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The Unrealistic Fantasy
The Disney movie Aladdin demonstrates that social mobility is just an unrealistic fantasy to be achieved, by the way the film shows Aladdin’s opportunities— street rat vs. prince, how the Genie acts as welfare for Aladdin, and through the lack of privileges that Aladdin experienced throughout the movie. There is no doubt that Aladdin portrays the poverty victims in Agrabah, the Genie represents as the Government, and Jasmine corresponds with the rich. All of these factors creates an impractical real life scenario of jumping the social classes the way
Aladdin did.
First of all, there is no surprise that Aladdin is treated very different from the beginning of the movie, to when he becomes a prince. One of the very first examples you can see this being displayed is during the song “One Jump Ahead”. In this scene Aladdin is chased around the city’s streets of Agrabah by guards because he can’t afford to pay for the food he stole.
Based on the ragged clothes he wore, with patches in his pants, the town labels him as riffraff, a street rat, and a scoundrel, just like the lyrics in the song. However, when he is a prince, Aladdin gets a grand parade entering the city on the way to the palace. He was treated different by the 


Norman,2 people because of the way he was dressed and how he was presented. He no longer had on old ragged cloths, and now wore an expensive wardrobe fit for a prince. The crowed did not mock him nor call him names because he looked like he came from wealth and was high up in the social status. In the song “Prince Ali”, the harem girls sing “There's no question this Ali's alluring. Never ordinary, never boring. Everything about the man just plain impresses...
He's a winner. He’s a whiz— a wonder! He's about to pull my heart asunder. And I absolutely love the way he dresses!”. However, in “One Jump Ahead” the same harem girls sing “Oh, it's sad Aladdin hit the bottom. He’s become a one-man rise in crime. I’d blame parents except he hasn't got ‘em. These are clearly two very different impressions about the exact same guy, just in different clothing.
In addition, Aladdin living in poverty effects him in several ways. To start with, Aladdin is suppose to marry Jasmine at the end of the film, but in real life this wouldn’t even be possible.
In the song “One Jump Ahead”, it points out that Aladdin is a man of many crimes. He starts out a criminal to begin with, who lives in poverty. With that being said, he would not be permitted in the family to begin with. Also, because of Aladdin’s financial situation, makes this story all the more unrealistic. In that cultural of life, Aladdin wouldn’t even be given the privilege to talk to
Jasmine in the first place, let along end up getting married to her. People living in poverty are not allowed to associate themselves with people who come from money. In the garden scene with the Sultan, Jasmine admits to her father that she has never even been outside the palace walls. The Sultan’s simple explanation for that was because she was a princess. The walls were 


Norman,3 clearly to separate the wealthy from the poor. Not to mention because of the society they live, most people are subjected to an arranged marriage. This law is not something that can just be overruled by a Sultan, especially not for a princess.
Furthermore, the only reason it was even possible for Aladdin to obtain such a high status was because of the Genie. In Aladdin, the Genie almost acts as a source of welfare for people in poverty (being Aladdin). This means that without the magical powers of the Genie, it wouldn’t of been possible for Aladdin to ever move up to higher hierarchy and become a prince. In one scene when Aladdin had a run-in with Prince Achmed who was headed to the palace to pursue a marriage with Jasmine, the Prince Achmed makes a remark saying “you were born a street rat, you’ll die a street rat”. This shows that social mobility is just a fantasy unless something big were to happen, like winning the lottery or in this case getting a magical Genie. In Genie’s song
“Friend Like Me”, he basically points out he can make any dream come true for Aladdin— realistic or not. In the very beginning of the song the Genie says “Well Ali Baba had them forty thieves, Scheherezade had a thousand tales. But master you’re in luck 'cause up your sleeves you got a brand of magic that never fails. You got some power in your corner now. The first line is very ironic because both Ali baba, and Scheherezade are just mythical tales and not pragmatic. In one way, it’s almost a joke of society that it’s only possible to become “worthy of” and/or rich, if you don't have a Genie— which is a fictional character. All of this just shows that it is nearly impossible for people to move up classes unless you can make a “wish” for it.


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In conclusion, the film Aladdin represents the unrealistic expectations of moving up in society. Moving from poverty to wealth over night is merrily impossible unless you have magic on your side. Social mobility would not have been possible for a street rat like Aladdin if the
Genie didn't “magically” help him out. Towards the end of the movie Aladdin even comes to the conclusion that he is nothing without the Genie. He states that him being a prince would not have been possible. Social mobility is just a fantasy in people’s minds that cannot be achieved, and this movie is a great representation of that.


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