in jesus christ superstar, what is a jaded mandarin?

Question

Judas calls jesus a jaded mandarin, what exactly does he mean by this?

Answer 1

Greetings:

At this point in "Jesus Christ Superstar" Judas uses the word jaded as an adjective meaning "tired or worn out". Adjectives modify (describe) nouns. The word mandarin is the noun being described, so Judas is calling Jesus a mandarin who is in jaded condition.

What Judas means by calling Jesus a mandarin reaches back into the history of Oriental and Near Eastern culture. For example, there used to be officials called mandarins in traditional ranks of Chinese government. The Chinese wanted wise men for government service with the suggestion that the most powerful people in the government were also the wisest people. That's the context in which Judas calls Jesus a mandarin. Judas means that Jesus is, or has been ,a powerful "wise man" in the classic Eastern sense. That's why the adjective jaded is important. A powerful "wise man" who gets worn out is no longer powerful, a has-been.

That's what Judas means Jesus has become at this point in "Jesus Christ Superstar": a "jaded mandarin" -- a worn out "wise man".

I hoped this helps.

Regards,

Brett

Answer 2

Define Mandarin

Answer 3

According to a Neil MacQueen's translation, a jaded mandarin is someone who is worn out, apathetic and not given to action who sits in the prescence of an elite group possibly accusing Jesus of not doing something about the situation that has arisen.

If you look at Dictionary.com's definition of mandarin it states that it is a member of any of the nine ranks of high public officials in the Chinese Empire; A high government official or bureaucrat or a member of an elite group, especially a person having influence or high status in intellectual or cultural circles and apply it with jaded (worn out or wearied, as by overwork or overuse), then it may come across that Judas may believe that Jesus is a man of talk and no action.

Answer 4

i cant be sure that this is the meaning in Jesus Christ superstar but if you call someone jaded you mean they are faded, no longer so interesting, some one who was perhaps cynical them selves or that the person who was jaded didn't enjoy that activity any longer they found it tedious. a mandarin is soneone who works in the halls of power for instance you would call someone who works in the houses of parliment a mandarin. an expert in their field of politics, not so much a politician but a back room advisor. so altogether i would assume that a jaded mandarin is an advisor in politics who no longer enjoyed their job or who was no longer seen as being so influential

Answer 5

A corrupt and worn-out official, usually of powerful political standings who is no longer relevant to anything or anyone.