preview

Symbolism In Avatar

Decent Essays

In James Cameron’s film, Avatar, the plot begins by introducing the protagonist Jake Sully. Jake, a paraplegic marine, is sought out to join the Avatar Program, a scientific journey through space to discover an unknown world and its people. Because its atmosphere is poisonous to humans, the scientists who are a part of the project have created genetically engineered human-Na’vi bodies, called Avatars, that they use to explore the planet of Pandora. Jake Sully and his team end up overstepping the bounds and using the information gained from the Na’vi against them in an attempt to destroy their home and take the precious materials that lay beneath the surface (IMDB). Avatar by James Cameron symbolizes European’s exploitation of Native American lands by portraying the aggressive exploration of a new world. Cameron emphasizes the symbolism by comparing the new planet of Pandora to the new world of North America and by depicting a native culture extremely similar to Native American Indians. He even goes as far as creating a modern-day Pocahontas inspired plot to further suggest a connection to European’s conquest.
Cameron’s film shows humans leaving earth to inhabit the newly discovered moon, Pandora. The newcomers quickly grow meaningful connections to the alien natives of Pandora, the Na’vi, while they covertly plot for an aggressive exploitation of the moon’s resources. This situation is thoroughly representative of early European’s encounters with Native Americans. The

Get Access