Social Contract in Disney's Wish

Spoilers for Disney's Wish

This isn't a post attacking the movie. It was enjoyable. The music was okay. There were a lot of Easter eggs (you caught that each of her friends is based on one of the 7 Dwarfs, right?) But I take pleasure in overanalyzing things. Scroll down for today's issue.

Mrs. Goertz brought up an interesting point this morning as she was singing This Wish from Wish. Was Magnifico's plan all that bad (not the monster that he became, but the original situation from the beginning of the movie)?

Magnifico and Amaya founded the kingdom of Rosas to be a safe place free from the trauma of his own youth (the details of fuzzy, but I'm thinking war). Rosas seems like a good place, as near as we can tell: low crime, fairly egalitarian society, no concerns of outside attack. In fact, one of the first scenes shows that there is enough immigration that there is a position of tour guide to show newcomers around.

Yes, the castle is a little large for one couple, but the citizens don't seem to mind.

Social Contract in Rosas

The only special requirement for citizenship seems to be surrendering your "greatest" wish (I'm sure that they have taxes and laws and other normal things too).

But where exactly is the evil in this plan? Any form of government requires citizens to give up some freedoms. That's social contract 101.

There's no "secret" part of this agreement. 

• Everyone gives up their wish on their 18th birthday or when they immigrate to the kingdom, if they are adults
• Once a month, Magnifico grants one wish. It might be yours.

Now, we know that Magnifico screens the wishes to make sure that he doesn't grant any that have even a chance of a negative impact on the safety and security of his citizens. But really, that's not too bad. It's not a police state; there's no sign that he controls any of their other actions or thoughts. And it is repeatedly stated that people are happy to give up their wishes. They don't remember them, so they don't know what they are missing. It is implied (later in the movie) that people are only living half a life. We see Simon acting differently after giving up his wish, but maybe that's just temporary? None of the adults in the kingdom seem to be just drifting through life.

When Asha sees the vast number of wishes that go ungranted, she is shocked. But why? Only 12 wishes are granted a year and this is done publicly. Unless the population is very small, it's obvious that most people won't have their wishes granted. This is a clear part of the agreement

What is the real problem?

The real problem (as Mrs. Goertz and I see it) is the absolute monarchy on the island. King Magnifico holds absolute power. Amaya is his queen, but she doesn't seem to do much. Magnifico has real power in his magic and social power in his role as leader. He makes all the decisions about whether a wish is safe or not. That level of responsibility will corrupt anyone. He became obsessed with doing the right thing (as he saw it).

He got really scary when he is challenged.

What's the situation at the end of the movie?

The film leaves us with the impression that Queen Amaya becomes monarch. We've still got the problem of power being in the hands of one individual. Governments ultimately decide whether people's desires (deepest or otherwise) will be granted. What if someone's deepest desire is to be the new ruler of the kingdom? How will she stop them? Where will she decide to draw the line with any lesser wish?

Arguably, Rosas is also less safe now than it was at the beginning of the movie. Magnifico used his magic to protect from outside threats and (presumably) from inside threats as well. Who will now be guarding the prosperous, peaceful kingdom from foreign powers?

I guess the real question raised by Wish (maybe not the one that Disney intended to raise, but I will) is how much freedom are you willing to give up for safety and security?

(In case it wasn't clear, the main credit for this post goes to Mrs. Goertz)