Jinn is Netflix’s first Arabic original series. Released in 2019, this 5-episode supernatural drama follows Jordanian high schoolers and magical genies in the ancient city of Petra.
Clip 1
- Clip URL: https://criticalcommons.org/view?m=ZUC2yfPlW
- Content Warning: Tobacco and alcohol consumption, domestic violence implied
- Concepts: Opportunity cost, scarcity, limited resources
- Background: Yassin’s mother struggles to pay for his private highschool tuition. However, Yassin’s mother and stepfather are seen spending money on other goods and services such as a birthday cake, alcoholic beverages, a dinner at a restaurant, rent, and food.
- Question: Resources are limited and scarce. Define the concept of “opportunity cost” using Yassin’s situation.
Clip 2
- Clip URL: https://criticalcommons.org/view?m=QpT8ByVyR
- Concepts: Income inequality, labor market, education, technological progress
- Background: Jinn was shot in the cities of Petra and Amman. In this clip, we meet the family of Hosny, a Bedouin teenager who disappeared from the ancient city and is suspected of being possessed by a spirit. Hosny’s family lives in Petra, in a modest and traditional house. Fahed lives in a modern villa with a pool in Amman, the capital and largest Jordan city.
- Question: Compare the Bedouins’ living conditions with those of Amman’s high schoolers. Explain the societal issue of economic inequality and identify potential causes by comparing Hosny and Fahed’s lifestyles.
Clip 3
- Clip URL: https://criticalcommons.org/view?m=NivnDWGBe
- Content Warning: alcohol consumption, blood, domestic violence implied.
- Concepts: Law of diminishing marginal returns, negative externality
- Background: The TV show depicts the consumption of alcohol by teenagers, as well as its related addiction. In this clip, some high schoolers are drinking at Petra’s archeological site. One student is believed to be so intoxicated that he fell off a cliff and died. Yassin’s stepfather is also an alcoholic.
- Question: Using the concept of diminishing returns, can we determine theoretically an optimal quantity of alcohol an individual could drink?