"Contrariwise... if it was so, it might be; and if it were so, it would be but as it isn't, it ain't. That's logic"-Lewis Carroll
I have always been interested in the story of Alice, as in Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. I saw the Disney version of the story when I was much younger, and the main characters still stick in my mind years later. The caterpillar spelling his words in smoke, the smile of the Cheshire cat, and the humpty dumpty looking twiddle dee and twiddle dum are images still in my mind. The reading selections from the Alice series by Lewis Carroll left me confused, and wanting the whole story. When I have the time, I do plan on straightening out the story by reading it whole.
While reading these selections, there was a strong theme that seemed evident to me of being lead to the slaughter. A past student of Professor Bump touches on this subject when writing about Alice’s inner turmoil when presented with the story of the Walrus and the Carpenter. Alice, like most others would relate to the characters of the Walrus and the Carpenter instead of the oysters. A former student writes that the oysters “were taken from their beds with ill intentions, were befriended under false pretenses, and heartlessly eaten by someone they trusted” (535). The oysters were lead out of their beds, “all eager for the treat” and were treated with kindness to only become the meal of the leaders. Once the oysters realized their new friends’ intentions “the Oysters cried… after such kindness, that would be a dismal thing to do!”(513) Instead of running away, their fears were turned away with quite words from the Walrus turning their attention to the night.
This theme of seduction is also found in a poem Alice recites to herself while pondering if she had changed. The poem, though a parody of a popular poem at the time reads: “How cheerfully he seems to grin, how neatly spreads his claws, and welcomes little fishes in, with gently smiling jaws” (467). The crocodile smiles as he seduces his food straight into his mouth.
Carroll plays with themes of seduction in relation to animals seducing other animals to become their food, and the seduction Alice feels as she tries to navigate the strange and erotic world of Wonderland. Throughout the story she is faced with decisions, and the question of “who are you” posed by the caterpillar (479). She was originally seduced with the question of where the rabbit was going when she fell into the rabbit hole.
I think the theme of seduction is best reflected in the modern version of Alice in the SYFY channels original movie series, ALICE. In this new modern retelling, people are seduced into Wonderland through the looking glass. Once in Wonderland they are referred to as oysters, and are enticed to a giant casino. Once there they are captured, so to speak, and the queen feeds/captures their emotions. Once drained of their emotions, these people are empty shells that are disposed of. I plan on writing in greater detail the themes taken from the Alice stories and how in this modern re-telling themes are shaped into images that the modern reader/viewer can appreciate in this different world. 1.
As a side story, I came across a lamb farm with a name taken straight out of the Alice stories. The “Twiddle Dee Farm” in NC, boosts of “Animal Welfare Approved lamb products that are available at a select retail grocery that values humane treatment of animals; supports local, grass-fed lamb growers; and is willing to compensate farmers fairly”2. Haven taken their name from the story of Alice, and after I have seen “Earthlings”, I’m not so sure that I can believe their claims.
I have never taken as much time as I do now to think about what I eat. This class has opened my eyes to the secret world of factory farming, though the secret isn’t kept so hidden. It is easier not to think about the behind the scene processes that take place to make a more convenient world. I am referring not only to factory farming, but to all things that are produced for mass consumption. There is a fetishism associated with products, for example shoes. In terms of food, it could be said that there is fetishism toward hot dogs being related to a baseball game. The reason behind this is the lost of the labor processes. Would a product such as a shoe have so much power if each person stopped to think about the children in third world countries that work for pennies a day to put together that all mighty pair of athletic shoes that you see in the store window? The same goes for the factory farming industry. Americans especially do not think about where the meat for the hamburger that they are about to buy from a national chain comes from. That is the furthest thing from their minds.
I will admit to being in this group once before. It is all in the convenience of sitting in your car, ordering, paying and driving away from the window with a meal conveniently in a bag ready for consumption. The behind the scenes are obscured from our vision by marketing, colorful signs and packaging. Do you really think that “the happiest cows come from California”? “Some words,… like happy, mean the opposite of what they would seem. And some, like natural, mean next to nothing” (pg. 603/45). We choose not to think about the lives of the animals that feed us, for fear of feeling shame for adding toward the mass demand for more. These “happy” cows from California, aren’t so from what I have seen in clips from Earthlings. “Milking cows are kept chained to their stalls all day long, receiving no exercise… Eventually milking cows… collapse form exhaustion. Normally, cows can live as long as twenty years, but milking cows generally die within four. At which point, their meat is used for fast food restaurants” (Monson, Earthlings screenplay, pg. 573) So these the happy California cows are yet another marketing ploy to obscure the consumers view with images to cover the truth behind milk, and the meat used at fast food chains. “Shame is what we feel when we almost entirely—yet not entirely- forget social expectations and our obligations to others in favor of our immediate gratification” (Shame pg. 600/37).
