Time to take off the Glasses of Orientalism

Below is a critical analysis of why ORIENTALISM is a problem and for Whom.

Have you ever watched the children’s film Aladdin? Or any of the Indiana Jones film series? What if I told you that these well-recognised children’s films perpetuated the eastern culture through the storytelling of stereotypes, known as Orientalism.

Firstly, what is Orientalism? This concept refers to the systemic formulation of the eastern culture from the perspective of the western world, with failure to reflect the “views of the inhabitants of these areas.” (N. Demerdash, 2022). Orientalism is an extensive issue within society as it is a way of portraying the east culture as inferior, which does the opposite to the west defining them as superior and the primary culture. This problem is ingrained within society as it goes unnoticed due to the west looking at the east through the oriental lens.

Mainstream mass media such as the film and cinema industry play a colossal role in playing into the problem, conveying the narrative of exaggerating stereotypes and misrepresenting the eastern cultures from what their true identity is. The film and Cinema industry are an art form that many times is intended to imitate life. It is viewed by mass society and reinforces how constitutional the issue is if the film is reflecting innate stereotypes for entertainment and western superiority, at the expense of stripping an eastern culture, identity, and stories from them.

Evidently, Disney’s 1992 film ‘Aladdin’ is a prime example of an inherent formulation of what the Arabian Culture is from the perspective of the west. Upon watching the film recently, the falsification of what makes being a part of the Arabian culture is immediately conveyed via opening the setting of the scene by distorting the place, creating a sense of obscurity that this place is far from home for the audience. For example, a controversial line within the opening song ‘Arabian Nights by Alan Menken & Howard Ashman, that has now since been removed once read: “where they cut off your ear if they don’t like your face, it’s barbaric, but hey, it’s home” (Khalifa, 2016). Utilising the offensive language ‘barbaric’ to describe how Arabians are violent, and purposely distinguish that it is not “our home but theirs” where they act different and/or harmful to others. Aladdin continues to perpetuate the eastern culture through false constructs, that degrade the community as a whole.

(Khalifa, 2016) states that the animation of the main characters Aladdin and Jasmine and what they are wearing throughout the film is actually not the traditional dress that is aligned to Arabia – Aladdin wearing the traditional Turkish dress whilst Princess Jasmine is represented in the Indian traditional dress. This reinforces how the west has molded and distorted cultural reality, emphasising their own perspectives through creating false stereotypes which Hollywood has portrayed. This is harming eastern communities and cultures that have years of traditions that form their identity. Aladdin having the Turkish and Indian traditional dress for an Arabian setting, film, and characters speak masses about how severe orientalism is due as it is allowing for the grouping of multiple individual cultures together as one, and not upholding their own separate cultural integrity. This reinforces the inherent issue “That people of different cultural backgrounds are not interchangeable and simply reinforces Orientalist ideas and erases culture and history.” (Beviano, 2022).

This misrepresentation is crucial when delivering a movie about the Arabian culture to the audience as not only is it harming the Arabian community themselves, but it is also misinforming the west, whilst ingraining the stereotypical perception of the east further and further not allowing for true identity to be taught. (Clifford 1980) relays the notion of the ‘Western gaze’, ultimately reinforces the artificial development of eastern inferiority, and continually presents constructed formulas within contemporary Hollywood. Aladdin, the live-action remake in 2019, missed the opportunity to aid the issue of orientalism via the casting of Arabian actors to provide a true representation of the community and allow the art to imitate the authentic culture.

Furthermore, the ‘Indiana Jones‘ film series particularly the ‘Temple of Doomplays’ into the western gaze as when presenting exploring the eastern world, oriental elements are showcased and completely distorts the true representation of the cultures, as well as creating a series of inaccurate knowledge. The issue with the Indiana Jones series is the storyline about the western explorer being the heroic one who is superior enough to be an educated explorer and eastern individuals are continuously ushered to fit within a villain archetype. This pattern is constant, and the repetition of these distinct roles is why orientalism is being filtered throughout history, and now into contemporary forms of expression. Aladdin and Indiana Jones are seen by children around the world, as being determinantal for forming the accurate knowledge and representation of a range of eastern cultures. Children are impressionable and Orientalism is a significant problem that is harming the growth and development of precious educational stages in the world. This will further be a problem as an outlook on the world, acceptance, and acknowledgment of traditional cultures are torn down by contemporary media producing the western imagined stereotypes, that do not resemble the true mold of the world.

Subsequently, (Edward Said, 1977) discusses the fictitious establishment of imagined oriental constructs that exaggerate cultural differences, and how representing eastern society as exotic and uncivil is creating racial harm to these communities. These made-up stereotypes are stripping away years and years of traditions of Muslims, Arabians, and Asians, and to this day are replaced with these westernised formulas. Self-identity is disrupted as a result of this issue, as the western world fails to understand what makes up the eastern culture and therefore fails to understand how the power shifts in the world can arise just from this false spread of knowledge through the glasses of orientalism.

References:

Click to access said_edward1977_orientalism.pdf

Jstor.org. (2022). Review on JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2504800?seq=2 [Accessed 26 Apr. 2022].

Drew.edu. (2013). Orientalism in Film: Aladdin Over the Last Century. – Orientalism in Pop Culture. https://wgst2013.domains.drew.edu/christina-bevianos-post/film-aladdin/ [Accessed 26 Apr. 2022].

‌Mariam Khalifa (@thesleepwriter (2016). How Disney Projects Orientalism Through Their Movies – Sail Magazine. Sailemagazine.com. https://sailemagazine.com/2016/11/how-disney-projects-orientalism-through-their-movies/#:~:text=Orientalism%20can%20mean%20several%20meanings,Africa)%20in%20a%20stereotypical%20manner.&text=Despite%20the%20setting%20being%20mythical,mixed%20up%20within%20the%20movie [Accessed 26 Apr. 2022].

DisneyDeEdits (2010). Arabian Nights: De-Edited. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0Pf3SL6GKs [Accessed 27 Apr. 2022].

Khanacademy.org. (2022). Khan Academy. https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/becoming-modern/introduction-becoming-modern/issues-in-19th-century-art/a/orientalism [Accessed 27 Apr. 2022].