#and with toph it’s less pronounced (id argue that sokka is more crucial to tophs process of valuing her humanity than aang although aang | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

comradekatara · 7 months

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sokka hates the fire nation but nonetheless subscribes to their logic through internalizing his own dehumanization, albeit in the name of sacrificing what is necessary to resist imperialism. on the other hand, aang refuses to sacrifice his humanity, which is intrinsically tied to the culture that was deemed deserving of extermination, and by recognizing the fullness of his personhood and his intrinsic right to exist, he defeats the tenets of imperialism on an ideological battleground. that is why it is so crucial that aang’s influence over sokka, as an air nomad, and as someone who did not grow up under the looming shadow of colonialism and genocide, is what helps him regain the childhood he had forsworn in the name of war—his laughter, his joy, and his humanity.

#aang&sokka #aang #sokka #obviously aang performs this function for every principal member of the gaang #with katara it’s immediate (see: penguin sledding 5 minutes after meeting)#and with toph it’s less pronounced (id argue that sokka is more crucial to tophs process of valuing her humanity than aang although aang #lays the groundwork for it by being the one to recognize her potential)#and with zuko he has also been dehumanized by the fire nation but like. it’s not the same of course #whereas sokka and aang have largely been dehumanized in the same way #as victims of genocide #and obviously katara too #but katara has the same viewpoint as aang from the beginning #that she deserves to exist and fights for her cultural values #whereas sokka thinks that KATARA deserves to exist. that everyone does EXCEPT himself #so aang’s influence reminds him that he’s NOT uniquely disposable/sacrificial/unworthy #he’s a person too!#and he does so through the simple bond of friendship. through joy & laughter & fun #the values that were instilled into him by the air nomads #and it’s not like sokka COMPLETELY internalizes it #or that aang is the only one who attempts to impart this lesson #but it’s why their friendship is so important #because sokka accepts imperialist logic and aang refuses to #aang’s importance cannot be overstated #which is kind of funny to say bc he is the protagonist. the titular role #but ppl like to ignore that #which is crazy . but whatever

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