In Emerson's essay, "Nature," he essentially states that nature is perfect and harmonious. Within nature, nothing can go wrong and all is in its place. A person who immerses themself in nature away from society also reaches that perfect state of being. According to Emerson, "nature never wears a mean appearance."
Looking at this essay through the lens of the film Zootopia makes for an interesting observation about society. In the film, it is as if all animals evolved to the complexity of humans except actual humans. In this fictional world, the animals are separated into two groups: predator and prey. Supposedly, all live harmoniously in one enormous city called Zootopia.
According to our definition, all of these animals are a part of nature. One would argue, using Emerson's essay, that the predator and prey dynamic is what brings about the harmony in nature, therefore giving every living thing a place in the universe. However, in Zootopia, suddenly these animals have formed a society just as we humans have in real life. And it is in this society that things begin to go wrong.
While Zootopia brings up a bunch of different social issues, it can be argued that it is also calling to attention the disadvantages of society over nature. In nature, while it's rather scary to think about, things happen as they need to. We consider them somewhat brutal because within society it's considered wrong to kill another (though we still kill animals for meat). In the city of Zootopia, it appears that predators and prey have found a way to get along. However, the moment the news that predators are turning "savage," the prey panic. It's a justified reaction because in nature, they would be the ones being hunted, despite outnumbering the predators, which is also brought up in the movie.
The question in the end is, can animals of different ranks on the food chain learn to get along? In real life, probably not. Humans are the only ones capable of thought complex enough to even come up with such a question. Ultimately in the film, the answer is yes. Judy and Nick are able to solve the case and get all the bad guys behind bars. It's interesting that Disney would create a film and put animals in place of humans. However, maybe Emerson was wrong and the utopia is potentially possible. Or may he was correct, and even humans, who have so carefully constructed their own complex societies, are bound by nature and its need for order.
Rachel, I love the direction you took with your blog post! I never would have thought about the fact that the movie actually criticizes the normal, social dynamic humans live everyday, but it does! In the movie, the city, Zootopia, is extremely flawed, when it is supposed to be a representation of an advanced society of wild animals, living as humans do in harmony. I think it actually criticizes the human condition, as humans definitely do NOT live in harmony with one another. Emerson praises the natural world in his essay, and I, for sure, think that Zootopia displays how "letting nature take its course," as opposed to attempting to change what has already been set by nature, such as the predator and prey dynamic, is the way to go.
ReplyDeleteI found it interesting that we took very opposite views in the movie. This probably because in disagree with the more pastoral feel of the Emerson reading and the proposed harmony of nature. I felt that it was when the characters feel back on their more animal instincts that disharmony resulted. Through sentience were able to move beyond instinct and create law and order. Nature is presented in the film as more savage and chaotic in my opinion
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