archiveofourown.org/works/337778

(College/Future AU) Benny thinks about the last day that he spent with Ethan before Ethan went off to college, about how he never told Ethan how he felt, about the fork that they placed in the road: http://archiveofourown.org/works/4584396/chapters/10442298

!!!ANGST!!!ANGST!!!ANGST!!! The first time Benny is taken to his parents’ gave is when he was five: http://archiveofourown.org/works/337777

Ethan gets a vision that could ruin everything: https://m.fanfiction.net/s/7867550/1/That-Vision

The gang plays seven minutes in heaven: https://m.fanfiction.net/s/10967221/1/

Ethan plans to finally confess to Benny, but someone or something gets in the way: https://m.fanfiction.net/s/12347054/1/Fourteen-Reasons-Why-I-Fell-In-Love-With-Benny-Weir

Benny’s birthday!: https://m.fanfiction.net/s/11680563/1/Benny-s-Birthday-Surprise

Ethan’s birthday!: https://m.fanfiction.net/s/11386288/1/The-Best-Birthday-Ever

What happens after that classic video chat scene: https://m.fanfiction.net/s/7982354/1/Would-It-Be-That-Bad

Both boys decide they’re going to confess to eachother: https://m.fanfiction.net/s/7807605/1/Confession

There’s literally no Sarah/Erica fics that I can find and I take that as a personal threat. Anyway, these are all the ones I’ve read and that I recommend, there’s like 47 pages of mbav fanfiction on fanfiction.net so there’s probably some hidden gems in there. (I’m so sorry that this is so long)

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agirlfromsampa

4 years ago

Sam Wilson Always Adding A Healthy Dose Of Reality To The Mcu

sam wilson always adding a healthy dose of reality to the mcu

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agirlfromsampa

4 years ago

#her power

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agirlfromsampa

4 weeks ago

in a way. catcher in the rye is just the depressed man’s ferris bueller’s day off

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agirlfromsampa

7 years ago

Being pregnant with Tom's child would include...

Finding out the very next day he left for his latest movie press tour

Panicking because you knew he’d be gone for at least five or six months

“Shit, what am I going to do?”

Telling your best friend first

“Shit Y/N, what are you going to do?”

“Why thank you for your help!”

Deciding not to tell him until he came home

Him worrying one day he called you because you were extra sensitive and missed him a lot

Your mom going to your scans and check-ups with you

“Congratulations, you’re having twins”

“WHAT THE F-”

Calling Tom like every two hours after knowing this

“Baby, when are you coming back?”

“I dunno, probably in like two months, why?”

“Oh… nothing, I just miss you so much!”

Crying everytime after hanging up

Except one time you didn’t

And Tom heard you sobbing your lungs out

And he got so worried he took the first flight home

He arrived late at night

Only to find you laying on your side on the couch, with a duvet, watching a movie and eating chocolate covered popcorn

“Y/N?”

Dropping the bowl

Looking at him with wide eyes

“Tom?”

“Yeah, it’s me baby, are you alright?”

You immediately standing up to run and hug him

Your five-month belly already showing under your pajamas

Running to his arms and him holding you, shocked, believing he was imagining things

But when you pulled away

And he saw you

He couldn’t believe his eyes

“Y/N what the fuck”

“…surprise?”

Him asking a LOT of questions

“How long have you known?”

“How far along are you?”

“Is it a boy or a girl?”

“TWINS?”

“Oh my I need to sit”

Showing him all the scan pictures you got

“Tom… are you crying?”

“No, I just, I got something in my eye it’s all”

Tom apologising for being absent for so long

And calling EVERYONE

“HAZ, I’M HAVING TWINS! Well, Y/N is, but, ya know what I mean…”

“Mom, guess what? We’re having twins!”

“Jacob, oh my goodness, I’m going to be a dad! TWINS!”

Him having to go back to work but promising he’d spend every minute with you as soon as the tour is over

But you offered him a different deal

And leaving with him for the rest of the tour

The whole cast of the movie taking care of you by Tom’s request

Especially Harrison

“Y/N why are you standing up you need to sit down here take my chair”

“I CAN’T SIT DOWN, HARRISON”

Going back home a month and half later

By then you were six and a half months pregnant

So, according to the doctor that left you like a month to prepare everything you needed

Tom refusing to let you carry anything heavy

Preparing and ensambling their nursery almost all by himself

You having to rest completely from the beginning of your seventh month

And just as the doctor predicted,

you went into early labor…

…a month and half early

“Tom, the babies are coming.”

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agirlfromsampa

5 years ago

Conversation Prompt #66

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agirlfromsampa

3 years ago

face of the alt right

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agirlfromsampa

3 years ago

868 notes View Post

agirlfromsampa

4 years ago

Hello everyone, I’m Yazan 23 years old from Syria.

And this is my short story:

I left Syria since the war started in 2011, I had a great life there but I lost my house there and my father who passed away with a heart failure accident.

We moved to Lebanon and we lived at Beirut, I studied in an institute electronics then I stopped studying because I started working to help my family, I worked as security guard, then I worked at an NGO that help Syrians in refugees.

After the big explosion that happened in the 4th of August 2020 I lost my job in Beirut where I was working in a clothing store near to down town.

I created this blog for business goal to work online and I am aiming to reach my dreams by helping my family to live then focus on my own dreams.

You might think that I am a spam or someone fake or liar, but please continue reading and believe in me as I believe in Allah!

What I can offer to you is online courses in Arabic language with a real cheap price and you can trust me and trust my work, my mother is an Arabic teacher but she’s not working anymore but I am really good in Arabic literature and I write a lot of poems and quotes so I can share with you some to trust my work. So if you are really interested in helping me by offering me a job in my house and sending me the payment with the trusted office “Western Union” please direct me and I won’t ask you for a lot of money, I can teach you Arabic with 20$-50$ only. You have no idea how is this important to me especially that in Lebanon we are passing through a real hard situation in politics and in financial, we asked for back to Syria but I still have to attend the required years in the Army.

About the cancer, I had cancer in my blood since I was 8 years old, the cancer is leukemia type and I am fighting it with high cost medicine that is not totally covered by the ministry in Lebanon

I am really sorry because I shared this personal story but I really need to work in freelancing to save my family and continue to achieve my dreams because these days are so hard in the earth and especially Lebanon.

Thank you all and I hope that you could help me😊

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agirlfromsampa

4 years ago

lily colins made emily in paris so she could hang out in france wear cool clothes and make out with a ridiculous number of hot french men and she’s not wrong about any of it

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