‘You’re a kite dancing in a hurricane, Mr Bond’ The Elemental Encounters of James Bond LISA FUNNELL AND KLAUS DODDS What would it mean to describe James Bond as a man in his element? As an ex- pression in English, being “in one’s element” usuall refers to someone or some- thing well suited to what the are doing. #he term often con%e s, when a human actor is in%ol%ed, a sense of comfort, en&o ment, and e%en pleasure. 'on%ersel , when we note that someone or something is “out of their element”, we highlight other emotions and sensations such as discomfort, dislocation, and distress. (ore often than not, this phrase is used to describe social and professional cir- cumstances li)e embar)ing on a new &ob and*or socialising with people outside of our usual sphere. But we can also mobilise this phrase to draw attention to a relationship with something more elemental, describing human and non-human interactions with water, air, earth, and +re. While being in our element is usu- all seen as a good thing, we use elemental expressions li)e “out of our depth” and “!eel the atmosphere” to suggest that social and ph sical pressures and !orces ma ha%e got the better of us. As a hero, James Bond is defined b his actions, masculinit , and libidinal con,uests that are !ramed in a particular geopolitical context shaped b 'old War, post-Cold War, and, in the -aniel 'raig era, War on #error coordinates. Bond’s missions ha%e seen him tra%el the earth and be ond in his ,uest to !oil the e%il designs of ad%ersaries, ranging !rom crooked So%iet and 'hinese operat- Lisa Funnell is Assistant Professor in the Women’s and Gender Studies Programme and Co-Director of the Centre for Social Justice at the University of Oklahoma. She is the editor of For His Eyes Only: The Women of James Bond (2015). Vol. I, Issue 1 · Spring 2017 Klaus Dodds is Professor of Geopolitics at Royal Hollo- ISSN 2514-2178 way, University of London and a Fellow of the Academy of DOI: 10.24877/jbs.9 Social Sciences. Distributed under CC BY 4.0 UK i%es to megalomaniacs and criminal masterminds. /$en o%erlooked is the im- portance of elemental geographies and how Bond’s encounters with water, air, earth, and +re shape our understanding of him as a character and the missions he completes. As his literar creator, 0an 1leming en%isioned James Bond as ph sicall ad%enturous and comfortable with a range of outdoors acti%ities in- cluding di%ing, skiing, and 2 ing. 0n that sense, Bond mirrored 1leming’s li!e- st le, shaped b a nearl dail exposure to swimming and di%ing off the coastline of his home 4oldene e, in Jamaica. While 1leming en%isioned Bond as a “blunt instrument”, his no%els are replete with references to Bond’s bodil encounters with heat, cold, air, and the earth" 0n the no%el Thunderball, Bond sa%es his own li!e because he sensed when hal! asleep “a tin mo%ement of the air”, which aler- ted him to the approaching hand of a henchman 51leming 6786e, 69:" Bond sweats, shi%ers, 2oats, and crawls o%er, through, and around elemental encoun- ters. E%en in his dail rituals, as noted in the no%el Casino Royale, Bond embraces the elemental in the !orm of a long hot bath and then !ollowed b an ice-cold shower 51leming 6786a, ;<:" When translated to the sil%er screen, the importance of classical elements is most clearl signalled in the opening credits that !eature +gures in shadow or sil- houette interacting with their material en%ironments. #here is usuall a man who represents Bond and a series of women who ma or ma not be reflecti%e of the !emale characters he encounters in the +lm. #heir interactions, be the posit- i%e/supporti%e/constructi%e or negati%e/threatening/destructi%e, are defined b classical elements. #hese +gures swim through the water as in Thunderball 5=oung 8>?@:, &ump through the air li)e in Moonraker 54ilbert 8>9>:, are co%ered in earthl resources such as gold in Goldfinger 5Aamilton 8>?;:, and are defined b +re as seen in Die Another Day 5#amahori 6776:" (oreo%er, gi%en the relati%e an- on mit and lack of indi%idual identities of the +gures on screen 5with the ex- ception of the 'raig era +lms:, a greater emphasis can be placed on these clas- sical elements and how the shape our understanding of Bond’s corporeal en- counters. #hese classical elements subsequentl make their wa into the narrat- i%e proper and pla a )e role in shaping the heroic identit of Bond and his ma- terial and e%en atmospheric encounters. #his article builds on social science wor) on the materialit of geopolitics and the affecti%e ,ualities of geopolitical li!e 5Ade 678;B Anderson 677>B .haw and (eehan 678CB Weir 678;:" 