Saturday, March 19, 2016
Life after death in Mulan
As we were talking about the way Africans call upon their ancestors for help in their life issues, this reminded me of the beginning of Mulan when she calls upon her ancestors to help her and her family get through their hardship. The ancestors listen, and send a living embodiment of their willing aid in Mushu, the shrimpy dragon. I found many Similarities in Amistad and Beloved. InAmoatad he calls upon his ancestors to help him through his trials, and in Beloved the spirits either through memory as baby Suggs does, or through physical embodiment, like beloved. It's interesting how many religions have some form of ancestor veneration, yet it's thought of as strange when seen in the Africans. But when you think about it, Mulan and Beloved have many similarities since Mushu helps Mulan through her physical and somewhat emotional journey, while beloved helps serge through her emotional and spiritiual troubles.
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We defintely know about many cultures looking to their ancestors for guidance. Chinese, like Mulan, are some of the most famous. They call upon their ancestors to help guide them through difficult times. Many different descendants of African heritage often call upon their ancestors or just the spirit world in general, too. For example, in the Disney classic The Princess and the Frog, set in New Orleans, Tatiana calls upon the good spirits of the afterlife to help battle the evil magic of the voodoo doctor. A third example is Hercules, calling upon his father zeus and the other gods of Olympus to help him through his journey and to restore peace to the land. Maybe I find ancestor relations very interesting, or I'm just a little too familiar with disney movies. ;)
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