Watership Down Themes

[Magic-Rabbit]

 Somebody said that Watership Down is political due to it being British.
 But I would say that the film is also mystical with Frith .

[Vesper]

Hallo my dear.

Well certainly that theme of being political is not its only theme for it also mystical/enigmatic as well, I mean, it's clearly evident in many parts of the novel/story such as El-ahrairah story, etc.
Frith is indeed a character worthy of Enigma along with characters of the Black Rabbit of Inle, El-ahrairah, Silverweed, etc. Their mysteries character arcs are of one where in order for us the reader and the rabbits of Wsd themselves, we must be filled with uncertainty and unsatisfied with the question we ask left unanswered to really appreciate their presence within their World.
  Also would like to add a number of themes a number of people have found within this Story:
Home, Leadership, Nature, Power, Man and the Natural World, Exploration, Fear,
Cunning and Cleverness, Freedom and Confinement, Arts and Culture, Politics, Violence,
The Hero, Religious Symbolism, Allegorical Content, Magic and Enigma, Etc.

Ciao

[Magic-Rabbit]

The themes of violence, politics, exploration, power and fear are most likely liked with our existence as what we as human see in our lives and you can put those themes in a novel/movie such as Watership Down.

I am not really religious so when Lord Frith  is mentioned I don't feel a connection.

I do however feel at one with the amount of violent content that is shown in the movie and the Bright Eyes song.

[Vesper]

I do however feel at one with the amount of violent content that is shown in the movie and the Bright Eyes song.

I agree as well with this theme yet I've noticed how well Richard Adams/Martin Rose used in order to not only show the realities of the story but help bring it in a light for I know for a fact that the story of Watership down would be different without, it's part of life.

[MeadowRabbit]

Somebody said that Watership Down is political due to it being British.

How does the person equate to that???

[Magic-Rabbit]

Well it was theorised to be political, I was just mentioning what the guy who was talking about it was saying.

It can be taken anyway you feel it can be taken, if you don't see anything political at all with what is in the movie you don't have to think that has a political massage to begin with.

[Hammy]

It's political in the same way something like 1984 is political. It's (mostly) not directly critiquing any specific ideology, but it is a fable of sorts, warning of dangers that can come from certain extreme behaviors and ideas. Both Cowslip's Warren and Woundwort's are pretty clear criticisms of giving up too much freedom or your own national identity in exchange for a faulty sense of security. Sandleford could be seen as a warning against not changing your ways until it's too late.

It's not direct commentary and can very well apply to any civilization, though, the Brits do have history fighting and dealing with these sorts of ideologies. Like 1984, it's a timeless story that anyone can take wisdom from at any point in history. Or not, it's all up to the reader.

Political doesn't have to conflict with mystical either. The movie isn't as dense as the book, and, in fact, I think the movie is less mystical. The book literally has a chapter by the name of Dea Ex Machina, which, of course, is a play on the Latin phrase "God out of the machine" where Hazel is, perhaps miraculously, put into a situation that saves him. But it's never directly shown to be any kind of supernatural force. Even Hazel being carried away at the end could be seen as a comforting hallucination Hazel has as he dies. It can never only be interpreted as one thing.

Basically, what I'm saying is, none of these themes or ideas are mutually exclusive, you can take a ton of different stuff out of the story, and basically everyone's gonna read it a little differently. That's part of what makes Watership Down so good. I love The Plague Dogs and other Adams novels, but few are as elegant yet dense with its themes as Watership Down.

[Vesper]

It's political in the same way something like 1984 is political. It's (mostly) not directly critiquing any specific ideology, but it is a fable of sorts, warning of dangers that can come from certain extreme behaviors and ideas. Both Cowslip's Warren and Woundwort's are pretty clear criticisms of giving up too much freedom or your own national identity in exchange for a faulty sense of security. Sandleford could be seen as a warning against not changing your ways until it's too late.

It's not direct commentary and can very well apply to any civilization, though, the Brits do have history fighting and dealing with these sorts of ideologies. Like 1984, it's a timeless story that anyone can take wisdom from at any point in history. Or not, it's all up to the reader.

Political doesn't have to conflict with mystical either. The movie isn't as dense as the book, and, in fact, I think the movie is less mystical. The book literally has a chapter by the name of Dea Ex Machina, which, of course, is a play on the Latin phrase "God out of the machine" where Hazel is, perhaps miraculously, put into a situation that saves him. But it's never directly shown to be any kind of supernatural force. Even Hazel being carried away at the end could be seen as a comforting hallucination Hazel has as he dies. It can never only be interpreted as one thing.

Basically, what I'm saying is, none of these themes or ideas are mutually exclusive, you can take a ton of different stuff out of the story, and basically everyone's gonna read it a little differently. That's part of what makes Watership Down so good. I love The Plague Dogs and other Adams novels, but few are as elegant yet dense with its themes as Watership Down.

I agree, my dear.   *Hugs* Nice to see you here once more.

[MeadowRabbit]

Well it was theorised to be political, I was just mentioning what the guy who was talking about it was saying.

It can be taken anyway you feel it can be taken, if you don't see anything political at all with what is in the movie you don't have to think that has a political massage to begin with.

Ah, you've got me wrong there! I don't debate there could be a political message taken from this. What I meant by that was him saying how it being British made it any more political than might be another place. Didn't seem an obvious one equals the other to me!

I think the political aspect is rather a lot lower than in, say, Animal Farm, but there is a definite message re. the countryside and man destroying the greenbelts and animals homes, etc. for their own gain, for one theme example I can think of at this late hour.

[Vesper]

*Tackle-hugs* ^^

[Magic-Rabbit]

Well it was theorised to be political, I was just mentioning what the guy who was talking about it was saying.

It can be taken anyway you feel it can be taken, if you don't see anything political at all with what is in the movie you don't have to think that has a political massage to begin with.

Ah, you've got me wrong there! I don't debate there could be a political message taken from this. What I meant by that was him saying how it being British made it any more political than might be another place. Didn't seem an obvious one equals the other to me!

I think the political aspect is rather a lot lower than in, say, Animal Farm, but there is a definite message re. the countryside and man destroying the greenbelts and animals homes, etc. for their own gain, for one theme example I can think of at this late hour.

I know what it's like to greenbelts destroyed.

A local campaign tried to save our local greenbelt as did many but obviously because of the need for more space to build new houses then you're going to have to sacrifice something.

[Hyzenthlay69]

Somebody said that Watership Down is political due to it being British.
 But I would say that the film is also mystical with Frith .

Well, it wasn't just because it was 'British' that it was political. You could say that with ANY country, nation or society, it was about totalitarianism versus a free democracy. But there were certainly some other elements, I wouldn't say mystical so much as spiritual, although there may not be a huge difference between the two. Certainly there were cultural aspects, because Adams added legends and stories as well as a special language all their own to the rabbits.