Mia Torres
Dr. Houston
ITAL 313: The World Of Dante
1 May 2022
A Confrontation Between the Worlds of Avatar and Dante and the Role of Cultural
Appropriation
In the second season’s twelfth episode of Nickelodeon’s animated cartoon series, Avatar The Last Airbender, the main characters are confronted with a terrifying message at the gate of “The Serpent’s Pass.” The message reads, “Abandon hope.” It’s undeniable that the series's creators, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, were citing Dante in this episode. Though the series and Dante share vastly different morals, there are also numerous connections and similarities between the works of Dante and the Avatar universe. Themes such as love, teaching, and lying are frequently discussed, and even shared world-building techniques are exercised by both Dante and the creators of Avatar. The most considerable similarity that the two have is that they both draw on cultures different from their own to create something new. However, Dante appropriated Pagan culture, whereas DiMartino and Konietzko were inspired by various Asian cultures.
Avatar: The Last Airbender first aired in February 2005 on Nickelodeon and concluded with the series finale in July 2008. The show is set in an Asiatic-inspired world divided into four nations that represent the four classical elements, water, earth, fire, and air. The people are further divided into non-benders and benders who have the ability to manipulate the elements telekinetically in combination with fight techniques that are derived from various martial art fighting styles. The Avatar is the bridge between the physical and spiritual worlds and between the elements, as this is the only character with the ability to bend all four. The Avatar is reborn into each nation after every life cycle, and it is their job to maintain peace and order in the world. However, for 100 years, the Avatar disappeared, and the fire nation attacked, seeking to establish global domination. It resulted in the genocide of the entire nomadic Air nation, the colonization of the Earth kingdom, and a division between the Northern and Southern water tribes. The series takes place after the reappearance of 12-year-old Avatar Aang, the final survivor of the Air Nomads, his friends Katara and Sokka of the Southern water tribe, and Toph of the Earth kingdom. They travel the world, helping Aang to master the four elements and preparing for a final battle against Fire Lord Ozai and his daughter Azula. As they journey across the globe assisting villages to find peace and balance or to fight back against the fire nation, they evade the attacks of the banished Prince Zuko of the Fire nation and his dumpy Uncle, the retired General Iroh, whose goal is to capture the Avatar and restore the prince’s honor.
The Four Nations each have their own cultures that are inspired by real-world counterparts. The Water Tribes represent Inuit and Sireniki tribes; the Fire Nation represents Imperial Japan; the Earth Kingdom represents Communist China; and the Air Nomads represent Buddhist and Tibetan monks. These inspirations are visible not only in the dress, diets, architectural design, or traditions that each nation demonstrates but also in the fighting style that is unique to each nation. Waterbending is based on Tai Chi because of the way that it flows but is strong. Bloodbending, a dark sub-division of waterbending, is inspired by Chin Na, which is designed in a way to lock an opponent’s limbs. Earthbending is based on Hung Gar because it emphasizes strong roots to the ground. Toph, who is blind, uses a unique style called Chow Gar or Southern Praying Mantis because it is more aggressive and works in a close range which dramatically benefits her. The opposite of waterbending is Firebending which is inspired by the aggressive and dynamic style called Northern Shaolin. Lightningbending, an incredibly powerful but equally difficult sub-division of Firebending, is inspired by a form in Shaolin called “Dragon Shoots Its Whiskers” (“Martial”). In episode ten of the third season, “The Day of Black Sun, Part 2: The Eclipse,” Zuko learns the technique from his uncle, who had learned to redirect lightning by observing how water benders ground themselves, but also go with the flow with strong intentions. Finally, Airbending is inspired by the peaceful but strong and circular movements of Ba Gua. In order for the animators to understand how to animate these different styles, the show’s co-creators sought the help and expertise of Sifu Kifu, a martial artist who worked on nearly every episode of Avatar and the spin-off series, The Legend of Korra. He taught the animators and the actors in group sessions and gave demonstrations. He was available for consulting and was eager to help put these styles in the spotlight. When it came to designing Toph’s unique fighting style, he brought in help from Sifu Manuel Rodriguez, a teacher in Southern Praying Mantis and Chu Ka Kung Fu (“Martial”).
