Thursday, April 2, 2009
Animals as Symbols
Animals stand for a variety of things in our culture today. Animals can be evil, playful, vicious, sentimental, or competitive. As said in class, the devil is often represented by an animal of some sort. Animals can be companions or played with. Most show sympathy towards animals, especially if they are an animal owner. Today, there are many computer games or toys for kids to play with and pretend as if they are real. Animals are symbols for different athletic teams, such as Jaguars, Dolphins, Tigers, Lions, etc. They are usually portrayed as tough or competitive in this respect, and obviously their pictures show their more vicious side. Also, something that has been in the more recent media is dog fights. Training dogs to be violent towards each other and tear each other apart, while people sit and watch. Horse-racing in an important sport, especially in this area. Also, based on the behaviors of different animals, people call each other names by using animals, such as a raty, snake, weasel, dog, bull-headed, etc. with all of them being negative connotations. Soem symbols portray animals in a postive light. The dove as a sign of peace or a dog being man's best friend. Animals should be portrayed in a better light.
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Have you heard about many of the state laws being passed, forbidding certain sports teams from using animals as symbols and mascots? The reasoning is that, if the team is doing poorly, it's a disservice to the animal the team uses as a symbol and the animal is in no position to defend its reputation. I wonder what happens when the team starts to improve...
ReplyDeleteI think it is interesting how, depending on the type of animal, animals are portrayed in either a very positive or a negative light, especially based on modern media references. For example, deer are often seen in a sympathetic light as gentle, "family oriented" creatures because of Bambi. Lions are often seen as a creature to be respected because of the portrayal of lions (except Scar) like Simba in the Lion King. Also in the Lion King, hyenas are put in a negative light. While hyenas are vicious creatures, they receive the negative image because they do not have the same "exotic" look and reputation as lions; they are uglier and less appealing, therefore they are an easier species to put in a negative light. Much of how we interpret animals is based on how we see them in popular culture and the images in popular culture allow us to associate them with a particular personality type or other human characteristics. We have less of a desire to care for species like hyenas because of how they are portrayed and viewed.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Laura. We do tend to view animals as to how they are portrayed by pop culture, especially exotic one we do not know much about. Any movie in which a snake, spider, hyena or any other type of animal is portrayed as scary or evil we tend to be afraid of them. I think that this is mostly because we have a fear of the unknown. I definitely don't know much about snakes except that they slither and hiss and that is enough to make me not like them. I know that some are harmless but they are still scary. I think pop culture has taught most of us to think this way about certain animals. On the flip side, I think that pop culture makes some animals look harmless so that we loose respect for them and do not realize they should not be messed with. Media has always made chimps and gorillas (except of King Kong) look like they are fun loving and docile. This is obviously not true because they actually are violent in nature when they think they are being threatened. We need to do more research into animals before we choose to fear or not to fear them.
ReplyDeleteAnimals used as symbols is improtant to talk about because symbols expose us all to a certain sterotype or opinion of how something should be viewed. Even if one has never encountered a certain animal they may have seen one used in an advertisment or something along those lines and can make an assumption. But, there are certain people who are scary or dangerous too. This doesn't mean they matter any less than other humans, does it? It merely means we must be aware of nature and act accordingly. Just because dogs are mans best friend doesn't mean we can go up to any dog we please. On the other hand we definately wouldn't go up to a bear on a camp site. Just because we cannot approach or categorize an animal does not mean they do not deserve fair treatment. I never understood people who have dogs and cats that can go hunt rabbits, birds, and deer, etc. If you have love for one animal and believe in it's ethical treatment and right to a life without suffering how can you not believe this for ALL animals.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Laura. It seems like many animals are judged simply by the way that they look more so than other attributes. An ugly mutt is perceived as being inferior to a freshly groomed poodle or golden retriever. Just because one animal isnt as appealing to the eyes as another does not mean that it should be treated differently. The mutt may in fact be a better companion to its owner than either of the other two dogs, but the fact that the mutt probably came from a shelter and isn't sent off to be groomed weekly means to many people that it is not as valuable and does nt symbolize the high standard of animal that most people would wish to have. (Which is BS) I have had dogs that fall into each of these categories, and i have realized that every animal deserves respect and fair treatment, no matter what.
ReplyDeleteLaura raises a good point. It seems like animals are judged and portrayed simply by the way they look or behave in a medial sense. She raises the example of peple believeing deer are sympathetic and gentle because of the movie Bambie. Ironically enough, as outlandish as it may seem, she is right. I have actually heard women at the zoo tell their little kids if an animal is "good or bad" in reference to a disney movie or something else the kid had watched. This idea seems to be an uneducated and childish one in many ways...
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