Tang's 3Danimation Blog

This blog primarily revolves around Said’s ‘Orientalism’ and discusses how to identify colonialism’s representation in Aladdin. It summarizes two characteristics of Orientalism in the work: first, essentialization and stereotyping, and second, placing the colonized as ‘Other,’ on the margins and in opposition. It also explores some Aladdin-related content, such as colonialism in popular culture and romantic colonialism.

Orientalism:

• Said and Orientalism:

• Feature 1: Essentialization & Stereotyping

• The Western world essentializes these regions, portraying them as stagnant and underdeveloped, creating a false view of Eastern culture for study, portrayal, and replication to serve the European monarchy of that time. Said criticizes contemporary scholars who, from an outsider’s perspective, still interpret Arab and Islamic cultures with stereotypes. This fabricated view of Eastern culture forms Western stereotypes and biases, portraying the East as always backward, primitive, and mysteriously strange.

• Feature 2: Othering, Marginalization, Opposition

• Orientalism others the East, marginalizes it, and positions it as the opposition to the West, shaping the Western fantasy of the East. This is used to highlight the superiority of Western culture, achieving European subjectivity and cultural identity. Stereotypes of these Eastern worlds directly or indirectly rationalize Western imperialism and colonialism, reinforcing the idea of Western culture’s superiority over Eastern culture’s inferiority. Representations of the them include hostility, focusing on the threatening and abominable nature of the Other, such as tyrants, fundamentalism, terrorism, etc., portraying Eastern males as corrupt and demonized objects (Stereotyping). Exoticism emphasizes the attractive aspects of the Other (Stereotyping), portraying Eastern women as submissive and adorned with exotic charm.

Exploration of Orientalism Works:

Orientalist Paintings:

Orientalist paintings depict mythic and fantastical scenes unrelated to the real world.

Orientalism in Popular Culture: (Stereotypes in Aladdin Movies)

Movies, some influential images, reflect the continuation of Orientalism, especially in American films. Many blockbuster American films, such as Disney’s Aladdin, showcase Western stereotypes of the East, portraying major heroes from the Western world and often depicting villains from the East.

Romantic Colonialism:

Travel experiences of artists and European elites brought back travelogues and exaggerated stories to the West, sparking a strong interest in various exotic things. Romantic Orientalism combined the geographical locations of Africa and Asia, famous colonies, and indigenous characters, folklore, and philosophy, shaping the literary environment of colonial exploration. The original story of Aladdin, initially translated by a French writer, is not discussed here in terms of colonialism, but through translation, information loss has occurred. There is evidence of loss through missing translated words and the inability to fully express the original meaning in some indigenous languages during translation.

Conclusion: One manifestation of Orientalist features is the essentialization and stereotyping of the colonized. I categorize them together because both terms describe things as stagnant, without development, providing a fixed description without considering cultural value or physical changes. This rough generalization is inaccurate, and essentialization and stereotyping leave the colonized hundreds of years behind, based on impressions from folk stories or visits to the local area. This solidified stereotype, unfair treatment of current ethnic representations, can lead to dissatisfaction among ethnic groups. Another feature of Orientalism is the Othering, marginalization, and opposition of the colonized. I categorize these three terms together because they all place the colonized as the ‘Other’ in opposition to ‘us,’ even employing exoticism, mystification, and demonization. This also stems from the exaggeration of the stereotypes they hold, as Said believes, as a political tool to showcase Western superiority and suppress the culture and people of the Eastern region. Building on the overall reaction to colonial culture in the previous discussion on postcolonialism and how to define discrimination in Eastern culture will further contribute to advancing research.

This blog will begin to explore the previously proposed potential fields. We start with postcolonialism, aiming to understand what colonialism is, the definitions within postcolonial studies, the objectives of postcolonialism, and methods to identify colonial characteristics.

Postcolonialism:

• Postcolonialism seeks a better understanding of colonial life from the perspective of the colonized, based on the assumption that colonial rulers are unreliable narrators.

What is Postcolonial Studies?

On a deeper level, postcolonialism examines the social and political power dynamics that sustain colonialism and neocolonialism, including the societal, political, and cultural narratives surrounding colonizers and the colonized.

Postcolonialism (or postcolonial studies) often represents an ideological reflection against colonialist thoughts and can be seen as a response and deviation from colonialism.

• Extension: This article aims to focus on the impact of postcolonialism on the cultural narratives of the colonized from the ideological aspect of colonialist thoughts.

What is Colonialism?

• Colonialism is described as the “extension of civilization,” ideologically proving the racial and cultural superiority of the Western world over the non-Western world.
• “The sacred establishment of natural harmony among the world’s humans is possible because each person in the imperial colonies has an assigned cultural identity, social status, and economic role.” (@Essentialization @Stereotyping @Objectification)

• Extension: This section, along with stereotyping and demonization in Orientalism, can be used as evidence in the character setting and dubbing of Aladdin’s lamp in 1992.