The series is designed in a style that is heavily influenced by Japanese anime and blends with American cartoons. The creators are both graduates of the Rhode Island School of design and quickly found success after graduation, working with Fox on major productions such as Family Guy and American Dad. But when offered the opportunity to develop something for themselves, they turned away from America’s style, grossly exaggerated features, towards the cuter style of Japanese anime. DiMartino and Konietzko sought not to replicate or steal the Japanese animation style but instead write a love letter to it. They admit to being heavily inspired by the films of Japanese director of animation Hayao Miyazaki and the beautiful but chaotic designs of the series FLCL. Audiences debate over whether or not Avatar qualifies as an anime because it has all of the essential qualities, but the overall consensus is that even if large chunks of most episodes were animated in Japanese and South Korean studios because the show did not originate in Japan, Avatar is, at most, an American Anime.
The evidence of their inspiration is evident in the show’s design. Aside from a visual resemblance to typical Japanese manga and anime style, there are specific features and techniques that Avatar used. For example, American animation relies on character movement, whereas anime uses techniques that are similar to camera movement. Avatar uses both. Drawing specifically from the way Miyazaki’s films emphasize the connection between humans and nature, Avatar focuses on themes about the balance between the physical and metaphysical, nature and human society (Mumcu). As in Miyazaki’s films, Avatar literalizes metaphor by using depictions of nature to depict the spiritual connection that community members have to their homes. For example, in the seventh episode of the first season, “Winter Solstice: Part 1: The Spirit World,” the fire nation destroys a forest, causing an imbalance in the Spirit World which leads to a major disruption in the lives of village people.
At the time of Avatar’s premiere, American television favored stand-alone episodes and non-sequential development because this is what was presumed to work best for American audiences. For example, another show on Nickelodeon is SpongeBob SquarePants, but there is no storyline that exists outside of an episode or even a season. Japanese television has always been more episodic in nature and has a clearer throughline throughout the series. Avatarcombines these qualities by designating an endpoint for the show from the very first episode but also having a few episodes that are colloquially known as “filler” (Roth). Regardless of whether specific episodes do or do not move the entire plot forward, every episode of Avatar reveals something new about the characters or introduces something to the series. The most famous “filler” episode is the eleventh episode of the first season, “The Great Divide.” However, this episode was important because it was the first time the series incorporated the Chibi style––a form of animation unique to anime. Another is the fifth episode of the third season, “The Beach,” it is a typical anime trope to have a beach episode, but Avatar uses this episode to deeply develop the antagonistic characters in a “Breakfast Club style” discussion (Roth).
Other typical aspects of anime featured on Avatar include the use of Japanese stock characters or archetypes. The majority of the main characters are easily recognizable by American audiences because of the overlap between archetypes, such as Sokka, the jester, or Baka. But other characters fit the mold of more specific Japanese archetypes. For example, Toph is an example of the Bokkuko character––a female character who uses male pronouns, an extreme “tomboy.” Zuko’s eventual love interest, Mai, is a Shundere character, gloomy and sad by default (Jones).
Despite being very open about admitting that the creators and show design were inspired by several Asian cultures, Avatar is far from perfect. The series was developed, written, and produced by white Americans for a western audience. The music was created by American musicians who had no previous experience with the Asian instruments that they incorporated into the score. Only about one-fifth of the cast identifies as Asian or Asian-American. The liveaction film adaptation received heavy backlash for the whitewashing of the characters and settings. But what separates Avatar from other media that is “East-inspired” is that the creators approached those cultures with respect and did what they could to present American audiences with something that they weren’t accustomed to without minimizing the source material. A primary goal for the creators was to avoid “othering.” Production for the series began nearly twenty years ago, and it was a trailblazer in that it was among the first to represent Asians in such a big way. Whenever possible, the series reached out to Asian and Asian-American creatives and intellectuals to help with production, such as Siu-Leung Lee, who provided Chinese calligraphy and translation. They hired cultural consultant Edwin Zane full-time. According to Gene Luen Yang, author of the Avatar comic books, the show is Asian-American in the way it blends Eastern and Western cultures––the same way that Asian Americans are a blend of East and West (Guo).
Avatar The Last Airbender has been called a “gateway drug,” as fans of the series went on to seek similar shows, and with none existing in America, the door was opened to Japanese anime. Nothing like Avatar had ever aired onNickelodeon, but the ratings and views proved that this kind of show appealed to Americans. The success of the show proved that Americans were interested in television with throughlines, motifs, and discussions of serious “adult” themes, but it was also child friendly. Despite their mistakes, the creators were successful in their goal to forward American animation and storytelling by presenting how far ahead Japanese anime was (“DiMartino”).
