Literary Studies Proseminar Analysis
Literary Studies Proseminar “Going Native” in American Literature and Film Mag. Dr.phil Maria-Theresia Holub
Proseminar Paper
An analysis of stereotypes and their function in “A Princess of Mars” and “Avatar”
by Omid Redjaian
July 10th, 2013
Introduction
L.A. Hirschfeld (1996) states, “the prevalent point of view in psychology is that stereotypical thought is a by-product of the way information is organized and processed”
Both in movies and literature we encounter stereotypical depictions of native and indigenous people or whole exotic cultures. They fill the wide spectrum of connotations, from extremely negative to incredulously positive. The one characteristic most of them have in common is that they are not so much …show more content…
In most stories of this kind the protagonist will ride, drive or sail to the New World but when we focus on “A Princess of Mars” and “Avatar”, we have a very special utilization of the stereotypical journey of the hero. Either the transfer is already part of the transformation or we find a transformation after the character has reached the destination and one can further differentiate between the typical physical transformation of the person going-native and the change of heart. Burroughs starts John Carter's transformation already on Earth before sending him to Mars, who doesn't actually travel to the red planet but is being sent there like data transferred, an unknown force actually copying him onto Mars, while leaving his real body behind in the cave in the Arizona desert. In “Avatar” Jake Sully travels to Pandora using a space ship. On the strange planet he encounters a different type of transfer, when his consciousness is technologically sent into his man-made avatar. Both characters “loose” their real bodies and have to learn how to use their “new” bodies after the first physical transformation. Even more than that they actually represent the image of rebirth, being reborn into a new body, leaving their original body, their old lives and mankind behind. When observed in relation to all the other themes in both stories, we can see the heroes not only being …show more content…
The truth is though that many Native American tribes were brutal in their wars, used torture on captives, some even took part in human sacrifices (including their own people) as we know from the Central American tribes. They were neither more or less cruel than other people and cultures all over the world. They were and are balanced as all humans, having both positive and negative traits and having both good and not so good representatives of their culture. Still there is the tendency to use racist stereotypes, positive racist stereotypes, to present minorities in an unnatural and almost saint like light. I strongly believe that the “white guilt” and “imperialist nostalgia” are the forces behind most native stereotypes, especially the positive ones and even though I hope that one day we can live without using racist and sexist stereotypes, I do know that life without any stereotyping at all is just as impossible as living without thinking at
Proseminar Paper
An analysis of stereotypes and their function in “A Princess of Mars” and “Avatar”
by Omid Redjaian
July 10th, 2013
Introduction
L.A. Hirschfeld (1996) states, “the prevalent point of view in psychology is that stereotypical thought is a by-product of the way information is organized and processed”
Both in movies and literature we encounter stereotypical depictions of native and indigenous people or whole exotic cultures. They fill the wide spectrum of connotations, from extremely negative to incredulously positive. The one characteristic most of them have in common is that they are not so much …show more content…
In most stories of this kind the protagonist will ride, drive or sail to the New World but when we focus on “A Princess of Mars” and “Avatar”, we have a very special utilization of the stereotypical journey of the hero. Either the transfer is already part of the transformation or we find a transformation after the character has reached the destination and one can further differentiate between the typical physical transformation of the person going-native and the change of heart. Burroughs starts John Carter's transformation already on Earth before sending him to Mars, who doesn't actually travel to the red planet but is being sent there like data transferred, an unknown force actually copying him onto Mars, while leaving his real body behind in the cave in the Arizona desert. In “Avatar” Jake Sully travels to Pandora using a space ship. On the strange planet he encounters a different type of transfer, when his consciousness is technologically sent into his man-made avatar. Both characters “loose” their real bodies and have to learn how to use their “new” bodies after the first physical transformation. Even more than that they actually represent the image of rebirth, being reborn into a new body, leaving their original body, their old lives and mankind behind. When observed in relation to all the other themes in both stories, we can see the heroes not only being …show more content…
The truth is though that many Native American tribes were brutal in their wars, used torture on captives, some even took part in human sacrifices (including their own people) as we know from the Central American tribes. They were neither more or less cruel than other people and cultures all over the world. They were and are balanced as all humans, having both positive and negative traits and having both good and not so good representatives of their culture. Still there is the tendency to use racist stereotypes, positive racist stereotypes, to present minorities in an unnatural and almost saint like light. I strongly believe that the “white guilt” and “imperialist nostalgia” are the forces behind most native stereotypes, especially the positive ones and even though I hope that one day we can live without using racist and sexist stereotypes, I do know that life without any stereotyping at all is just as impossible as living without thinking at