“Lion King”: between two different worldviews
One important element of the best works of art in the history of humanity is that they can be read by everyone. Iliad is a “fairy-tale” about a war that happened due to a beautiful woman. As a kid, I had watched many animations and read many childish books about the story. As a teenager, I read Iliad from a translation and it was even more fascinating. As an ancient Greek literature student in the university I read the original ancient text and it was a totally new story. My professor, in his last year before retirement, assured us that despite the hundreds of times that he had read the text, he could detect every time new meanings behind the words and the stories. And that’s what makes a story classical.
What does this introduction have to do with a Disney movie? I would never claim that the “Lion King” is equivalent to “Iliad”, to “Don Quixote” or to “the Divine Comedy”, but I do believe that it is one of the best movies I have ever watched in my life. Apart from the story itself that I will analyze, I also believe that the music and the pictures are really impressive.
The analysis that I will do is my opinion on the story and, since it is a so well-written story, all of you will have different ideas on the plot, which by the way I will be very happy if you present in the comments below.
The Lion King has, according to its authors, deep influences from Hamlet and from Richard III. The story is also not very far from the story of the Egyptian gods: the king Osiris is murdered by his jealous brother Seth and the rightful heir, Horus , is sent to exile as a boy. The murdered king visits and mentors his son in ghostly visits and when the heir comes of age, he returns to exact revenge on his father’s murderer.
But let’s examine the Lion King’s story. Simba, Mufasa’s son and future heir of the throne, is shown the whole kingdom by his father and gets informed that he will be the future king. His main reactions are childish. He imagines the kingship as something easy and irresponsible. “I will be able to do it all my way” are his exacts words at his song to his “elder” Zazu, while he is totally disrespectful to him. While Zazu is trying to warn him that these ideas are totally wrong, Simba tells him the probably most arrogant of his phrases “Kings don’t need advice from little hornbills”. Ironically, he will need the advice of an old-baboon later in order to escape from his “prison” and decide to return back.
Simba and his friend Nala (meaning “gift” in Swahili) finally escape from Zazu and go where the hyenas live. They get saved in the last minute from Mufasa, who is very angry with his son. Once more, Mufasa tries to explain to Simba that “being brave does not mean looking for trouble” and that responsibility is the most important asset for a king. Mufasa and Simba finally reconcile, but Simba asks Mufasa “we will always be together, right?”. Mufasa answers to Simba that the GREAT kings of the past look down from the stars to the lions. “So whenever you feel alone, just remember that those kings will always be there to guide you and so am I”.
After that, the evil brother of Mufasa plans his assassination and finally succeeds in his aim. He persuades Simba that he was responsible for his father’s death, but before the hyenas kill him, he escapes them. He goes voluntarily to exile, because he believes that he deserves it and nobody would want him back after what “he did” to his father.
This is the “point zero” for Simba when he’s desperate and he has no idea what to do next. And then the key roles of Timon and Pumba arrive and save him. Pumba wants to save him out of sympathy (“look at him. He is so cute and all alone”), while Timon wants to save him out of interest.
Timon and Pumba are vital roles for the lion king story. They present to Simba a totally new worldview, the totally opposite of Mufasa’s values. No responsibilities, no problems, “no worries for the rest of your life”.
The main trick of the story is that their worldview seems to be a realistic and moral alternative to Simba. Timon and Pumba are not presented like two “bad” characters that try to corrupt Simba. The story seems to claim that this is the suitable way of life for those characters. That way, “Lion King” could be condemned as elitist. Timon and Pumba, two “humble” animals, are supposed to live free without problems and responsibilities, but when it goes to Simba, who is born for more important things, it is abnormal, against his future, almost a sin.
The main idea is that each person has some “destiny” to fulfil that has to do with the talent and the chances that they got from life and luck. Timon and Pumba would never have the chance to protect the lions and the whole ecosystem from the evil Scar and the story at this point does not show their “problem-free philosophy” to be against anyone.
Simba, however, seems to be ok on the surface, but deeply in his heart he still believes in Mufasa’s ideology. The clear cultural gap between the two worldviews that Simba fights between is clearly demonstrated in the “stars” scene. When Simba tells his friends that maybe the great kings watch them from the stars, Timon and Pumba cannot stop laughing with that. Simba seems to clearly recognize that it is against his very nature to live with Timon and Pumba.
Simba is given by luck his first great chance to return home. He meets Nala (by the way, in the original scenario she is exiled from the Pride Rock, because she avoids Scar’s flirt), she informs him that the kingdom is in danger and that he is needed. Timon and Pumba’s ideology totally collapse. If Simba does not become the king as he should, then the kingdom will be vanished. The “problem-free” philosophy of Timon and Pumba is not anymore unharmful to the others. But Simba does not want to return back and has a conflict with Nala about that.
