Avatar: Themes Of Environmentalism

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AVATAR FILM REVIEW Environmentalism in Film The Dictionary of Human Geography defines Imperialism as "the creation and maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, environmental and territorial relationship, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." In the film Avatar, an action adventure movie directed by James Cameron, themes of Imperialism on the environment and the deep indigenous ecological issues associated are highlighted. Director Cameron uses a variety of villainous characters, metaphorical dialogue, 3D scenery to represent certain facets of militarism, capitalism, and imperialism in the modern world and how they affect the cycle of life. Set on the exo-moon of Pandora, where a wealth of natural resources is discovered. The year is 2154 and humans have exhausted ‘ALL’ of the Earth’s resources, as a result humans are now attempting to exploit the resources on Pandora but are challenged by the indigenous populations of Na’vi humanoid aliens. The distinct resource available is a mineral wealth called Un-obtainium, Cameron uses the word as a metaphor to describe the relationship to which humans believe they can and will do anything to claim a wealth, even if it comes at a cost. Using a campaign of direct negotiation and confrontation the humans try to coercive the inhabitants of the planet to move away from the potential mining sites. However these sites fall on sacred ground, which hold huge spiritual and environmental importance to the inhabitants. The land is both a source of physical sustenance and environmental religious significance. Very quickly though the film makes it obvious that the natives are unwilling to negotiate on their migration to other areas of land. As a result the humans send in negotiators taking the appearance of the indigenous, to try and understand their inherent claims.
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