When Jonathan Foer was retelling his story of taking his son to the aquarium, I remembered a memory from my past. When I was around 4 years old, my father cooked shrimp for dinner. This was the first time that I had seen a shrimp and I wasn’t excited about the concept of eating something other than macaroni and cheese. To try and get me to try this new food, he referenced a favorite movie of mine, The Little Mermaid. He said “these are mermaid food”. In my mind, I thought he meant the we made of Mermaids… Long story short, I wouldn’t touch seafood for many years after that. “The shame of parenthood—which is a good shame—is that we want our children to be more whole than we are, to have satisfactory answers”. (pg. 602/40) In my case, my father could not explain the meaning of his words in a way that would convince me (at the time) that shrimp were not made out of mermaids.
In this new fast paced world, where the restaurant that can deliver food the fastest wins the most customers, when will the masses step back and look at the realities of the world around them. In Iowa, “a company said it fired the manager of a hog farming operation where workers were videotaped abusing pigs… a video released… depicts workers hitting sows with metal rods, slamming piglets on a concrete floor and bragging about jamming rods into the anuses of sows” (The associated Press, October 24, 2008/ pg. 695) The stories continue, and pile up one after the other over the treatment of these animals. Though humans have eaten meat since our existence, it wasn’t until the industrial revolution that hunting and farming turned into sport and industry. “The details are important, but they probably won’t, on their own, persuade most people to change. Something else is needed” (Foer, pg. 599/35).
Warning. The following Video Contains images that may be too realistic and eye opening for some viewers.
This string of articles and excerpts were interesting. Many of the articles included were of cases that I have read and/or studied in a range of other classes in my college career. In the cases of the Milgram experiment and the Stanford prison experiment, it puts you in the place of one involved and you ask yourself “how would this have affected me?”
I will come back to these experiments in time. First I am using my ability in this class to free write over the Animal Humanities overview. Many different thoughts and images crossed my mind while reading this section of text. Suffering, cruelty and putting oneself outside of the choices made were major themes that jumped out at me. Every living creature can be made to suffer, and according to Singer “if a being suffers there can be no moral justification for refusing to take that suffering into consideration.” (169) There have even been studies toward the effect of torture on a tree. Yes, I said a tree. In the experiment, a large warehouse was set up with groups of sapling trees. Each day after watering, a caretaker would take out a chain saw and cut through one of the trees (killing it). After two weeks, the trees started to lose leaves and begin to wilt, while the trees in the control group were growing strong. They were expressing the only way a tree can in the given situation. I won’t try to guess the emotion, if trees can feel emotions; they did however begin to die. This I believe is torture, and shows that even a plant has a spirit that can be tortured. “The boundary between human and animal is arbitrary and moreover, irrelevant, since we share with animals a capacity for suffering that only ‘the hand of tyranny’ could ignore.” (169)
When the author started to go more in depth in the subject of anthropomorphic, and that “humans can both be, and be compared to, animals”, a children’s television show can to my mind. (171) Anamorphs was a television series, that I myself did not watch, but I do remember seeing commercials for the program. A group of teenagers were able to change at will into an animal. How about that… humans can be both a human and an animal?
To my surprise I jumped ahead of the thought process of the author when reading the section over people feeling pleasure toward the misfortunes of animals. “Her explanation is that people felt the need perpetually to reassert human dominance over, and separation from, the animal kingdom by baiting horses, bears, monkeys and bulls… to watch a baiting, to enact anthropocentrism, is to reveal, not the stability of species status, but the animal that lurks beneath the surface. In proving their humanity humans achieve the opposite.” (172) While reading this section I started to think about the Disney documentary where the camera crew chased and FORCED lemmings over a cliff, to “document” the age ole’ tale that lemmings will follow one another and jump off a cliff. This of course was a false tale, so the camera crew forced these animals to suffer outside the bounds of nature and throw themselves off. To my surprise 9 pages later this case was brought up. This also brought up images and stories from old western movies. Before the revaluation of treating animals with care in Hollywood, horses were severely injured or killed during scenes in old westerns for the “realist effect” of the scene.
