Why Princess Mononoke is a Response to Climate Doomers

So, I watched Princess Mononoke, and I have to say that it was pretty good. It was engaging, with an interesting story, and it was a film that was quintessentially a Miyazaki film. It engaged in some of the same themes that his works are known for, themes that range from war, love, friendship, culture, and environmentalism. The film was also interesting because of how it was similar, and how it differed, from another film that I analyzed, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. It was similar because it dealt with the same themes of militarism and human folly and environmentalism, and a decoupling between humans and nature. The way it differed, however, was that Princess Mononoke had a more ambivalent ending, and a more general feeling of hopelessness. Like, I walked away from Nausicaa feeling a lot more hopeful in human’s capabilities in learning about how to be cooperative towards nature, which was the opposite feeling I got from Princess Mononke. At the end of the latter, there were still some people who hadn’t learned their lessons. But, when I sat with the film some more, and thought about it for days, I realized that the ending, while not being completely hopeful, still spoke of something that was actionable and pressing: the fact that it’s never too late to act. And, that’s what I ultimately thought this film called for when I watched it.

Part 1: Doomers

There has been a rise of a certain set of people in this social media age. They are called Doomers, and in all actuality, I only heard about them fairly recently — I’m not online all too often. A Doomer, as explained by knowyourmeme.com, is described as someone who has a bleak outlook on life. If we go a little further, wikipedia (sue me for the source) says that Doomers tend to think that the global problems that we face today are going to lead to an eventual collapse of human civilization, or of the human species in general. They also tend to engage with feelings of hopelessness and despair, seeming to think that the world is innately cruel and sick, and that humans are only capable of destroying the world. Thus, there’s no point in acting on the myriad of problems that we are facing today.

Like I said, there seems to have been a rise in the doomer mentality recently, at least as I observed among Americans. I’ve personally seen a rise in the climate and environmental sphere also, with phrases along the lines of “it’s too late” or “there’s no point” being uttered more and more in regards to climate action. Young people, in particular, have fallen into that mindset ever so furiously. Alexandria Villarreal, writing in the Guardian, notes how, even though young people are particularly active and a staple of the modern climate movement, a lot of them still express doomerist sentiments when thinking of climate change. They think that we’re at the edge of civilization itself, that climate change will cause civilizations to fall as we know them. These young people often realize that drastic and massive systemic action is needed to address climate change, but think that kind of action is unlikely to occur, and that the world is racing to doom.

Increasingly, people are taking climate change and other environmental issues into consideration when they think about having kids. In one study, interviewees frequently mentioned overpopulation, overconsumption, and a general feeling of being selfish for having kids in a climate stressed world as to reasons why they were hesitant to have kids. There was also a general sense of doom among most participants of the study, thinking that unfettered climate change will bring about turmoil; thus, they felt guilty bringing kids up in a world worse for them. In another study, one in four childless adults mentioned climate change as a reason that factored into their reproductive decisions. Young people and Hispanic people were particularly likely to cite climate change as a particularly salient concern and factor.

So, there has been a rise in climate doomers as climate change fails to get addressed year after year. A lot of that rise is from young people, who have expressed gloom and feelings of no hope when thinking of the future. This doomer mentality, in my opinion, is making climate action harder to foster, and the reason why is because, when people give up, there’s no point. If the world is heading towards disaster, and the world is going to fall apart, then why even try anymore? I mean, there’s no point. But, maybe there is. Maybe there’s a reason to act even when faced with impossible odds. Maybe we have to try regardless of what’s imminent.

Part 2: Princess Mononoke; a response to doomers?

In a sense, for anyone who has watched Princess Mononoke, it might be hard for them to understand how the film is a response to doomers. In fact, the film doesn’t have a conventional happy, or even optimistic, ending, with some humans (Jigo) only reluctantly learning their lessons, and San, who’s almost a representative of the forest, still not completely trusting all of humans, and still being resentful towards a lot of them. There’s no clear winner at the end, and it can be argued whether Ashitaka succeeded in his goal of proving to the humans and animals that they can live peacefully together. So, why do I assert that this film is a response to doomers? I say so because, even though the ending is ambivalent and dirty with lots of death, there are people still alive, and those people now think of nature in a new light. Even though nature is still separate from humanity, humans still learn to respect it at the least, and are given a chance to build a better society. Additionally, even though the forest spirit does get its head removed initially, Ashitaka and San still fight to get it returned to the spirit, even though there seemed to be no point.

I think there’s one quote from the movie that is a direct answer to doomers, a direct call to action to not give up. It occurs near the climax of the movie, near the absolute end of it. It occurs when the humans have cut off the head of the forest spirit, with the forest and everything and everyone around it dying because of its rage as a nightwalker. Ashitaka goes up to San, and San disheartened says to him, “everything is finished. The forest is dead.” To that, Ashitaka replies, “No it’s not. We’re still alive.” And that, I think, is the main theme behind the film; that, even though in the worst of times, there is a reason to keep fighting to make everything right. In fact, Hayao Miyazaki says something along those lines about the film himself. About Princess Mononoke, he says, “even in the middle of hatred and killings, there are things worth living for. A wonderful meeting, or a beautiful thing can exist.” And, even though the ending is not entirely optimistic — I mean there are some humans that still haven’t learned their lessons, and Ashitaka and San still live in different worlds — there is still a chance for rebuilding a society, and to learn from the mistakes of the past. Humans are shown as ugly and disgusting, but also full of love and caring.

Watching Princess Mononoke through the lens of the climate and ecological crises that we face today is quite interesting, and also uplifting to a point. I know doomers might not think so, and will practically still believe that there’s no point to act, but I think it will serve them well to see the film with open minds and heart. I also want to let them know that I can empathize from where they come from. It can seem that we are perpetually behind, and that every year is a year of failure, with the goal becoming too far to obtain. So, some of us fall into despair, thinking that the goal of living at one with the planet is beyond us. But, I just want to say that giving up is not an option, that succumbing to the doomer mentality is dangerous.

Yes, we still have lots of work to do; every year of delay when it comes to climate action means that more drastic measures will have to be implemented to merely give us a chance. But, I think that should be seen as an opportunity to transform our world for the better. We can change everything; we can fight to fix all the injustices reaped into our world, and birth a more equitable and fairer one. We can fight tooth and nail to see that world come into fruition, a world built on love. And, if we fail, and meaningful action is still not taken when we reach 2030, then we still don’t give up. We still fight, but in different ways: perhaps for migrants rights, LGBTQ+ rights, for racial and gender equality among other things. As Ashitaka says, “we’re still alive.” And, as the forward to the IPCC 1.5℃ report makes clear: every bit of warming matters, every year matters, every choice matters. And, the worst choice of all will be to give up.