In his "Childhood Sketches" series of essays published in Mentor magazine, De Quincy recalled literary works read between the ages of five and eight, emphasizing the two epiphany of words for Christians: one is that the words on the pages attract attention like "the light of God," and the other is that words heard by chance dispel doubts in the heart. He proposed that the beauty, sadness, or grandeur in literary works can evoke spiritual resonance in readers, which is rare and unattainable. Taking three stories from his childhood reading as examples, De Quincy specifically mentioned the story of Aladdin and the Magic Lamp. He rewrote the plot of the wizard positioning Aladdin and created a wizard image that could produce "darkness and nobility", which was completely different from previous wizard images.

1、 The image of wizards before 1852

Explored in detail the evolution of the wizarding image in British culture from the 18th century to the early 19th century. The story of Aladdin and the Magic Lamp first entered Europe through Antoine Gallant's French version of "The Arabian Nights" and was subsequently translated into English, with the Grubb Street version becoming the most important English translation of the 18th century. In the early 19th century, the Foster edition and the Scott edition were successively published, with the latter being considered the standard English translation. At the same time, the story of Aladdin has also been adapted into plays and fairy tales, such as Charles Farley's "Aladdin or the Magic Lamp" performed at the Covent Garden Theatre, becoming a part of popular culture.

2、 The image of wizards in De Quincy's works

Before 1852, De Quincy had reshaped the image of wizards, retaining their cunning and evil traits but downplaying greed and overturning mediocre spells. In his Aladdin story, the plot of the wizard searching for Aladdin and ultimately being accidentally given the magic lamp by Aladdin is emphasized, while the subsequent plot is omitted. The wizard image of De Quincy possesses extraordinary hearing and predictive abilities, able to locate Aladdin through ground sounds and determine his fate. He compared this ability with hand and face techniques, believing that the spells of wizards are more mysterious and noble. De Quincy was fascinated by the wizard's ability, believing that it brought an unfathomable sense of darkness and nobility.

3、 The dark and noble 'downward' quality

De Quincy linked witchcraft with the sublime darkness, believing that its aesthetic sensations were contradictory, encompassing both terror and mystery. He distinguished three types of sublimity: moral sublimity, moral physical sublimity, and dark sublimity, among which the dark sublimity attracted him the most. The characteristics of darkness and sublimity lie in its mystery and terror, as well as its "downward" quality, which originates from the depths of the sublime. De Quincy demonstrated the characteristics of darkness and nobility by analyzing examples such as the Grim Reaper, the statue of Ramses II, the Orion Nebula, secret societies, and wizards in Paradise Lost. He emphasized the mystery and terror of these objects, as well as their connection to "downward" or deeper realms, such as the underworld of the Grim Reaper, the underground excavation of statues, the cosmic abyss of nebulae, the underground activities of secret societies, and the underground operation of witchcraft. These examples collectively depict the multidimensional characteristics of darkness and nobility, including its association with pain, danger, mystery, and depth.

4、 The source and innovation of darkness and nobility

De Quincy's concept of darkness and sublimity inherits the aesthetic tradition of 18th century England, particularly terror and obscurity as sources of sublimity. Aestheticians such as Burke and Beatty believe that nobility comes not only from height, but also from depth, such as deep valleys and canyons. De Quincy understood this depth as the depth of psychological space, rather than just the depth of the physical or objective world. His view of space was inspired by astronomical discoveries at the time, especially the images of the Orion Nebula observed through the Parsons telescope. De Quincy believed that spatial perception is unique to humans, and external spatial perception is a projection of psychological spatial perception. He emphasized the uncertainty and relativity of space, believing that in the universe, "up" and "down" can be reversed. This understanding of psychological space and spatial relativity gave him a deeper understanding of the sublime that arises from depth.

5、 Conclusion

The adaptations of Aladdin's works in 19th century England can be divided into two categories: Chinese background works influenced by Sino British political relations and non Chinese background works expressing the author's ideals. De Quincy's Aladdin story belongs to the latter, with his romantic views on children and the sublime darkness reflected in the work. The artistic treatment of the wizard character adds artistic value to the story.