Screen Shot of the Lemmings.
I have noticed that this blog is starting to get rather long, so on to my next thought string….
I had recently purchased a movie that I believe fits into the realm of the sadism experiments along with cruelty to animals. In fact, I think this movie would be a great addition to the overall material presented in this class. The first time I watched UNTRACABLE, I was sickened and scared knowing that the story and the plot were realistic and not farfetched at all. The basic plot of the movie is as follows. A killer sets up a website called KILL With Me.com The more people that log onto the site; the faster the animal/person is killed. The first victim was a kitten, stuck to mouse paper out of the reach of food and water. The more viewers that logged onto the site, the higher the setting on a heat lamp above the kitten rose. This killer went on to find horrible ways to kill his victims without being the one to “take the life”. The website grew and millions were tuning in, thus killing the people faster. The news stations broadcasted NOT to log onto the site, which in turn lead to masses of people logging in thinking individually that their ONE login will not make a difference to whether the animal/person lives or dies. Though some of these people felt empathy or “the aesthetic sympathetic feeling of that act of erecting and spreading”, they were the ones inflicting the harm, and were the killer. (194)
What would you do? When the pressure is applied through an experiment to act a certain way and inflict pain, or taking the initiative yourself to login to a website that allows you to become a killer; can you look at yourself from a third party view to see what you are doing? Even people are assured by a scientist, teacher, and a commander in the army that “they would not be held responsible…most continued”. (202) In the case of the Milgram experiment, Dr. Thomas Blass “found that the percentage of participants who are prepared to inflict fatal voltages remains remarkably constant, 61-66 percent, regardless of time or place.” (202) Curiosity drives us to look at the most gruesome sights, and it was “Curiosity that killed the cat”.
Today being Valentines Day, I had alot of work to complete for the weekend still. So I stayed home and spent my day with my main man Jazz. He may not talk much, but he will sing your head off!
That's me with the fake fur hat! The prompt for the assignment of the day was to be a traveler from a different planet, ex. the planet from AVATAR. Well, I have yet to see AVATAR so I did the best that I could do in the short time, and turned in my handwritten assignment the day of. "What else is a girl to do?" when time is valuable and there seems to be less of it all the time. So I am doing the best I can in this class with the time I am allotted.
"If you are unwilling to defend your right to your own lives, then you are merely like mice trying to argue with owls. You think their ways are wrong. They think you are dinner." - Terry Goodkind
From a young age, I realized that life would be interesting, difficult and at times fulfilling. I walked to a beat of a different drummer, so to speak. This seems to be a common theme with those that grew up as an only child and have experienced much in a short lifespan. I have always felt the presence from the unknown, like the spirits of the earth were somehow guiding me through the best and the worst times. A strange wind may blow, and in my subconscious I hear the words “be aware”. After hearing such messages from the earth, my belief in its greater power would strengthen upon hearing of family tragedy, confirming its warnings. I have assumed most of this to be from my heritage, that of which being Black Dutch, Irish, English and Native American. Each of these cultures has their own traditions as well as superstitions about the spiritual realm. “Among the American Indians: the hereditary…emblem… consisting of a figure or representation of some animal… having such a mark; also applied to the animal… sometimes considered to be ancestrally or fraternally related to the clan, being spoken of as a brother or sister, and treated as an object of friendly regard, or sometimes even as incarnating a guardian spirit who be appealed to.” 2 I know this phenomenon has a history within my family, tracing back through my maternal grandmothers’ ancestry which has the strongest ties to my Indian heritage. As I write my thoughts related to my walk with my spirit guide, and I see his image all around me.
Native American Artistic expression of Owl2
I have known for many years that my spiritual guide, otherwise known as a totem/power animal, is the owl. “Power animals, rather than being associated with a family or a group, are specific and personal for each individual.”3 At a young age I was bestowed with an Indian name by a family member. I take great pride with my name being WhiteFeather. I have been told in many Native American cultures the symbolic name of white feather is attributed to bravery and having a pure heart. Growing up I wondered if the meaning of my name would reveal itself to me, as it usually is with names that are bestowed upon you. I was uncertain of how my name’s representation would develop with time. It was almost a decade later that my spiritual guide reveled himself to be an owl.
