Examination of Nazism and fascism symbols in animation through "Avatar: The Last Airbender" animation

World War II, which occurred with the rise of Fascism and Nazism and was one of the major events that shaped the last century, affected various branches of art just as graphic design, cinema, and animation, like all major events in history. It led to the formation of symbols and imagery that are still used today. Fascism and Nazism were among the most influential and influential ideologies of their time, and these ideologies left very sharp imagery to the present day due to their propaganda with strong visual language. While this imagery may explicitly be used in art, sometimes it appears as a subtext. Especially in animations made for young children, repetitive colours and symbols may be used when making sharp distinctions such as good and evil. These symbols often vary according to the defining elements of the period. So, what is the place of the symbols of World War II, one of the most shaping events of the last century, and the two leading ideologies of the war, fascism, and Nazism, in animations? What are these symbols, which are not always explicitly emphasized, and to what extent do they influence elements such as character and space design? The colours and icons used do not belong exclusively to these ideologies but are associated with them. In which cases can these colours and icons be considered symbols of fascism and Nazism? What are the effects of these ideologies on the visual language as well as the script? In order to answer these questions, this thesis analyzes Avatar: The Last Airbender animation and its universe to answer these questions this thesis investigates the effects of Nazism and fascism as subtext in animations. Semiotics and iconography methods will be utilized in this analysis. Keywords: Ideology, Animation, Symbol and Semiotics, Avatar: The Last Airbender