This paper examines critical responses to James Camerons most recent film, <i>Avatar</i>, to suggest that the ways in which critics have ignored its content because of Camerons innovative use of 3-D technology and effects or praised its content for offering a multicultural paradise are misguided at best and misleading at worst. Instead, what follows is an investigation into <i>Avatar</i>s content, specifically its plot, hero and, ultimately, its indivisible relationships to the Western genre and what I call the New Western genreKevin Costners <i>Dances with Wolves</i> (1990) will be representative of the larger genre which has continued to emerge in more recent films like Edward Zwicks <i>The Last Samurai</i> (2003). These relationships between, and crossovers within, genres prevent cross-cultural relationships based upon democratic forms of equality, what Costner is moving toward and what Cameron makes a claim for, from coming to fruition. As biological (colonial) and social/historical (imperial) notions of racial superiority and inferiority move across and arise within genres, the brief moments of cross-cultural cooperation and mutual respect within these films are subverted. In fact, Camerons film very clearly demonstrates how politics can be mobilized, despite a filmmakers unawareness, through big-budget blockbusters to advocate concrete and damaging political projectsin this case, Americas imperial projects around the globe. This paper attempts to do two main things: show how Cameron fails to notice what is a very clear advocacy for American imperialism in his film and display the ways in which a lasting egalitarian model of cross-cultural social organization is never established as a result of this failure.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:USASK/oai:usask.ca:etd-09142010-104333 |
| Date | 05 October 2010 |
| Creators | Sutherland, Aaron |
| Contributors | Bartley, William |
| Publisher | University of Saskatchewan |
| Source Sets | University of Saskatchewan Library |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://library.usask.ca/theses/available/etd-09142010-104333/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to University of Saskatchewan or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
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