Owl looking toward the horizon3
While growing up, and into the present, I haven’t had the option of staying in one place for extended amounts of time. Due to family, jobs, and school, I never had the chance to stay at a school for more than 2 years. I have met extraordinary people in addition to seeing several places in my life walk and it took many years for me to realize a common element. When I was nearly 20, I took time to start revisiting in my mind many of the places I had been. While looking out of my window I was surprised to see an owl sitting in the tree looking my way. While returning the gaze to the beautiful creature, I started to think back to other place that I had called home through the years. I was struck with the realization that there had always been an owl close by. I don’t remember seeing an owl at each of these places, but I do remember hearing his cry in the ominous night air. At this moment I had an epiphany about my friend sitting in the tree that I had not taken the time to acknowledge in the past. Elements from my youth came together in my mind to finally making sense about my heritage name. The spirit of the earth had called my attention to this creature for a reason. I felt an instant connection to the owl and have ever since. After that night of self actualization, I never heard or saw the owl outside my window again, yet I still feel his presence when I start to feel overwhelmed in my daily struggles.
I knew what my power animal has been for many years, and I have had my own thoughts and personal insights to what this creature represents for me personally. I have found a kind redness with the owl, more so then some people that have come and gone in my life. I view the owl to be a proud creature, silent and ever watching. They observe the situation before their strike. They live in the realm of the unknown and are most alert in the dark abyss. I have had trouble sleeping for the past few years, catching sleep when I can and being awake most nights. As it has been said toward totem/power animals, if they chose you there is reason behind this decision. I have viewed this to be either a trait that you share with the creature, or traits that you need to find within yourself. I can attest that both are true in my case. Without having the time to make deep and lasting connections with the people around me, I tend to stay in the background watching. I chose my words wisely (for the most part) before I speak, and only speak when I have something to say. I wait for opportunities to present themselves so that I may strike at the most opportune time to accomplish my tasks.
I have lived a life a fulfilling life, though many times being dark. I choose to keep these memories and stories hidden from those around me, as I want to embody who I am at the present, rather than the person I left behind years ago. The owl is seen to be the keeper of secrets. He observes the situation before acting, and then moves swiftly and quietly. I don’t have secrets, just memories and a past that no one has taken time to poise questions about. Though at times, it seems that in times of turmoil in my life I need to step back from myself and see the events from a third perspective. This is such a time, where I’m more so focused at each event individually and they keep building up around me. I need to step back and re-evaluate these situations so that I can gain ground again to move forward.
Barred owl with wings spread in the night sky4
Owls are a creature of the night, and have in the past been thought of as an evil creature in some cultures. As times and representations change, so has the image of the owl. The owl presents an image of strength and independence. Many organizations have taken the image of the owl as their mascot to symbolize many qualities of the owl, such as the presence of intelligence. Something that I find interesting is the trait of extreme mobility that I also share with this creature. The owl has extreme mobility of his neck, and is able to turn his head to fully view what is behind. I have had many structural problems through the years and was recently diagnosed with having over elastic ligaments. This “problem” has given me limitations, but also helps me to excel in extreme situations in my Krav Maga training.
I glance around me and see owls represented throughout my apartment. I have tokens, that when I look upon them a feel a sense of peace and empowerment. For, “you must honor your totem for its medicine to be effective in your life. The more you honor them, the more significance you give them within your life, the more powerful and effective they become.” My friends find an easy time of buying me gifts, as all they have to do is find something with representation of an owl. I was told by my grandmother at a young age that having an owl somewhere within the home will bring good feng shui into the surrounding area. I guess my apartment is full of good vibes. I also carry an owl with me at all times, as I will for the rest of my life. I have dedicated my right leg to be my personal totem pole. In other words, I have a “stocking” of images and text that are close to me. I will always carry around my favorite inspirational quote, along with my spiritual animal, my owl. In regard to my owl tattoo, I choose to have him drawn in a red ink that takes on the appearance of fresh henna. This decision was to have more of an earthy quality instead of traditional black lines that will spread and fade over time.
My personal totem5
As I have described my experiences and views of my totem/power animal, there are many more views and attitudes toward the owl that I should address. The best description of having an owl for a power animal that I have found is by Lily Therese.
