Avatar the movie was an early 3D blockbustertried to give the sense of being there

The cultural anthropologist, Nancy Lutkehaus, was a consultant on the lm set

A anthropological linguist was employed to create the language

Classical story linearchetypal

Culture peaceful Indigenous tribe...

Knowledge naive, yet wise Animists Vs worldly but corrupt Westerners

Environment tradiKonal people in nature Vs outsider-exploiters

What is wrong with this picture?

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Avatar relies on popular ideas from the Gaia Hypothesis, drawing directly on the myth of Gaia

The planet Pandora (another myth) is held in delicate equilibrium by a mother goddess who is symbolized by a sacred tree.

The trees roots form interconnected webs - a biological network of synapKc knowing.

The Indigenous people are connected with the planet, vegetaKon and animals

Westerners are invaders, war mongering, greedy, exploitaKve.

The scienKst studying the naKve people is a biologist!

A western army dude saves the planet and joins the people.

If a text which includes a movie, story, an ethnography or a science is constructed then it can also be deconstructed.

PracKcing deconstrucKng a movie and its story is pracKce for decontrucKng orther forms of knowledge

All knowledge pracKces are also culturally inscribedwhether tradiKonal or modern, whether mythological or scienKc

The nuances of subtexts in the movie give us stu to think with!

How are cultures constructed/portrayed in the movie?

How are knowledges constructed in Avatar? How do we label these dierent knowledge pracKces?

How is the environment portrayed in the movie? What are the dierent environments?