Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind and Regeneration

Though modern society is intrinsically separated from nature, individuals have become more vocal about environmental destruction. Creta Gaard and Lori Gruen note that, “Forests are dynamic ecosystems, home to insects and animals alike, producers of fresh air and water when left unharmed by human pollution” (Ecofeminism: Toward global justice and planetary health).  Therefore, the protection of the forest – and by extension nature – is of paramount importance, because humanity depends on the forest for food, fuel, and other products. Due to the increasing relevance of environmentalism, social change is now coupled with environmental change. Therefore, environmental problems are important to society as a whole.

Miyazaki’s Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind explores themes related to environmental degradation. Specifically, the film explores life in a world following extensive human pollution that has changed nature. It follows the protagonist Nausicaa as she tries to both protect her people and stop others from furthering destruction of nature; in this goal, she strives for justice, which certainly indicates her status as an environmentalist. Her character serves as a bridge between being socially conscious and environmentally aware. Princess Nausicaa struggles valiantly to protect nature in conjunction with her people, placing her in a clearly ecofeminist role: her treatment of nature is gentle and wise yet firm, unlike the stereotypically masculine deforestation et. al that usually stems from human interactions with nature.

According to Miyazaki’s Nausicaa, environmentalism relies on the belief that the environment can regenerate to an improved state given adequate circumstances; otherwise saving nature would seem pointless if environmental degradation can only be deterred or halted but not reversed. Its halting would allow nature to remain but would symbolically not provide a dire motivation to consider the Earth and not just humanity’s self-directed needs. 

The film establishes a conflict between the Tolmekians – a war-like people – and Nausicaa’s people who hail from the valley, which contrasts a bellicose and mistrustful view of the environment with awe and respect. The Tolmekian leader, Kushana, is not portrayed as a sheer antithesis to humanity; rather, she wants to preserve humanity by protecting it from nature. To this end, Kushana would have the Earth subdued to humans, with force if necessary. Views that appear anti-environment are more complex than “nature being evil” but rather believe that humanity cannot cooperate with environment and that humans must barricade themselves to survive. Granted, the Tolmekians live in a world filled to the brim with pollution but, though Nausicaa represents a dystopian future, the film presents a landscape that is still quite familiar, Many view nature and humanity as distinctly disparate and inherently incompatible.

The Tolmekians use bellicose methods towards this end. They invade the valley and establish their dominion. Nausicaa’s grandfather, the leader of the valley, is murdered in a show of power by armed Tolmekians who offer him no mercy, respect, or anything short of utter violence. This approach to establishing control complements their approach to the environment: they prefer destruction to negotiation, forcing nature back instead of remediating or cooperating with it. Kushana then demands that the villager ssurrender. She goes on to explain that she wants to burn the “Sea of Decay” – the toxic plants releasing spores into the air, making the world appear as if it was covered in the snow-like spores – to combat the encroaching danger. To elaborate, this attitude entails destroying the Earth and then destroying whatever heinous conditions result, which is an ultimately damaging response.

Humanity then strengthens itself while destroying the earth, leading to the further creation of pollution. Ultimately, all life is harmed, especially humans who must continually adapt to worsening conditions. This act deprives the Earth of its ability to regenerate to its previous state given the situation. Through these actions, the Tolmekians show their determination to narrow-mindedly simply destroy pollution and power through any conflicts. Though they ostensibly are simply striving to survive, they disturb the stability. By torching the plants – which are revealed to be nontoxic- the Tolmekians cause the insect-like Ohmus to stampede, placing them all in danger.

