Story: Aladdin and the Genie

(Illustration by Walter Crane)

            A long time ago, in a far away land called Lampella, there was a teenage boy named Aladdin. When the boy was very young, his father grew ill with disease and passed away. His mother, who worked really hard, but was very poor, raised Aladdin by herself. Aladdin was a good child but his fellow classmates often teased him because he was not as wealthy as they were. Alas, Aladdin was still kind and did everything he could to help his mother earn some money.

            One day, Aladdin’s uncle came into town to visit him and his mother. When the uncle arrived at their hut, he hugged the mother and gave Aladdin a dusty, old lamp.

            “What is this?” Aladdin asked.

            “Something that you might find great joy in someday – if you use it wisely,” the uncle replied. Aladdin shrugged and tossed the lamp onto the ground, unsure of what exactly his uncle meant.

            Aladdin, his mother, and the uncle spent the next few hours catching up, eating a small meal of bread and wine that the uncle brought, and then went off to bed. For some reason, Aladdin just could not fall asleep that night. He tossed and turned for an hour or so, thinking about what his uncle had said to him earlier that day. He then remembered the dusty, old lamp that his uncle gave him. He popped out of bed and scurried over to the lamp.

            Trying to see if he could get some of the dust off, Aladdin rubbed the lamp with his right hand. All of a sudden, the lamp began to shake, glow, and sparkle. To Aladdin’s surprise, a genie appeared. Aladdin had heard of genies in the past, but this did not seem like a normal genie. Genies were supposed to be really old, but this genie was a young and absolutely beautiful girl. Aladdin was basically in shock.

            “Where am I? Who are you?” The genie asked.

            “Uh, I’m Aladdin. And you are on the outskirts of Lampella,” Aladdin replied. “Who are you?”

            “My name is Jasmine. I am the Sultan’s daughter, but I have been kidnapped and stuck in this lamp for three years,” she said.

            “Well, I am glad I found you then! The whole kingdom has been looking for you for years! Can I help you get back home?” Aladdin asked. Jasmine nodded and the two made their way back to the palace. They had a long journey ahead of them, as Aladdin lived on the very outskirts of Lampella, and the palace was located in the heart of the land.

            Over the next few days, Aladdin and Jasmine really got to know each other and started falling in love. Jasmine began to worry because she was only allowed to marry a prince in order to remain a princess, and Aladdin was definitely not a prince. However, when they had arrived at the palace, the Sultan was so thankful and relieved that Jasmine was finally home that he decided that he would let Aladdin marry Jasmine so that they could stay together. Aladdin’s mother also got to live in the palace, so they all lived happily together.

Author's Note: The original Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp story from the "The Arabian Nights' Entertainments book is about a boy named Aladdin who was an "idle boy" who basically did not do anything and was well on his way to becoming a complete failure. Because of this, his father died from grief and disappointment, so his mother was left to look after him. Then, a man who claimed to be Aladdin’s uncle came along. Aladdin’s mother knew that her husband had a brother, so she did not question this for a minute. However, the “uncle” was actually a magician who was an imposter. The uncle convinced Aladdin to come along with him on a journey to give him better clothes and such. On this journey, the magician tricked Aladdin into getting the lamp/genie for him. For my version of the story, I changed how the father died, the uncle’s role in the story, and made Aladdin a good guy instead of “idle.” Furthermore, I made the genie a princess who was actually trapped in the lamp. I got her name from the Disney movie. I wanted to make the genie/princess a girl so that she and Aladdin could fall in love eventually because I like my stories to have happy endings.

Bibliography: The Arabian Nights' Entertainments by Andrew Lang; link to the reading online