East Asian Imperialism
At the dawn of the twentieth century, most of Western civilization was caught up in a string of expansion and war to claim control over the world, including a large portion of Asian nations. Slightly later, Asian cultures began to form strong totalitarian governments that searched for prestige via their own imperialism, often at the expense of the freedom of the peoples they conquered.
Japan in world War II
Before 1900, Japan rarely tried to intimidate or overpower its neighbors. A small country like Japan would find beating huge countries like China nearly impossible. However, at the end of the 19th century, the Japanese government saw the expansion attempts of the West and realized that they would need to gain both power and prestige if they didn't want to be overrun by European nations, as would later happen in many parts of China. So, to gain both power and influence in Asia, the government began to overrun parts of other nations, including parts of China and Korea. The infrastructure and power needed to become very imperialistic was significant, and the government quickly gained a lot of power. One of the most important gains for Japan was Port Arthur, a Russian port in China which was sieged similarly to the Fire Nation battles with the Water Tribe on Avatar.
Between the summer of 1904 and the spring of 1905, the Russian troops fought to keep control of Fort Arthur, a Chinese port that had strategic value to the oft frozen Russians. The Japanese also wanted Fort Arthur as part o their general expansionist policies. While this can seem like a small unimportant battle when looked at uncritically, it bears striking resemblances to a siege of the Northern Water Tribe by the Fire Nation Army ("The Siege of the North, Part Two"). The Water Tribesmen are located in general fairly close to the poles on the northern and southern tips of the planet. Because of this, they bear striking similarities to both Inuit and Northeast Russian cultures, while the technologically advanced Fire Nation is very similar to Asia. In addition, Port Arthur was considered to be one of the most fortified locations in the world, while the Northern Water Tribe remained as one of the last areas in the world that hadn't been conquered by the imperial Fire Nation.
The Siege of Fort Arthur eventually ended in a Japanese victory, and the later Treaty of Portsmouth concreted the Japanese victory, allowing them to continue their expansion through their defeat in World War II (Stein). It's interesting to note that the outcomes of the battles are different in the show and actual history, with the Water Tribe emerging victorious in the show, but that is an intentional change by the creators of the show. By having the totalitarian force lose an incredibly significant battle on the show, they reveal their belief in the monstrosity of autocracy. As time went on, the Japanese government continued to expand until their defeat by the Allies at the end of World War II, which led to a democratization of the government through American influence ("Japan").
The Siege of Fort Arthur eventually ended in a Japanese victory, and the later Treaty of Portsmouth concreted the Japanese victory, allowing them to continue their expansion through their defeat in World War II (Stein). It's interesting to note that the outcomes of the battles are different in the show and actual history, with the Water Tribe emerging victorious in the show, but that is an intentional change by the creators of the show. By having the totalitarian force lose an incredibly significant battle on the show, they reveal their belief in the monstrosity of autocracy. As time went on, the Japanese government continued to expand until their defeat by the Allies at the end of World War II, which led to a democratization of the government through American influence ("Japan").
The Tibet-China Crisis
While Japan had a fairly short history of Imperialism, China has always consisted of thousands of ethnicities living together, some less agreeably than others. One of the disputed areas that causes the most conflict over their independence is Tibet, a strongly Buddhist area that draws many ties to the genocide of the Air Nomads on Avatar.
Tibet had frequently gained and lost autonomy from China between the mid-1600s and 1912, when the fall of the Qing dynasty resulted in their de facto independence and subsequent isolation. In 1950, the newly communist China re-invaded the region and established harsh political and religious prosecution. Mao's Cultural Revolution in the 1960's resulted in the destruction of monasteries that forced Tibetan clergymen to abandon their posts, as well as the widespread persecution of Buddhists. (Thurman).Their head religious figure, the Dalai Lama, was forced to move to India and much of Tibet's cultural heritage was destroyed. War, famine, class struggle, and forced labor in reform camps resulted in the deaths of 1.2 million Tibetans (Entenmann).
The struggle for Tibetan independence bears many similarities to the Air Nomad genocide on the show. The pacifist monks that make up the Air Nation bear many similarities to Buddhist monks, especially those in Tibet. One of the series creators described the series protagonist as “a young monk from the Air Nation, a peaceful society inspired by Tibetan and Buddhist cultures” (Konietzko). The Fire Nation, seeking the Avatar who was prophesied to be an airbender, ambushed each of the Air Temples and murdered every airbender except the Avatar, who had earlier run away to escape his responsibilities. Although this was far more extreme than the actual event, it emphasizes the war crimes an imperialist autocratic army can commit in order to achieve their goals. When a government has no checks and balances to limit their power, they can commit great atrocities.
Tibet had frequently gained and lost autonomy from China between the mid-1600s and 1912, when the fall of the Qing dynasty resulted in their de facto independence and subsequent isolation. In 1950, the newly communist China re-invaded the region and established harsh political and religious prosecution. Mao's Cultural Revolution in the 1960's resulted in the destruction of monasteries that forced Tibetan clergymen to abandon their posts, as well as the widespread persecution of Buddhists. (Thurman).Their head religious figure, the Dalai Lama, was forced to move to India and much of Tibet's cultural heritage was destroyed. War, famine, class struggle, and forced labor in reform camps resulted in the deaths of 1.2 million Tibetans (Entenmann).
The struggle for Tibetan independence bears many similarities to the Air Nomad genocide on the show. The pacifist monks that make up the Air Nation bear many similarities to Buddhist monks, especially those in Tibet. One of the series creators described the series protagonist as “a young monk from the Air Nation, a peaceful society inspired by Tibetan and Buddhist cultures” (Konietzko). The Fire Nation, seeking the Avatar who was prophesied to be an airbender, ambushed each of the Air Temples and murdered every airbender except the Avatar, who had earlier run away to escape his responsibilities. Although this was far more extreme than the actual event, it emphasizes the war crimes an imperialist autocratic army can commit in order to achieve their goals. When a government has no checks and balances to limit their power, they can commit great atrocities.