The Savagery of the Na'vi

Despite the great time difference and the seemingly apparent cultural divide, there are numerous parallels between Rousseau's Second Discourse and Avatar, and they become more and more numerous with each sentence from the discourse. Rousseau makes a point of talking about the "savage man,” which would be the equivalent of the Na’vi, and their physical dominance over the technically advanced civilized men, the mercenaries. According to Rousseau, this is a “product of necessity” given the environment they are expected to survive in, such as Pandora. In the film, this manifests in the humans, which are technologically advanced and are invading a foreign land filled with the Na’vi, the "savages," who are bigger, faster, stronger, and all around more physically dominant, due in large part to the necessity of their surroundings. Basically, Rousseau speaks about the savage men whose ability to have heightened senses and an athletic ability, which are used primarily for self preservation. In addition, in the film with the Na'vi: they are superior in basically all ways described for self preservation, yet they lack much of the advanced technology and various aesthetics that the humans, or mercenaries in the case of Pandora, appreciate.

Rousseau then speaks of “natural compassion,” an innate desire of men to intervene when another being is suffering. He says that this is a product of the state of nature and that savages do often times possess this quality. This assertion is supported by Avatar, as the Na'vi appear to have a certain level of compassion and kindness towards just about everyone and everything they come into contact with (except when it comes to self preservation and survival), while the "sophisticated" humans are in fact the morally bankrupt ones who do not care about the wellbeing of other beings, as they invade and attempt to rape a land of its resources without regard to the beings inhabiting the land or the resources themselves.

Perhaps the most relevant connection between Rousseau and Avatar, though, comes from Rousseau's assertion that the primitive savage is in fact much more peaceful in regards to interpersonal contact with beings particularly of its own species. This is because the modern man is contending with ideas and vices like greed, revenge, jealously, etc. (particularly as they pertain to property, something the savage does not need to deal with, as he is living in a primarily shared and open society, if a society at all) which propel him towards conflict with his fellow man, whereas the savage does not have a sufficient ability to reflect on his own existence, and therefore does not fall prey to these emotions. He is concerned chiefly with self preservation and survival.

Overall, there are definite parallels between Rousseau's philosophies and some of the trends shown in Avatar. Much of what Rousseau says about the savage man and the original state of nature applies to the Na'vi, whereas many of the criticisms he has about modern man and organized society apply to the intrusive, invasive humans in the movie.