The_Rabbit_25
New member
I'm interested in portrayals of Muslims in cartoons, not just as token background characters to make things more diverse or people who would probably be Muslim because of their geographic location, but as people actually practicing their faith. I know that portrayals of religion in general are rare in cartoons, but maybe we can find some examples.
Most of what you see is of the Arabian Nights stripe. What got me thinking about this thread was actually the 1994 television version of Arabian Nights that features Scooby Doo and Shaggy as the tale tellers. In one of their stories there's a gender swapped Aladdin, with Yogi and Boo Boo acting as her genies, who gets thrown in a prison with her prince. Things look pretty desperate, so she kneels down and a shaft of starlight comes through the window and she starts to pray.
That's not something you usually see in cartoons anyway, so I perk up and start to pay more attention and I notice that what she's offering is a Muslim prayer. Specifically she's loosely quoting verse 4.75 from the Quran, her version goes "Our Lord, rescue us from our oppressors, and raise for us from thee one who will protect, and raise for us from thee one who will help."
This is the version I found in an online English translation. It's from the chapter on women, chapter 4, verse 4.75.
[4.75] And what reason have you that you should not fight in the way of Allah and of the weak among the men and the women and the children, (of) those who say: Our Lord! cause us to go forth from this town, whose people are oppressors, and give us from Thee a guardian and give us from Thee a helper.
She finishes by telling the prince that "Allah is watching. He will guide me."
Anyway, I thought that was interesting. What portrayals of religious Muslims have you seen in cartoons? Are they positive or negative? Are more recent portrayals different than older ones?
Most of what you see is of the Arabian Nights stripe. What got me thinking about this thread was actually the 1994 television version of Arabian Nights that features Scooby Doo and Shaggy as the tale tellers. In one of their stories there's a gender swapped Aladdin, with Yogi and Boo Boo acting as her genies, who gets thrown in a prison with her prince. Things look pretty desperate, so she kneels down and a shaft of starlight comes through the window and she starts to pray.
That's not something you usually see in cartoons anyway, so I perk up and start to pay more attention and I notice that what she's offering is a Muslim prayer. Specifically she's loosely quoting verse 4.75 from the Quran, her version goes "Our Lord, rescue us from our oppressors, and raise for us from thee one who will protect, and raise for us from thee one who will help."
This is the version I found in an online English translation. It's from the chapter on women, chapter 4, verse 4.75.
[4.75] And what reason have you that you should not fight in the way of Allah and of the weak among the men and the women and the children, (of) those who say: Our Lord! cause us to go forth from this town, whose people are oppressors, and give us from Thee a guardian and give us from Thee a helper.
She finishes by telling the prince that "Allah is watching. He will guide me."
Anyway, I thought that was interesting. What portrayals of religious Muslims have you seen in cartoons? Are they positive or negative? Are more recent portrayals different than older ones?