Nausicaa, on the other hand, refuses to try to shield her people by inciting violence against nature. By explicitly stating that she does not wish to kill anyone, Nausicaa affirms her desire for a peaceful resolution, which casts her as someone who can lead others towards healing the Earth, not simply end its damage. She chooses to descend fearlessly into the heart of the Sea of Decay in an effort to evade Kushana’s forces, an act that reveals her belief that humanity and nature can co-exist.  Below the Sea of Decay is pure air, suggesting that though the environment is harmed, it can regenerate to a cleaner state without the presence of people like the Tolmekians aggravating pollution. The very absence of pollution signified by being below the Sea of Decay allows for this recovery, indicating that the right conditions for regeneration must also be fulfilled. We also learn that the trees can purify water, a fact well-utilized for bioremediation of contaminants. Poplar trees in particular are known to have this ability. As a result, Nausicaa can keep searching for a peaceful resolution; at this point in the movie, the Tolmekian quest to defeat Earth to save humanity seems unfeasible because of this finding.

By contrast, the Tolmekians manage to accelerate the Sea of Decay’s advance by not destroying all of the spores. In the process, a city is laid to waste, showing the damage’s extent from both the Tolmekian’s wake of destruction and the pollution emanating from the atmosphere. Soon the valley is in perile because Kushana began to awaken the sleeping giant in an effort to destroy the Sea of Decay. This eagerness betrays the extent of the Tolmekian desire to lay to waste any who would oppose them, human or nature.

The injured baby Ohmu, who was deliberately harmed for yet another show of power, is used to cause the Ohmus to stampede. Though Nausicaa tries to return the baby, the Ohmus are too enraged to desist. At the same time, Kushana manages to awaken the giant who destroys many of the Ohmus, slowing their stampede but clearly offering no true resolution of the battle. After two blasts from the giant, however, the giant dies, indicating that simply destroying nature does not solve humanity’s problems; this result also indicates that nature can simply adapt to the point that humanity may struggle keeping up, though other creatures may easily adapt. Hydrothermal vent organisms, know that you are being practically called out here – such creatures can survive extreme pressures, temperatures, and lightlessness. The Tolmekian approach is therefore emphasized as fundamentally flawed as their strategy began to unravel following Nausicaa’s descent into the Sea of Decay.

Nausicaa, with the help of a pilot, suspends the bleeding Baby Ohmu before the stampede and gently lowers it to the ground. The angered stampede stormed through, sending Nausicaa and the baby Ohmu flying; the Ohmus have been forced into such emotional trauma that even efforts to rescind the damage done are made futile. The Tolmekians choose to retreat due to the destruction of their ship by the Ohmus who clearly want revenge. Following the Tolmekians’ departure, the Ohmus’ eyes – which had become red during the catastrophic scene – returned to their native blue, indicating their calming down. Without the impetus for violence, nature is allowed to heal and return to its former state. These efforts seem for naught because Nausicaa apparently dies. The Ohmus edge closer to her and raise her into the sky with their feelings. Nausicaa is then bathed in elysian gold and revived – she awakens and stands up, now wearing regal blue attire. With a smile on her face, she thanks them. The heavenly appearance of this scene provides a striking image of regeneration, both of Nausicaa and nature itself; therefore the bathing of Nausicaa in gold and the transformation of the Ohmus back to their native state work together to demonstrate the power of nature when unhindered. Nausicaa appearing in apparently royal colors serves to cast her as a true ally in joining humanity with the Earth, emphasizing her role.

Nausicaa’s rise from near death is a human analogue to the Ohmus transforming from incensed to serene in the wake of Tolmekian defeat. Through her peaceful actions, Nausicaa manages to stop the fighting and the pollution, creating an empowering situation. Thus nature is given a chance to recover with the removal of detrimental elements. The revival of Nausicaa indicates an influx of the resurrection that is vital to Earth’s ability to recover. Therefore, her efforts are proven to not be fruitless; ultimately her actions saved nature, which is the true goal of environmentalism. One aspect of this scene that also bears great importance is Nausicaa’s driven efforts to effect social change through saving the Earth and holding steady against the Tolmekians: she is careful to value her people and humanity while also holding nature as important. As a whole, the film affirms the ability of the Earth to recover under the right conditions. Removal of destruction in the form of contaminants can be seen as much more powerful than merely halting environmental degradation as symbolized by the conflict between Nausicaa and the Tolmekians.