What is power?
This question is a slightly subtler theme running throughout Aladdin; the messages I always noticed were the more obvious ones of being true to yourself and of freedom. But there has to be more to it than that, because both those themes really only apply to the good guys. Jafar has no storyline about being true to himself or being free, so if that was all the movie was about, our villain couldn't help us explore the theme by mirroring our hero. This new insight about the movie's themes came to me when I was watching a video from a YouTube channel called Big Joel, although his video was more about the remake, pointing out an inconsistency in that version and how it poorly affected their version of the character they dared to name “Jasmine”. I will always appreciate any criticism of that particular movie, but moving right along... Some of the points he made, about what makes a prince and why Aladdin's wish to be a prince was granted the way it was, gave me some excellent insights into the actual real movie and its themes. So, shoutout to Big Joel for giving me the idea to make this post. I now think the missing, underlying link to every other theme in Aladdin may be power, or more specifically, how power can be defined.
Right from the very beginnings of the Aladdin story, the original fairy tale made the point that even a commoner could rise to greatness with the right conditions in place. It argued even back then that birth and rank didn't matter, in a time when royalty believed they were genuinely better or more important than other people, that they were specially appointed by God and that this made them basically gods themselves, that this made their position an unarguable privilege rather than a great responsibility. Although if you've read my review of the original story you know I think it could have been handled better, I will always appreciate what the story was trying to say. Aladdin argued that it was not the random chance of high birth that made a person worthy of status, wealth, or marrying a royal wife. Right from its origins, Aladdin challenged perceptions of what rank and power actually was.
At the beginning of the Disney film, Aladdin is even worse off than he was in the original tale. We see him out on the streets, dressed in rags, living in a makeshift hole-in-the-wall that doesn't even have four proper walls, and stealing bits of food just so he can make it to the next day. He's in just about the lowest position you could think of. Pretty much no one would argue, looking at him, that Aladdin has very little power – but what about the characters who do have power?
Jasmine is a princess. What makes her a princess? She was born to a Sultan. She gets to live in a palace, wanting for absolutely nothing as far as physical needs go, and she can command anyone in Agrabah assuming her commands do not conflict with either Jafar's or her father's. And yet, if you asked Jasmine, would she tell you she feels powerful? Her whole life is controlled by the ancient laws her father decrees she must still follow. According to her, she always has other people around dictating what she does and who she does it with, she has no one apart from her tiger she can really connect with, she isn't allowed to do something as basic as leaving her own home. She feels restricted and trapped and controlled. Does Jasmine really have power?
What makes the Sultan a Sultan? Presumably he was the son of the last Sultan, who was the son of the last Sultan, and so on down the line. Being a Sultan, he has absolute authority over the kingdom of Agrabah – or does he? Right from the start, the Sultan is characterized as bouncing around after other people trying to get them to listen or to stay, often with his turban falling into his eyes in a rather comical manner. When he argues with Jasmine about doing what he wants her to, the only reasons he can come up with are “The law says...” or “You're a princess!”. At one point, he tries to address Jasmine more as a father to a daughter, telling her he wants her to get married so that she will be looked after when he is gone, but he is too concerned with what Jasmine “should” be doing to carry on the conversation on a father-daughter level, making it impossible for him to resolve the issue and probably driving a wedge between him and his daughter. Later on we see that the Sultan is being controlled by Jafar, who can hypnotize him into doing whatever Jafar wants him to even if the Sultan expressly said he didn't want to do it. Does the Sultan really have power?
Genie, of course, is the most obvious example of all. “Phenomenal cosmic powers, itty-bitty living space”. He can perform almost limitless magic and make anyone's dreams come true – but he has no authority over when he gets to use this magic, or who for, or what spells he wants to grant for which people, or even when he gets to come out of his own home to move around and see the world for a bit. Does Genie really have power?
We even see this dynamic in characters like Prince Achmed, who, in every way except for surface-level rank, is not a better person than Aladdin. Achmed is cruel and nasty and easily angered by very small things, whereas we have just established Aladdin as generous and kind and able to keep an admirably positive attitude in a very negative situation. Meanwhile neither young man is able to just let it go and allow their fight to stop, both choosing instead to carry on and avenge their wounded pride. But Achmed is obviously higher up on the social scale. He in particular should be able to just move on and ignore Aladdin's opinion of him. A prince, with riches and respect and authority, shouldn't have a thought to spare for the opinion of someone who, by his own estimation, is probably going to die in the gutter! Does Prince Achmed really have power?
The only character whose power is clear-cut and comes with a definite answer is Jafar's. What makes Jafar a Royal Vizier? Presumably, the Sultan appointed him to that position. What is a Royal Vizier? Someone who gives the Sultan advice on the runnings of Agrabah. What would stop Jafar being a Royal Vizier? If either he or the Sultan decided (as happens later in the movie) that Jafar was no longer going to give advice to the Sultan on the runnings of Agrabah.
