W. 2 responses, MRF

Michelle Ralph-Forton    Week 2        

1. The manner in which Linneaus’s  system was composed was that he put all organisms in classes and orders, in a certain hierarchy: Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, and Species.  Curators had the authority to collect full set s of genus. The planning for The British zoos were the “embodiment of reason and rational thinking”, an emphasis for information to be attainable with science to provide order amongst society. so that in early British zoos, had rhinos all put together in one section. Although some thought that this was mundane, and perhaps unpleasant to the eye, it was taxonomically correct, and made the most sense in a scientific manner.

Stamp colleting may be problematic because there is an emphasis to exhibit a variety of animals than on long term breeding programs. In these times, “the more the better” seemed to be the mentality, and thus, instilled this into the system. However, what may be problematic is the management style, housing these different species in adequate and appropriate land in the park, as well as costs- exotic animals were sought for, but several species died en route to zoos.

2. Many believed that it was a way of praising “God’s work”. The more one would collect, and display in their homes, the more they would be enlightened and surrounded by God’s creations. So, in this manner, there was a certain touch of Divinity involved in collecting. One thing I found particularly interesting was the division of only allowing people of higher strata into gardens and zoos at the beginning. One had to belong to a higher rank to be allowed to view it, but there were ways around this; tickets were sold in bars, under the table. I believe collecting these specimens made the lower and middle class feel some sort of equality to the higher ranks in society. Parks, however, allowed anyone to come in for a stroll. As this was a common leisurely pastime for the rich, middle class people would observe them, and pick up their mannerisms from these strolls. In a way, whereas zoos allows the viewer to see a range of animals, these strolls allowed another side of society to absorb the upper classes, and to feel like they were on the same level. In a sense, these gardens were a form of a new form of etiquette and instruction. Zoos always allowed amusement and awe from the spectators.  

3. There was a high demand for zoos because there was an element of amusement; circuses fit into this realm. The higher the demand of exotic animals, the more humans started to take them from the wild, using excessive breeding programs to have more baby animals in the zoos. With age, zoos would have a surplus of animals, selling them to research companies and using euthanasia at times. Once fully grown, there was a lack of interest, as younger breeds were replacing them. Thus, they were sold.  Healthy and unwanted animals were also being promoted in the movie industry, where they were the stars of the show. Another way that zoos were involved was by selling them to circuses, where they were caged and traveled constantly. Reckless management was a key part in this system.  At the beginning of LPZ, there was limited space and funding, so there were less appropriate spaces for the animals to roam on. However, one thought enforced in the managing of animals, was to instill the philosophy of man vs. animal. This was used to break up fights, managing them in and out of crates and cages, transportation, and the like. Cyrus Devry went into the cages of the animals to “handle the situation”, however, he was attacked several times because of it. In a way, I believe the excitement and fascination that viewers had of the zoos and the animals in it, overshadowed “behind the scenes” of the process. Nobody was really concerned of the treatment, just of the show.

4. We have all admired animals in one way or another. Since the beginning of our time on earth, man has been fascinated by animals, exploring the various ways of interaction with them. Whether it is zoos, or domesticating them, man has been able to obtain animals, breaking the boundary of what is “free”. The use of animals is universal in signs throughout history, such as the zodiac. In different parts of the world, the origin of the Earth is described in different manners, sometimes involving an animal as having a key role in the formation. Anthromorphism is still in use today, and seen everywhere: toys as animals, gadgets, décor, etc. I believe it is the desire of man to somehow obtain this exoticism, and expose it in their personal lives, and then to the general public.  The manner in which Berger explains the way men stare into an animals eyes and having a moment of “non-comprehension” is something I feel is completely relevant. We have this feeling of power over animals and instill this fear amongst them- with the lack of language; animals are not able to communicate verbally, only through these stares and movements. Thus, humans take control, and can treat animals as objects rather than living species, like us. We hardly ever put animals on the same scale as we do humans. Phrases such as “What a pig” or “You are such an animal!” to describe human traits or personalities, is still practiced today. What stroke me the most was perhaps the criticism Berger had on the zoos, stating that they “will only disappoint” because you can never truly interact or connect with the animal, and it is a reminder of housing the wild for our own pleasure. This has always been a thought I always wondered about, why we do have such a fascination to obtain rather than letting them live in their own natural environments.