The tree sent a sign that he had a place, basically it gave him a chance. He wasn't trusted, couldn't speak as one of the tribe. His learning the language and customs earned him the chance to ride, learning how to ride earned him the opportunity to hunt, proving that he could hunt ethically got him a chance with the pterodactyls, and his mastery of the first flying dinosaur earned him ... and so on and so forth.
That he had no possessions wasn't held against him, neither did anyone else (as denoted by communal sleeping arrangements), so it can't be any form of plutocracy or aristocracy. What they held against him was that he was a walking liability with no skills to offer. The Na'vi seem to have an oligarchy of the best hunters and tree-speakers as their ruling class, and Neytiri may be the daughter of the rulers, but she also shows her capacity to do every skill that needs doing and teaching. A society that ranks people according to their accomplishments as such is a meritocracy. I stand by my assertions.
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2010-01-13 04:45 pm (UTC)That he had no possessions wasn't held against him, neither did anyone else (as denoted by communal sleeping arrangements), so it can't be any form of plutocracy or aristocracy. What they held against him was that he was a walking liability with no skills to offer. The Na'vi seem to have an oligarchy of the best hunters and tree-speakers as their ruling class, and Neytiri may be the daughter of the rulers, but she also shows her capacity to do every skill that needs doing and teaching. A society that ranks people according to their accomplishments as such is a meritocracy. I stand by my assertions.