And then Rafiki comes. Simba asks him who he is, but Rafiki surprises him by saying “the question is who are you”. Simba answers “I thought I knew, now I’m not sure”. What would it mean? He thought that he was a lion belonging to the proud rock, but after all this adventure with Mufasa’ death he does not anymore know? Or it means that he had believed that he now belonged to the jungle with the “hakuna matata” worldview, but after his meeting with Nala he’s not anymore sure?
And it’s finally time for the most important scene of the Lion King and probably the most important phrase of it.
After Rafiki reveals to Simba that he knows Mufasa, he asks Simba to follow him to “prove” him that Mufasa is alive. Simba does not really believe it, but gladly follows him to see where he will guide him.
Rafiki gets Simba to a river and urges him to look there. Simba sees his own face and gets disappointed. “That’s not my father, that’s just my reflection”. Rafiki intensively disagrees “Nooo, look harder. He lives in you”.
Now, most of you will think “and so what? Very classical. Our favorite people live in us, in our heart, in our memories even if they die”. But, in my opinion, it’s not just about that. It’s much deeper.
Why was Simba so depressed? Was it because his father was dead? His father was also dead in the end of the movie, when Simba looks so happy. Simba was so depressed mostly because he did not live according to the moral values that Mufasa had taught him. Nala had asked from him, the legitimate king, to protect his herd and he had rejected. The two worldviews were in conflict: the right (Mufasa’s ideas) against the easy (“hakuna matata”). Simba could not stop thinking of Mufasa, because the moral values that he had embraced him reminded of him all the time. If Simba did not believe anymore to Mufasa’s values, he would have gradually moved on from the terrible incident and would enjoy his new, problem-free life. So he would have gradually forgetten more and more Mufasa.
But what happened when Simba looked at the river? In the start, it was himself. But when he looked deeper, it was Mufasa. It was Mufasa, because Simba’s moral values were the ones that Mufasa had taught him. It is the ideas of the people that someone loves that keep them alive even if they are gone. It is everything (values, humour etc.) that they transmitted to this favorite person. The part of the dead/lost that lives in someone is the part that has become a part of his/her personality.
Let’s see again what Mufasa said to Simba in the first star scene. “The great kings of the past look down to us from those stars”. He said the great kings of the past, not simply “the kings of the past”. Why? And what did he mean by “great”? Did he mean the very powerful in the fight? Of course not. That was not so important for Mufasa. He meant that the virtuous kings were the ones that live forever in the stars and help the next kings through the moral values that they transmitted to the next generations.
And why does Mufasa continue saying “those kings will always be there to guide you and so am I”? Is Mufasa so arrogant to call himself “great king”? No, he just believes that he is a king that brings great ideas from his ancestors.
When Simba understands the idea of “he lives in you”, he sees the ghost. We don’t even need to explain it supernaturally. After all this thinking of his father and the discussion with Rafiki, it would be the most possible that when he was gonna sleep, he would see his father. But since this is a Disney movie, he just saw that illusion.
Mufasa’s key phrase is “look inside yourself Simba. You are more than what you have become”. So once more, is it an elitist phrase? No, it’s about the self-realization, about the fulfilment of Simba’s possibilities and personality. Simba had abandoned his “fate” for something that was less helpful to the others just in order to avoid the difficult road.
After Mufasa ghost’s words, Simba seems to have understood his mistake. He has to forget the idea of the easy road and fight hard for the right one. Rafiki’s phrase just helps him to be more decisive “Yes, the past can hurt, but the way I see it, you can either run from it… or learn from it”.
Simba leaves the place where he lived his last years and returns home. And here one unexpected turn in the story follows. Timon and Pumba abandon the core of their “problem-free” ideology. Even Simba gets extremely surprised when he sees them. They left from their green paradise to go to fight with Simba against lions. The first time that Timon saw Simba as a kid, he was afraid of him because he was a lion. He only admitted to keep him, because he would protect them from other animals. Now, Timon joined him in a war between lions leaving back all his “hakuna-matata” ideology. Why? Because friendship was finally more important for him than his problem-free ideology (“Well, Simba, if it’s important to you, we are with you to the end”).
I will skip the fight scenes, because the article is already extremely long. I will just say something about the roar scene. Before Simba roars symbolizing that he is the new king, he passes in front of Rafiki. The young child that once had said to Zazu “kings don’t need advice from little hornbills” is now in front of a baboon. Rafiki tries to bow to him, but Simba does not let him do it and immediately hugs him. They are just friends, not a king with an obedient. After all those difficulties, Simba is finally mature enough to become the new king. As Rafiki tells him after that, “it is time”. Simba is now ready to become the new king.
A new king that in his child’s “baptism” has around him, apart from his “wife”, one warthog, one suricate, one hornbill and one baboon. He is a king that totally respects each and every member of the circle of life. It is the moral values of Mufasa that prevail in his reign.
And now a psychological test: what would be more tempting to you as an idea? To live in the amazing jungle of Timon and Pumba with your favourite people and with “no worries for the rest of your days” or to be the king in the pride rock, with many responsibilities and power in your hand? Two photos- two different worldviews.
Feel free to leave your comments!
Follow Political Arenas at MEDIUM
