Much of what Michael said about Avatar was true (see below if you haven't read
it and are interested), and I believe that it was all intentional to make a
point. We are a country in which many are filled with prejudice and fear of
those who are different, and we are often very likely to exploit those who have
something that we believe we need to have in order to make a large profit
(e.g., the fact that we think that it is better to exploit the limited oil
reserves that we have so that oil companies can make huge profits rather than
to spend money on establishing a reasonable alternative). So I see Avatar a
relatively accurate picture of how others around the world see us as a country,
and many of the stereotypes are more true than we would like them to be.
Remember too, that there were two marines who didn't fit the stereotype, Jake
and Trudy. As the beloved Bobby Burns said, "Wad Power but hae the gift to gie
us, to see oursels as ithers see us." I think that Avatar gives!
us that gift.
Michael Britt wrote:
>
> When Avatar first came out it was clear that the
> movie contained some stereotypes, but now that I've
> watched it umpteen times with my kids I've come to
> dislike the movie more and more because I'm seeing
Here's
> what I see:
> 1. The scientists are all (except perhaps Sigourney
> Weaver) geeky
> 2. The military are all beefy ("jarheads")
> 3. The soldiers are depicted as not only ignorant of
> the culture of the Na'vi, but also uncaring and
> dismissive of it. I know that there was an
> element of this in the US invasion of Iraq, but
> still, can't one military person show some
> concern/interest about the natives of the planet
> aside from our hero?
> 4. Speaking of "natives" - It would be an
> interesting exercise to list all the pejorative
> terms the military use toward the Na'vi during
> the movie ("blue monkeys" comes to mind)
> 5. The corporate guy is depicted as your typical
> stereotype of a corporate guy - concerned only
> with money, equally dismissive of the Na'vi
> 6. I agree with those critics who have criticized
> the whole theme of "white guy comes in to save
> the day for the natives, who are not capable of
> helping themselves"
> 7. The Colonel of the military isn't just the worst
> offender of the stereotypes - he is a really,
> really mean guy. Why is he given so many
> opportunities throughout the film to show
> exactly how mean he is? What in the world
> drives such a mean person? Character
> development is not something this movie gives a
> whole lot of time to.
.
Robert W. Wildblood, PhD
Adjunct Psychology Faculty
Germanna Community College
[email protected]
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