So why is Jafar unhappy with the power he has, if he's the only character who really gets to use it? Because Jafar doesn't define power the way the other characters do. While Aladdin, Jasmine, and Genie only want the power to live their lives as they choose, or to have the respect of others, Jafar sees power as control. To Jafar, so long as the people of Agrabah do not have to listen to him, and most especially so long as he has to listen to the Sultan and Jasmine, he will never have enough power.
So when we get to the part of the story where Aladdin wishes to become a Prince, there is an answer to what I understand has confused a lot of people. How can Genie have really granted Aladdin's wish if he didn't make him a real Prince? Wouldn't there have to be a real kingdom Aladdin had some authority in, a real royal family he had suddenly become part of? And if there wasn't, Genie must not really have granted Aladdin's wish at all, right?
I don't think that's exactly how it works. Genie, I believe, as an eternal being of magic, existing beyond time and space (he has to exist beyond time and space; just look at all his anachronistic references!), is able to see royalty for what it is, in a way the humans around him can't. What is royalty, other than a rank arbitrarily granted by circumstance? What else gives the Kings and Sultans of the world power, when any family could conceivably have been the royal one? The royal families who don't want to mingle their blood with certain people are really all just humans like any others. Genie knew that any human could be royal if the people around him accept him as royal. Where Aladdin looks at his potential relationship with Jasmine and sees a huge chasm of a rank difference, Genie sees only a boy in love with a girl. (Which also explains something I've often wondered about, why Genie was at first so willing to make all of Agrabah believe Aladdin was a prince and then suddenly advises him to tell the truth and stop pretending.) And after all, no one ever gave Aladdin a detailed background check before deciding he was a street rat. Prince Achmed, who called Aladdin a street rat in front of a whole crowd of people – he didn't know anything about Aladdin. His only reason for deciding Aladdin was a street rat is because Aladdin looked like one.
So Genie brings Aladdin back to Agrabah, and through his song and his interactions with the people, tells everyone that Aladdin is a Prince. He gives Aladdin all the trappings people have come to associate with Princes. And the people buy it and immediately start treating him with the same reverence and respect they would give to a Prince, the exact same person they used to dismiss as a worthless street rat, the only difference being he's now wearing nicer clothes. Aladdin is a Prince now, in every way that counts.
But his new status as a Prince comes with a hidden cost. Aladdin may be a Prince by the only real standards, but people still have their ideas about what really constitutes royalty. People expect a Prince to have some connection to a royal family, some power in some kingdom, and Aladdin knows he has neither. The minute it's revealed where Aladdin comes from, everyone will stop believing in him as a real prince, and the minute the people stop seeing him as a real prince, he no longer is a real prince. Aladdin cannot see himself as a Prince; he can only keep his newfound status so long as he's living a lie. Does Aladdin really have power?
It's at this point in the story that another form of power starts to open up for our characters. Jasmine goes first, with an important turning point in her character arc as Aladdin takes her on the magic carpet ride. Jasmine had always felt trapped and restricted and longed to see the outside world, but she was scared of stepping into a completely unknown place so far beyond her comfort zone. We know she's scared because of one simple reason: if she wanted to leave so badly, why else would she have never left before now? Her first venture outside the palace walls, when she finally does get up the nerve to do it, goes horribly wrong, at least from her perspective. She gets into trouble almost right away, and has to be rescued because she doesn't know the first thing about how life works out here. She believes that her venturing outside led to Aladdin's death, so she feels guilty about that and can't even feel like some good came of her leaving the palace because she met someone wonderful. That first attempt may very well have crushed any thought Jasmine had of ever trying again! But then Prince Ali comes along, offering her a carpet ride, assuring her that it will, in fact, be safe (suddenly Jasmine's question “Is it safe?” has a lot more meaning behind it!), letting her see that he will be there beside her and he will protect her. Jasmine agrees, realizing this is the boy she met before, who already showed himself as someone strong and reliable whom she can feel safe around. And as they take their carpet ride, something unlocks inside of Jasmine. At last, she is out in the open with nothing to be scared of and no awful consequences, and she can see how the world isn't some scary place where things go horribly wrong, but somewhere full of magic and wonder and things to be discovered. She's fully free and happy for the first time in her life, as she sings the very telling line: “I've come so far, I can't go back to where I used to be....”
From that moment on, there is no more hesitation inside of Jasmine. More than ever, she boldly and unapologetically does whatever she feels is right, standing up for both her own and everyone else's needs. From that moment on, no one has any authority over Jasmine except Jasmine herself.
Then Aladdin exposes Jafar to the Sultan. The Sultan is immediately furious at this betrayal, and loses no time in ordering Jafar to be arrested (and, presumably, beheaded). It's an empowering moment for him, no longer deferring to any outside authority. I notice he doesn't stop to consult anyone else – or any old scroll of laws – before removing this threat to his throne.