Just as influential, if not far more so, was Durante di Alighiero di Alighieri (most commonly known by the name he gave himself in his poem, Dante). He is renowned as the Father of the Italian language and for popularizing the use of the written vernacular. His most outstanding contribution was the Divine Comedy. He wanted to accomplish many tasks with this three-part epic that traces the journey of the pilgrim Dante through the nine rings of Hell, the seven terraces of Purgatory, and through to the highest Heaven. First, he wanted to write an allegory that had a Christian meaning, a moral significance, and parallelism to the life of Jesus Christ. Second, he wanted to establish his legacy. And thirdly, like many people of his time, he wanted to combine Pagan literature and Christian literature. His goal was to combine secular and religious poetry into a cohesive story with characters from folklore and history that would coexist in a space outside of Earth.
While Christian characters dominate Heaven and for the most of Purgatory, there are numerous characters from Greco-Roman literature that play a significant role in Inferno. The pilgrim encounters a number of virtuous pagans in Limbo, the first ring of Hell. He is revered and welcomed by the poets who inspired him, and from the first canto is guided by Virgil, the famous Roman poet. A significant encounter occurs in Canto 5, where Dante meets Minos. Dante describes him as the judge of souls, with a long tail that wraps around each sinner and determines to which ring they are sentenced. Minos advises Dante to be wary of in whom he places his trust. According to the Greek legend, Minos is the old king of Crete. Every nine years, he made his enemy, King Aegeus of Athens, select seven boys and seven girls to the Labyrinth created by the inventor Daedalus to be eaten by the Minotaur. After Mino’s death, he was sent to
Hades to be a judge in the underworld. Thus, this explains why Dante placed him in the role. However, there is no record of Minos ever having a tail. This aspect seems to be a complete fiction by Dante that has been portrayed in artwork that has come after him, including in Michelangelo Buonarotti’s piece, The Last Judgement. Therefore, Dante has changed the character of Minos and the way he might be perceived.
Another example of Dante changing the way that characters from Classical literature may be perceived is in Canto 26 of Inferno. Dante finds himself in the eighth ring of Hell, in the eighth ditch, and in the presence of Ulysses, the hero from Homer’s Odyssey. In Homer’s epic, Ulysses is portrayed as a true hero, brave, intelligent, strong, and a good leader. However, Dante poses Ulysses as a flawed character, someone who demonstrates the defects of having too much ambition and not knowing where to draw the line and be satisfied. Furthermore, Dante rewrites the Odyssey. He ties together Homer and Virgil, and by linking himself to Virgil, Dante includes himself in the line of most famous poets who wrote about the Trojan War, the foundation of Rome, and how it all led to Dante’s journey in the Divine Comedy. Therefore, Dante rewrote the Odyssey and Virgil’s Aeneid not only to establish himself as a legendary poet but also to fit it into the Christian narrative he was writing.
Dante confirms the reinterpretation of Virgil’s writing in Purgatorio 21. Dante introduces another Greco-Roman poet named Statius. Statius is a Pagan who has succeeded in serving his penance and is granted passage into Heaven. During Dante and Virgil’s encounter, Statius praises Virgil and thanks him for his inspiration. Dante writes that Statius was a secret Christian and was inspired to convert because of Virgil’s writing. He was so inspired that he wrote a Christian message into his own work. This is an example of Dante Christianizing not only poetry and poetic figures but people as well.
The effect of Dante’s comedy is that he used non-Christian literature and characters to argue that Christianity is the one true religion. He accomplishes this by appropriating Pagan literature and morphing their cultures and histories to fit into the Christian narrative. This is a highly damaging effect for multiple reasons. First, he damages the integrity of Pagan culture, shaming and belittling it. Second, he distorts the image of characters from Pagan folklore. Third, he justifies his mission by claiming it was asked of him by God, and thus the damage he causes to non-Christian communities should be exonerated. Therefore, he grants himself the power to directly insult and shame important figures, Ad Maiorem Dei Gloriam. Ultimately, this results in poetry that is Islamophobic, anti-Semitic, and racist, among other things. Granted, Dante is a thirteenth-century poet, and these sorts of ideologies are expected from him, but it does not excuse his actions.
