DDM3271 Research & Communication Studies: Movie Review: James Cameron’s Avatar

Research Method: Field Studies

1) In Intensive Interviewing, the person giving the information is called an ‘informant’. Name the ‘informant’ in the movie and explain how he/she shares information with the researcher.

The informant in this movie is Neytiri, the female Na’vi. She teaches Jake Sully, the protagonist about their culture and understand how the world of Pandora works. Teaching him that the world is connected with a single entity, the Mother Goddess, Eywa. She also teaches him tracking in the wilderness of Pandora, Archery and even learning to ride the Direhorse (Pa’li) and the Mountain Banshee (Ikran).

2) The researchers in the movie are overt observers. Name the character that is a participant observer and the one that is a non-participant observer. Describe how both of them collect information.

The participant observers in the movie is the Head of the Avatar Program, Dr. Grace Augustine and Jake Sully is also part of the observer but he is both overt and covert. The non-participant observers are the Head Administrator of the RDA and the Chief of Security, Parker Selfridge and Miles Quaritch.

How Grace collect information is through Jake experience with the Na’vi and also with her own experience back when they first landed on Pandora (She even wrote a book about the plants of Pandora and she also build a school to teach them human culture) and the “present” day where she was allowed back to the tree when Jake has become part of them. Using that she was able to collect information while living together with the Na’vis.

For Miles, how he collects information is through the log reports from Jake. When Jake return to his human form, he need to document down everything that he has learn during the time spent as a Na’vi. He uses Jake’s reports and Grace's report to plan his attack on Pandora to gather the thing that he and Parker wanted, the unobtainium which is located under the Hometree.

3) In the movie, describe the kind of information gathered that can be constituted as emic/etic data

In the movie, they use the emic approach where the protagonist, Jake uses Photo Ethnography research to conduct his study and understanding of the Na’vi’s culture. He literally put himself in the shoes of the Na’vi by learning their culture where everything is connected even the animals and the plants, the flow of energy coming from Eywa, tracking the wilderness of Pandora, Archery and even learning to ride the Direhorse (Pa’li) and the Mountain Banshee (Ikran). By using this method, Jake has a better understanding of their culture and he was even go as far as being accepted by them and one of the Na’vi called him Brother.

For Etic, Miles Quaritch uses Jake's and Grace's research to "experience" the whole process of their documentary. Even as far as knowing where to strike to get what they want, the unobtainium.

Conclusion

Nice movie. I like all of the Creature appear in the movie especially the Wyvern type creature the Toruk (Great Leonopteryx). The part where Jake tame the Toruk (Great Leonopteryx) give me the feeling that I’m watching the Dreamworks movie “How to Train Your Dragon”. The concept of using their hair to connect with the world and the animals is cool and using Avatar to vessel the human conscious makes the movie link to the concept of the movie. If there’s a word to describe the movie, the word will be bond. Without the “bond” everything will fall apart. The Na’vi uses bonds to connect with the world, animals and even ……. each other and for the humans, they use bonds to gain control of their avatar making them talk, eat and running around the world of Pandora. It’s like having a second body and life. All in all, I like the movie.