0n our reading of Bond, emphasis is placed on his material encounters with water, air, earth, and +re, while being mind!ul of how his wor) is shaped b geopolitical atmospheres that gi%e due attention to !eel- 2 International Journal of James Bond Studies · Vol. I, Issue 1 · Spring 2017 ings, sentiments, and !orces. Bond’s abilit to put ice, gas, and rock to wor) to his ad%antage is crucial to shaping the pre%ailing mood or “atmospheres” to the geo- political crises and dramas he encounters. B wa of contrast, we recognise that man of the %illains he encounters are hell-bent on manipulating, re-engineer- ing, and e%en poisoning the elemental as part of their projects to secure geopolit- ical domination" B securing the elemental, Bond helps to rein!orce the domin- ant Anglo-American securit architecture and restrain the potential of the ele- mental to o%erwhelm the li!e he has stri%en to secure. 0n The Spy Who Loved Me 54ilbert 8>99:, !or example, Bond stops Darl .tromberg !rom creating a new world under the sea b ensuring that two submarines armed with nuclear weapon are made to blow each other up" Ae pre%ents nuclear Armageddon b destro ing the %er agents of that possible destruction and protects the bio- sphere in the process. As a consequence of mission success, Bond also sa%es a particular !orm of geopolitical atmospherics, one characterised b secure bodies, robust in!rastructure, and strong morale. /ur elemental inter%ention here highlights the di3erent logics and registers at pla when Bond encounters water, air, earth, and +re. Ais creator, 0an 1leming, once wrote that “J’aime les sensations !ortes” and 1leming was encouraged b his literar mentors to make his character and the conditions he !aced ones that picked up on the elemental and sensual 5E cett 8>>?, 68?:" #his started within the home and the hotel room, as Bond’s ritualised use of hot baths and ice cold showers reminds us that Bond engineered the elemental and sensual as part of his own approach to li!e. Bond’s embracing and endorsing of “strong sensations” continues into his immersion +eldwor)" 0n the no%els, in particular, Bond is !re- ,uentl depicted as “exploring” and “examining” his ph sical sensations such as in Casino Royale 5C:, Live and Let Die 58<<:, and Moonraker 58>>: when con!ronting particular ph sical en%ironments as well as en&o ing intimate encounters with lo%ers. 0n 1leming’s literar world, both the human and non-human were cap- able of in%o)ing and pro%o)ing elemental encounters !or Bond" WATER Water has historicall and culturall been %iewed as a li!esa%ing and*or li!e gi%ing element" 1rom its lin) to the reproduction cycle of women 5i"e. the waters of li!e: to its ph siological signi+cance in creating and sustaining human li!e 5i"e. bod water:, water has long been seen as a necessit to human li!e and its continuation" 0n the Bond !ranchise, the element of water is set up as an obstacle that Bond needs to o%ercome in order to sur%i%e but it can also pro%ide a testing ground !or L. Funnell and K. Dodds · The Elemental Encounters of James Bond 3 bodies and their capacit to endure elemental pressures and social !orces. #his is established in the +rst two Bond +lms with water being associated with women through the +gure of Aone F der in Dr. o 5=oung 8>?6: and with %illain through the introduction of .GEC#FE in !ro" Russia #ith Love 5=oung 8>?C:" #he success of Bond depends on his abilit to o%ercome these water elements as well as those who manipulate and e%en target subterranean en%ironments !or dastardl purposes. THE FEMININE ELEMENT (ore than an other element, water is most strongl associated with women in the !ranchise. #his connection is +rst made in Dr. o through the introduction of Aone F der who Bond spies emerging !rom the sea while singing. #his scene is so iconic that it has been referenced in both Die Another Day and Casino Royale 5'ampbell 677?:" 1rom the outset, F der is depicted as an object of the “male gaze” whose arresting image literall stops Bond and his helper Iuarrel in their tracks. #hrough this introduction, F der 5in her white bi)ini: is reminiscent of the water n mphs !rom classical literature who lead men awa !rom their mis- sions 5FositH)a 678@, 8@C: but also as someone who is shown to be !undamentall “out of her depth” when con!ronted with the social practices and rituals within -r" Jo’s underground lair" .he is, howe%er, credited as ha%ing specialised*secret elemental )nowledge of the waterwa s of 'rab De 0slandB she is able to lead the men to safet while instructing them to rub water on their arms in order to pro- tect them !rom the bugs.