My initial trepidations concerning Avatar--which arose from an active dislike of action films, James Cameron and ambiguous moral messages--dissipated while watching the film. I was enraptured by the visionary aesthetics of the work, including Cameron's imaginative rendering of all factors of Pandora, as well as the emotionally turbulent plot. My delight even stretched further to the gorgeous Native American flute-laden soundtrack. Although the notions of racial and scientific ineptitude certainly remained in my mind they were pushed to the periphery by the sheer enjoyability of Cameron's film. Yet, while my anxiety surrounding these issues was suspended another made its hefty way to the forefront: the troubling treatment of masculinity in Avatar.
Throughout the film masculinity, while not necessarily equated with maleness, is conflated with aggression and violence.Two male characters, Colonel Quaritch and Parker Selfridge, revel in their masculine control; a position that is never directly challenged. Quaritch, a vision of exaggerated military machismo, actively denigrates the efforts of the scientists on Pandora by challenging their masculinity (although I cannot find the quote I believe he refers to them as pussies or something to that effect). Similarly Selfridge, the golfing, capitlalistic head of the operation, reinforces the hegemonic ideal of masculinity by backing Quartich's efforts and defining the operation as purely economically motivated--he reminds Grace that they are on Pandora for nothing more than the extraction of unobtainium not her maternalistic experiments. Though these men are eventually castigated their depictions of gender are never questioned as no one refers to them in a feminine way. Dr. Grace, although biologically female, is also designated as masculine when she acts pugnaciously. Following a barking of orders to Norm he refers to the doctor as "the man" and immediately complies with her commands. Norm himself, however, is never refereed to in this manner, as he only exhibits intellectual, and non-belligerent, predilections. Even Jake Sully, the handicapped ex-marine, is demasculinized after he attempts to defend the Na'vi; Quaritch's declaration "I'm gettin all emotional, 'might just give you a big wet kiss!" symbolizes his feminine presence. When relinquishing his male human body, and thus relationally (at least according to Cameron) his combativeness and fury, Jake literally and metaphorically is removed from manhood. In a world where power structures motivated by the aggressive and possessive conceptions of masculinity results in numerous rapes, wars and indignities Cameron's depiction of male gender attributes is inherently frightening and flawed.
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