Postcolonial Identity: Postcolonial theory suggests that individuals in decolonized regions develop a postcolonial identity based on cultural interactions between different identities (cultural, ethnic, gender, and class), each endowed with varying degrees of rights by colonial society.

By gaining a rough understanding of what colonialism is, comprehending postcolonialism as a reaction and resistance to colonialism, and grasping general methods for identifying postcolonial features, one can understand how to identify the content featuring postcolonial characteristics. However, for a deeper analysis of the features in Aladdin’s lamp film, I believe it is necessary to delve specifically into Orientalism to glean more information about postcolonialism.

This blog will delve into the process of identifying the main theme for exploration, discovering potential areas of interest, conducting the initial examination and discussion of the topic.

Initial Thesis Title: What does cultural hybridity mean in the 2019 version of Aladdin’s film?

Possible Directions within the Topic:

1. Orientalism
2. Postcolonialism
3. Deconstruction

Postcolonialism and Poststructuralism (Deconstruction):

• In the broader category of postmodernism, we find the postcolonialism and poststructuralism (deconstruction).

Exploration of Postcolonial area:

• Homi Bhabha
• Context of Postcolonial Literature
• Postcolonial Culture

Deconstruction:

• Jacques Derrida

Orientalism:

• Edward Said

Existing Similar Topics: An analysis of the Aladdin films from 1992 to 2019 has been extensively discussed, critiquing elements of Orientalism and on the other hand praising the promotion of positive values. However, I intend to explore why dissatisfaction persists despite improvements between these two film versions. I aim to investigate how discrimination in colonial or postcolonial contexts is defined, drawing insights from postcolonial and Orientalist features.

The influence of the 1992 film on the 2019 hybrid is also worth exploring:

1. The persistence of cultural hegemony
2. Resistance and conflicts within colonized communities
3. The phenomenon of deculturalization in the work

Issues in the Chosen Topic: The limitation of this topic lies in its focus primarily on analyzing the 2019 version of the Aladdin film. However, I propose expanding the analysis to include earlier versions, even the original one. This extension will aid in understanding the phenomena arising from the evolution of versions and contribute to a deeper comprehension of the elements within the hybrid.

Conclusion:
The title of the paper will be more generally changed based on the content of the text. However, it is not clear where the specific field of inquiry will be, so for now, with questions, priority will be given to understanding and developing deeper aspects of Orientalism, postcolonialism and deconstruction.

Introduction:

Before developing into the thesis, I examined the materials provided by my thesis mentor, Nigel Mairs, outlining the methods of defining and testing research topics. I believe revisiting and analyzing this section is imperative, and I intend to continuously reference and analyse these materials throughout the writing process, particularly when uncertainties arise.

Consequently, I have outlined and summarized the key points from these valuable materials, which I consider crucial guidance for my thesis:

• Prioritizing the assessment of ideological content in academic literature involves focusing on authority, fairness, avoiding biased viewpoints, and considering contemporaneity. Evaluating information during the writing process is crucial, spanning various stages of the paper. Academic research demands authoritative, credible, fair, up-to-date, and relevant sources. Writing requires cautious, thoughtful language use, precise analysis closely tied to the argument, and detailed point-by-point examination.

• Ensuring the authority of sources in academic retrieval is essential. For example, books from university libraries and publications from reputable companies are considered academically credible. It is vital to examine the inner pages or back cover of academic sources to determine their recognized academic credentials.

• Every piece of writing has a certain perspective. In academic writing, the goal is to present a case or offer a new viewpoint. Examples of writing perspectives include feminism, Marxism, post-colonialism, support, or opposition to consumerism.

• Examining whether an author’s extreme or biased viewpoints exist remains a critical judgment point in retrieving articles. Academic books must be products of balanced and thorough research. Several key points outlined on the website of the American University Library (http://www.library.american.edu) include avoiding emotionally charged information, unverified evidence, ignoring the other side, using personal or irrelevant attacks to eliminate the opposition, relying on stereotypes, excluding minority voices, presenting illogical arguments, and depending on unexplained or unverified statistical data.

• A well-rounded paper must involve contemporary ideas on the selected topic. If the project has a historical context, consider contemporary interpretations and the current cultural background of the topic. Journal articles are likely to be key resources, and understanding current ideas should be researched for the development of these ideas/practices.

• In conclusion, during the writing and retrieval process, it is essential to avoid extreme biases, stereotypes, and to ensure fairness, authority, and contemporaneity in citing sources, aiming for a fair and rational discussion of the issues.

Some tips:

1. Accumulate extensive notes, formulate a plan, and establish the structure for developing arguments.
2. Avoid relying solely on chronologies for constructing the thesis.
3. Take thorough notes from readings, but avoid depending on them for constructing the plan.
4. Edit out irrelevant material to maintain a clear theme.
5. Categorize and annotate main sections and chapters.
6. Exercise caution to avoid leaving an impression of hasty or careless thinking. Maintain clarity and conciseness in the text, carefully considering word choices and symbols. The use of the first person requires particular attention.