Disney's Aladdin is Not Realistic

We all love a good flick, and Disney is generally good at delivering such entertainment. But every once in a while I see a Disney movie that is so unrealistic – so farfetched – I’m not able to enjoy it. I know that all those kids’ movies are based on fairy tales and supposed to stretch our imagination, but my imagination can only be stretched so far.

We all remember how Aladdin succeeds in winning over Jasmine despite her initial hesitancy. He goes to enormous lengths to impress Jasmine and her father, the Sultan, but even after he tricks Jafar into trapping himself in a black lamp for thousands of years, Aladdin is unable to marry his lover. It was a matter of law: princesses can only marry princes, and Aladdin was just a “street rat.” So the Sultan takes it upon himself to change the law so Jasmine can marry anyone she chooses. Of course, she chooses Aladdin and they live happily ever after.

As if. The tradition of arranged marriage has deep aristocratic roots, and it is unlikely that the Sultan would simply cast away this royal tradition to placate his little princess. Royalty are groomed to be leaders, to study law and hold themselves in service to the public. For this reason, and to preserve the integrity of the throne, royal youth should marry only within their caste. Occasionally, an arranged marriage takes place over any objections, even if punishment or disinheritance is necessary. Marriage in Aladdin’s time was really more of a business exchange than a function of love. And while Jasmine was blinded by desire, her father was in a position to make a more pragmatic decision on her behalf. Because she was the Sultan’s only child, the future of the kingdom was in her hands. That the Sultan would cast aside tradition and honor and change a longstanding law to appease his daughter’s lust is ludicrous.

Disney, you really had me going with this one. I was really feeling the magic carpet rides, the little chattering monkey and the outlandish blue genie. But the ending? Unacceptably fantastic.