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Story of Alladin

The document summarizes the story of Aladdin as told in the 1885 Burton translation. It describes Aladdin as an impoverished young man who is tricked by a sorcerer into retrieving a magical oil lamp from a booby-trapped cave. With the help of the genie bound to the lamp, Aladdin becomes rich and powerful by marrying a princess, but the sorcerer returns to take the lamp and Aladdin's riches. Aladdin defeats the sorcerer and his evil brother through the help of the genies and ring also obtained in the cave. The story is said to be set in China but contains more Middle Eastern elements and motifs.

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246 views2 pages

Story of Alladin

The document summarizes the story of Aladdin as told in the 1885 Burton translation. It describes Aladdin as an impoverished young man who is tricked by a sorcerer into retrieving a magical oil lamp from a booby-trapped cave. With the help of the genie bound to the lamp, Aladdin becomes rich and powerful by marrying a princess, but the sorcerer returns to take the lamp and Aladdin's riches. Aladdin defeats the sorcerer and his evil brother through the help of the genies and ring also obtained in the cave. The story is said to be set in China but contains more Middle Eastern elements and motifs.

Uploaded by

Rengie Galo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The story is often retold with variations.

The following is a précis of the Burton translation of


1885.[8]

Aladdin is an impoverished young ne'er-do-well, dwelling in "one of the cities of China". He is


recruited by a sorcerer from the Maghreb, who passes himself off as the brother of Aladdin's late
father, Mustapha the tailor, convincing Aladdin and his mother of his good will by pretending to
set up the lad as a wealthy merchant. The sorcerer's real motive is to persuade young Aladdin to
retrieve a wonderful oil lamp from a booby-trapped magic cave. After the sorcerer attempts to
double-cross him, Aladdin finds himself trapped in the cave. Aladdin is still wearing a magic
ring the sorcerer has lent him. When he rubs his hands in despair, he inadvertently rubs the ring
and a jinnī (or "genie") appears and releases him from the cave, allowing him to return to his
mother while in possession of the lamp. When his mother tries to clean the lamp, so they can sell
it to buy food for their supper, a second far more powerful genie appears who is bound to do the
bidding of the person holding the lamp.

With the aid of the genie of the lamp, Aladdin becomes rich and powerful and marries Princess
Badroulbadour, the sultan's daughter (after magically foiling her marriage to the vizier's son).
The genie builds Aladdin and his bride a wonderful palace, far more magnificent than the
sultan's.

The sorcerer hears of Aladdin's good fortune, and returns; he gets his hands on the lamp by
tricking Aladdin's wife (who is unaware of the lamp's importance) by offering to exchange "new
lamps for old". He orders the genie of the lamp to take the palace, along with all its contents, to
his home in the Maghreb. Aladdin still has the magic ring and is able to summon the lesser genie.
The genie of the ring cannot directly undo any of the magic of the genie of the lamp, but he is
able to transport Aladdin to the Maghreb where, with the help of the "woman's wiles" of the
princess, he recovers the lamp and slays the sorcerer, returning the palace to its proper place.

The sorcerer's more powerful and evil brother plots to destroy Aladdin for killing his brother by
disguising himself as an old woman known for her healing powers. Badroulbadour falls for his
disguise and commands the "woman" to stay in her palace in case of any illnesses. Aladdin is
warned of this danger by the genie of the lamp and slays the impostor.

Aladdin eventually succeeds to his father-in-law's throne.

Setting
The opening sentences of the story, in both the Galland and the Burton versions, set it in "one of
the cities of China".[9] On the other hand, there is practically nothing in the rest of the story that is
inconsistent with a Middle Eastern setting. For instance, the ruler is referred to as "Sultan" rather
than being called the "Emperor", as in some retellings, and the people in the story are Muslims
and their conversation is filled with parables from Islam. A Jewish merchant buys Aladdin's
wares, but there is no mention of Buddhists or Confucians.

Notably, ethnic groups in Chinese history have long included Muslim groups, including large
populations of Uighurs, and the Hui people whose origins go back to Silk Road travelers. Islamic
Prepared by:
Ma.Cristina G. Magallones
Evidence Wed 5-9pm CW 6
communities have been known to exist in the region since the Tang Dynasty. Some have
suggested that the intended setting may be Turkestan (encompassing Central Asia and the
modern Chinese province of Xinjiang in Western China).[10]

For all this, speculation about a "real" Chinese setting depends on a knowledge of China that the
teller of a folk tale (as opposed to a geographic expert) might well not possess.[11] In early Arabic
usage, China is known to have been used in an abstract sense to designate an exotic, faraway
land.[12][13]

Motifs and variants


The story of Aladdin is classified in the Aarne-Thompson-Uther index as tale type ATU 561,
"Aladdin", after the character. In the Index, the Aladdin story is situated next to two similar tale
types: ATU 560, The Magic Ring, and ATU 562, The Spirit in the Blue Light. All stories deal
with a down-on-his-luck and impoverished boy or soldier, who finds a magical item (ring, lamp,
tinderbox) that grants his wishes. The magical item is stolen, but eventually recovered thanks to
the use of another magical object.[14]

A South Asian variant has been attested, titled The Magic Lamp and collected among the Santal
people.[15][16]

Western variants of the Aladdin tale replace the lamp with a tinderbox.

Prepared by:
Ma.Cristina G. Magallones
Evidence Wed 5-9pm CW 6

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