Free Final Fantasy and Philosophy: The Ultimate Walkthrough by William Irwin, Michel S. Beaulieu Page B

life.” 4
    So unlike the Final Fantasy Gaia, Earthly Gaia is not the planet’s soul, but its ability to self-regulate its environment such that a variety of life forms can flourish. Beyond this key conceptual difference, though, there are a number of important similarities that allow for the exploration of our own environmental crisis. First, both Gaias are the preconditions for all life on their planets. No Gaia, no life, it’s that simple. Second, each Gaia supports a multitude of life forms—biodiversity—and appears to be indifferent to which of them thrives or becomes extinct. Consider the attempt to discern a pattern in the Phantoms made by Ryan and Neil, two soldiers who, along with their commanding officer Captain Gray, have extensive experience with Phantoms. Neil comments that it’s like “a crazy Noah’s ark. . . . You got your human-sized Phantoms, creepy caterpillary Phantoms, and flying Phantoms, and my favorite the big, fat, giant Phantoms. . . . Why would an invading army bring whales and elephants along?” In contrast, Aki’s perspective reveals the truth that the Phantoms aren’t an invading army but the ghosts of an alien planet’s ecosystem. Third, both Gaias can be harmed by the life forms they make possible. The Leonid Meteor is a shard of the alien planet, which was completely destroyed by an apocalyptic war the aliens waged against one another in their pre-Phantom existence.
    The Zeus Cannon: A Hein-ous Idea
Alien Gaia, Earth Gaia. Doctor, even if I believed in such nonsense, the fact remains that the Earth is under attack from an aggressor who must be destroyed at all costs.
    —General Hein
     
    The two major approaches to human interaction with the environment that are dominant in our own society are captured by the views of nature and strategies for dealing with the Phantoms advocated by General Hein and Aki. The general espouses a view that is often criticized as a short-sighted, male conception of nature. Hein views nature at best as a collection of inanimate objects subject to humanity’s desires and, at worst, something hostile to the human species that needs to be dominated and made to conform to humanity’s will. This conception of nature has been traced back to the roots of the Judeo-Christian tradition in the story of Adam’s punishment (in Genesis, it is said that after being kicked out of the Garden of Eden, man is condemned to the toilsome task of winning his sustenance from a soil that on his account has been cursed with barrenness) and has been encouraged by philosophers such as Francis Bacon (1561-1626) and René Descartes (1596-1650). Underlying this view of nature is an analytic approach that views aspects of nature in isolation from one another and an assumption that nature is not alive in a meaningful way. It’s no surprise that General Hein assumes the Phantoms are an invading army; it’s merely an extension of his anthropocentric and militarily trained mind-set.
    Aki, by contrast, is representative of both the Gaia hypothesis and some forms of ecofeminism. She views nature not in isolated snapshots that by definition are taken out of context, but holistically and in the context of their dynamic processes. 5 Thus, she echoes the Gaia hypothesis and many contemporary environmentalists in her claims that the planet is, in some sense, alive. Not surprisingly, Aki believes that the best approach to ridding humanity of the Phantoms is to make peace with them, not hit them with things.
    General Hein’s approach to the Phantoms is doubly flawed. In his quest to persuade the council to give him permission to fire the Zeus Cannon, he creates a breach in the bio-etheric field that protects what is left of New York. The strategy is simple: create a manageable crisis in order to convince the council how dangerous the situation really is. Unfortunately, his lack of understanding of the Phantoms, as well as his arrogance regarding his own intelligence and technological