Cultural appropriation is a multifaceted phenomenon that can be defined as “the taking of intellectual property, traditional knowledge, cultural expressions, or artifacts from someone else’s culture without permission.” This definition can be expanded to point out the attribution of a different meaning or practice outside the source community, the power imbalance between the two cultures, or even the aim to borrow not for the intrinsic value of the item but to caricature it (Pozzo). On the other hand, there is a discussion of inspiration and creative reinterpretation. Inspiration often comes from observing cultures outside of one’s own, and this can lead to beautiful and important work. But there is a big difference between an artist who is inspired by observing another culture and an artist who appropriates it. An inspired artist that does not aim to steal, but to appreciate the other culture, will preserve the source culture without modifying it, will consult members of the source community, and will create something that combines the new material with what the artist is already familiar. An artist who appropriates will steal from the source community and make changes to it––sacrificing the value and integrity it has––without respect or permission from the source culture.
Thus, the difference between Dante’s pagan adaptations and the inspiration for Avatar is that the creators of the series did not use or change pre-existing stories from Asian countries. The creators respected the techniques and designs from Japanese animation and, with guidance from people with backgrounds from the source cultures, used the exact same methods in the show. The show presented varying aspects from varying Asian countries without modifying them to make them more Western. It blended aspects of Eastern and Western design without sacrificing the integrity of either. Dante did not consult Pagan authors, as he likely did not have the ability to do so. But this does not excuse the fact that he didchange the stories of Pagan authors to fit a narrative that he wanted to push forward. Instead of preserving Pagan stories or cultures by reviving them in his texts in the way they were initially, he transformed them into something else. The result is confusion, especially for modern audiences. His mangling and new fictions of Pagan characters change the meaning and significance of the original stories.
Ultimately, what can be learned from comparing the texts of Dante and Avatar The Last Airbender is that exploring other cultures and trying to learn from them is important but challenging. If the goal of introducing an audience to a new culture is to preserve the material, then the material must be preserved. This is something that (despite some shortcomings) Avatar mostly succeeded in doing, and Dante did not. The principle to bear in mind when seeking inspiration from different cultures is that something beautiful may come from blending two cultures, but it must be done with respect, permission, and guidance from the unfamiliar culture. Otherwise, the resulting work could be highly damaging and hurtful.
Works Cited
DiMartino, Michael Dante, and Bryan Konietzko, creators. Avatar The Last Airbender.
Nickelodeon, 2005-8.
Guo, Winona. “The Appropriation of Avatar.” Harvard Political Review. www.harvardpolitics. com/the-appropriation-of-avatar/. 8 July 2020.
Hollander, Robert, et al. Inferno. 1st Anchor Books ed., Anchor Books, 2002.
Hollander, Robert, et al. Paradiso. 1st Anchor Books ed., Anchor Books, 2008.
Hollander, Robert et al. Purgatorio. 1st Anchor Books ed., Anchor Books, 2004.
Jones, Isaiah. “12 ‘Dere’ Anime Types, Explained.” CBR, 18 June 2021, www.cbr.com/dereanime-types-explained/.
“Martial Arts Deep Dive with Sifu Kisu and Bryan Konietzko” Avatar: Braving the Elements. From iHeartPodcast. 31 August 2021. www.open.spotify.com/episode/4gVaw6t6Bjj5lQYycgXYqf?si=tkC_Pry1T1iwIKhS6_-mGg
Mumcu, Sema, and Serap Yılmaz. “Anime Landscapes as a Tool for Analyzing the Human–Environment Relationship: Hayao Miyazaki Films.” Arts (Basel), vol. 7, no. 2, 2018, p. 16.
“Origin Stories with Mike DiMartino & Bryan Konietzko Pt. 1” Avatar: Braving the Elements. From iHeartPodcast. 25 June 2021. www.open.spotify.com/episode/1l2TtQwL6J3JUv7iaB7SQG?si=IgdTGlR7TZq1gvupCHFYeg
“Origin Stories with Mike DiMartino & Bryan Konietzko Pt. 2” Avatar: Braving the Elements. From iHeartPodcast. 29 June 2021. www.open.spotify.com/episode/4ySN2Ut75nE8Q wEyoQzRJD?si=9D__a5IpRbq_1JlFZ5BqFA
Pozzo, Barbara. “Fashion between Inspiration and Appropriation.” Laws, vol. 9, no. 1, 2020, p.5.
Roth, Emma. “The 9 Most Annoying Anime Tropes and Clichés I Can’t Stand.” WhatNerd, 14
June 2021, https://whatnerd.com/annoying-anime-tropes/.