So when Jafar wishes to become a Sultan, the Genie once again grants him arbitrary power – same as he did for Aladdin, it's all he can do because nothing definite or physical is associated with this title. Of course, Genie doesn't bother giving Jafar a parade or telling everyone to view him as a Sultan, which I think is because when Genie doesn't like his master he's not about to go the extra mile for him. The wish was still granted, though, because there's nothing in the definition of being a Sultan that says people like you or want to listen to you – and it wouldn't make any difference to Jafar, who never cared about being liked. Jafar's new position is immediately called into question: “We will never bow down to you!” Jasmine declares, every inch still the Princess with her own personal self-respect, and her father immediately decides he isn't going to bow either. At that moment, perhaps, you could question whether Jafar is really a Sultan. No one is accepting him as Sultan, no one is treating him as though he has any power... Jafar's wish to be Sultan could have ended up lasting for two minutes until the others revolted. But Jafar only wants control, and control can be obtained through fear. We see how he has Genie lift the palace up and place it on high ground, the people of Agrabah screaming and running for cover below. The people may not think that Jafar should be their Sultan with no real claim to the throne, they may not want to listen to him, but who's going to argue with someone who can lift an entire palace into the air?? And when Jasmine and her father do argue, Jafar promptly wishes for more power, and physically restrains Jasmine and the Sultan so that they have no choice but to bow to him. Neither of them wants to obey Jafar or acknowledges him as having any authority, but so long as Jafar can force the people around him to do what he wants, that's enough for him. To Jafar, that's what power means.
So it's no wonder Jafar's warped definition of power doesn't truly satisfy him. We soon see Jafar's definition of power coming into direct opposition to Jasmine's. Jasmine may be under Jafar's total physical control, but she still retains her power over herself. She resists Jafar's control every step of the way, and makes it clear from everything she says and does that the only way Jafar will ever get her to cooperate with him is through physical force. And Jafar, who of course is never going to be satisfied no matter how much power or control he gets, now wants something from Jasmine that he cannot force her to give him. He wants her to agree to marry him. He wants control over her emotions and desires. And this is something he can never have. Jafar can chain Jasmine and put her in a slave outfit and drag her around and force her to serve him. He could force her to live with him as his wife; he could torture her or starve her or do any number of horrible things to her until she finally gives in and agrees to do what he wants; he could – well – rape her. But he could never force her to want him. Not even Genie magic can make Jasmine want to give herself to Jafar. I believe the moment when Jafar tried to kill Jasmine rather than keep her alive as a possession was the moment when he realized he would never be able to control her. She was powerful, she had this inner strength that Jafar would never be able to remove no matter how much he tried, and he was not about to allow any power to exist that he had no control over.
So by the end of the movie, Jafar's insatiable lust for power turns out to be his downfall. “Phenomenal cosmic powers, itty-bitty living space”. Jafar reached out for yet more power, and ended up trapped, unable to leave when he wants, to use his powers as he wants, or to do anything for his own benefit. Jafar never realized the true definition of power, and reached for more and more control over others in hopes that this would fulfill his insatiable appetite, eventually robbing himself of even the true power he already had.
So what about all the other characters by the end of the movie? Do they have power now?
What makes Jasmine a Princess? She is loving, courageous, kind, and has total control over her own self. She has an inner strength that no one can shake, and no matter what the situation will always honour her own needs, stand up for herself and others, and radiate authority. Her fears of the unknown outside world have melted away, and she will forever after be able to pursue her dreams and explore it to her heart's content.
What makes the Sultan a Sultan? He uses his authority to make sure the story ends the way he, Jasmine, and Aladdin all want it to. He casts aside the shackles of the old laws and declares that Jasmine may marry “whoever she deems worthy” – doing what will make both him and his daughter happy, doing what he knows is the right thing in this situation, in spite of whatever the old scroll of laws would have had to say about it.
Genie acknowledges that he isn't sure what he is anymore (makes sense, if the definition of a Genie is someone who lives inside a lamp and grants wishes to people!), but that he doesn't care, because he is free.
What makes Aladdin a prince? Well, once again, a higher authority – in this case the Sultan – granted him that power. Aladdin is related to a royal family now, married to Jasmine and son-in-law to the Sultan, heir to the throne of Agrabah, and that will certainly give him great authority in the city. He now has royal clothes, lives in a palace, and if his charming, generous personality is any indicator, will lose no time in winning the respect of all his new subjects. There is very little doubt that most of the people of Agrabah will look at Aladdin and see a Prince.
Or maybe Aladdin is a Prince in another sense. He is generous and brave and clever, and always willing to help those in need. He came back to Agrabah from the Ends of the Earth to fight a battle he could conceivably have just walked away from, knowing he might die in the attempt and not knowing what sort of welcome back he could expect if he didn't, just because he knew it was the right thing to do. He did his best to make everything right again when he'd messed up, by apologizing and by keeping the promise he'd initially broken. He refused to internalize what people said about him back when they did look at him and see only a worthless street rat, refused to make that his whole identity, keeping his self-respect and looking out at the palace with an unfounded but constant certainty that someday he would be living there too. He goes out of his way to help others and he models admirable behaviours, just the way a true leader would.
Genie summed it up pretty well when he said: “You'll always be a prince to me.” Aladdin always had the spirit of a true Prince. All he needed was for the world around him to confirm it.
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