The film Avatar’s overarching LDS themes are found in the Na’vi
people’s worship of Eywa, the sacred tree that connects the Na’vi to their ancestors.
It’s discovered by Jake and Dr. Grace Augustine that the tree is connected to
everything on the planet, even those who have died. Jake Sully and the others begin
to understand the sacredness of the Na’vi people’s belief, and Jake even seems
to begin to believe in it himself. Jake prays to the tree, asking for help against
the sky people –those in the world whose desire money and are willing to commit
genocide to get it. At one point, Neytiri finds Jake praying, and her response
is that Eywa isn’t interested in taking sides, but in protecting the balance of
life. This response to Jake’s prayer grapples with the idea: why does God let
bad things happen to good people, yet occasionally intervene? Later, Neytiri, a believer in Eywa her entire
life, is surprised when Jake’s prayer is answered by Eywa, and all the creatures
work together to fight against the sky people. Grace winds-up sacrificing
herself help Jake and the Na’vi people protect their way of life, choosing to
serve Eywa and renounce the world, choosing a higher, holier path.
As mentioned in Burton’s essay, Latter-day Avatars for Mormon Expression, the avatar body itself
can be seen as a skin for Jake’s true body. His limited paraplegic body is set
free in his Avatar body, but his Avatar body is limited when not controlled by the
technology. Burton states that, “For Jake, an avatar is not simply a new body;
it gives him an important social identity and purpose.” This got me thinking
about how humans can get lost in their avatars. At one scene in the movie, Jake
begins to lose himself in the avatar. His real body gets skinnier, he doesn’t
eat, doesn’t shave. He becomes so engrossed in his identity as one of the Na’vi,
that when the time goes to change allegiances, he turns on his own people. As
Burton mentions, LDS theology believes that our bodies are in a sense, avatars
for our spirits. It made me think of how many people come to earth and get lost
in the things of the world, completely forgetting that humankind must have
existed before birth. But in Jake’s case, the full acceptance of the Avatar
body can symbolize a new body, maybe even a resurrected body that doesn’t have
the limitations of an earthly body.
I liked how you talked about how Burton's essay got you thinking about how humans can get lost in their avatars. That's an interesting concept, especially as we parallel our theology with the film. After all, our "avatars" are only a part of us--not our full selves, so it would make sense that people can get lost in them, similar to the film.
ReplyDeleteThats interesting your thought of getting lost in the world. We have a purpose here on earth. I was thinking about how even if we are doing the right thing, we can loose ourselves. We always need to remember to take care of the vessels of our spirits.
ReplyDeleteYour comment about people getting so lost in avatars that they forget where they come from or that they have a higher purpose fits together well with the movie, as Jake's immersion in his avatar causes him to forget where he comes from and, as the colonel reminds him, betray his own race. I also thought it was interesting that the concept of female deity is prevalent in this film. That's an aspect that would be more acceptable to Mormon culture than other religions.
ReplyDeleteI really liked your focus on Dr. Grace. I had not really thought about her own 'change of heart' with in the movie.
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