The Resurrection of Jake

I found the conversation that we had in class about James Cameron's archetype of the “White Messiah” incredibly interesting. I had only watched Avatar once, and I hadn't noticed any of those inter-textual images before. As we watched the scene of Jake Sully being covered in the white glowing seeds, it brought to mind the very last scene of the movie. In the last scene, Jake Sully's human body is dying and he has been connected to his avatar body by the Na'vi, who are trying to transfer his soul from one body to another. This connection reminded me of the resurrection of Christ in the Bible. After his crucifixion and death, the women lay him in his tomb and Christ is brought back to life.

Once again, Cameron uses his glowing white seeds to indicate that Jake Sully is a pure and important character. The color white connotes holiness and purity, and the fact that the seeds are glowing white is not a coincidence. They show that he is worthy to be brought back to life and live together in total happiness with the Na'vi. The seeds also show the audience how important Sully's character is, because throughout the movie no other character is covered with those seeds. Also, both Jake's human and Avatar bodies are covered in iridescent white material, much like the images of how Christ was buried.

The position that Jake is laying in is also a visual representation of Christ's burial and resurrection. He is laying on his side with his face turned towards the sky. He is surrounded by two women who are touching and caressing his face and body. These two women are a reference to Mary Magdalene and Mother Mary.

The music in this particular scene also has a very dramatic effect. As we talked about in class, the score which was written by James Horner, is completely melodramatic and forces the emotion of the scene down your throat. The music rises, and rises in intensity until it peaks just before Jake's eyes fly open. Finally when they do open cymbals and dramatic drums are added.

All of these signifiers in the film have an effect on the viewer. For the majority of middle class white Americans, these images and symbols will be comforting and reassuring. They have seen these images before and are familiar with the context and story behind them. This story makes the familiar images turn into exotic and exciting ones. For the audience that does not fall into this category, these images create unfamiliar myths and stories. It serves to isolate the viewers who do not understand these images.