“Owl represents your subconscious and the occult (that which is hidden)… Some Native Americas refer to owl as Night Eagle. Others view Owl with suspicion and fear. Owl is a beneficial influence for people who are attuned with the Goddess, or other Earth related religions.
If you have an Owl for a power animal, its message is to pay attention to your dreams and feelings. Question your fears and act on your intuition. Focus on our intentions and move swiftly toward your goals and objectives. Be silent and conserve your energy until you are ready to act with undivided attention… Invoke Owl to help with discernment and self-knowledge. Do not fear the dark or unknown… Take time to get acquainted with your shadow-self.”4
I stated earlier that I walked a life path to the beat of a different drummer. I find this true within myself and for those closest to me. I walk down this path of life looking ahead with the sound of the flutter of wings in my ears. I continue to look out my window, expecting to see my familiar though I have no trees outside my window in the city. Life brings many unexpected trails and forks that you must choose from. I hope that in the future that I will find my “somewhere over the rainbow” from one of those forks. -Candice Talley
Owl flying across rainbow6
“You catch your breath and you laugh, thanking it for opening to you. As you do, its image disappears, and the scene around you begins to fade. You are again in the warm darkness of our own mind. The image of your totem is strong within you, as you breathe deeply and allow yourself to come back to your surroundings.”1
Word Count (without quotations): 1,503 Word Count (with quotations): 1,769
Works Cited 1. Animal-Speak. N.p.: n.p., n.d 2. Benet, Sula. "Totem." Abstract, Totem. 3. Steven D. Farmer, Power Animals (Carlsbad, Ca.: Hay House: 2004), pp. 4-5 4. Therese, Lily. "Owl's Message and Medicine." Power Animals and Their Messages. http://www.lilytherese.com/POWER1.HTM#Owl (accessed February 8, 2010).
Once again I was confronted by issues, and subjects that I was uncomfortable with or had no previous knowledge. There are subjects that I choose to acknowledge only without giving my opinion or blessing too. I will do my best to sort out the images and thoughts about the readings I have just completed. With such a short space to write, and time looming over I will condense, and make my points as best as I can.
I have never looked into the history of the longhorn, or the stories told. Relating this to being at UT, most of my classmates are longhorns for life. The stories about longhorns told by Frank Dobie hit a string within me as to why the Longhorn is the symbol for UT. In the stories, the main focus was about a single longhorn always returning home. Longhorns are “gentle animals” that seem to be “the most persistent returners.” (Dobie, pg. 258 The Longhorns) This could be true to longhorn students as well, with all of the groups focused on being a longhorn now and for life. For example, the Texas Exes program focuses on bringing current and former students together to relish in the fact that they are indeed “Longhorns.” Though Frank Dobie insists that “the longhorns of the brush, instead of being modified by men, bent men to their own ways…” (Dobie, pg. 289 The Longhorns) he also told stories of these “free” longhorns finding any means possible to get back to their homeland.
I would find myself to be more toward the mustang heritage of Texas and of the University of Texas. In regard to the mustang, “their essence was the spirit of freedom.” (Dobie, pg. Xi The Mustangs) I had transferred into UT from another college, and in keeping within my own tradition, I have never stayed at one school for more than two years. I pack up, and I move to wear there is “water” so to speak. For me that water is experiences that feed my soul. “Only stubborn facts in human history can explain the arrival of mustang horses upon the land where, in association with mustang men, they ran their course of freedom.” (Dobie, pg. Xi The Mustangs) Mustangs do have many character traits that correlate to the longhorn, relating to territory and tendencies to stay in the same area. The difference I see is that the mustang believes him/her to be free and is able to move with changes and adapt. The spirit of the mustang is one of not breaking, but once an alliance is forged with a rider their bond is till death. If the mustang does not trust the rider, the horse will die before their freedom is given up. "I will not be tamed, only persuaded. I will not be coerced or led blindly or tricked or bullied - I am willing only to be convinced. If you don't trust your own basic goodness enough to tell me what you're trying to do... Then you're confessing your own moral weakness and I'll never serve you." Orson Scott Card
Jumping to different topics, within the realm of humanity and the relationship to animals, I turn now to passages by Hemingway. Within the first paragraph, a statement struck me to be true. “Whoever reads this can only truly make such a judgment when he or she, has seen the things that are spoken of and knows truly what their reactions to them would be.” (Hemingway pg. 1, Death in the Afternoon) I choose to apply this reading to my own knowledge, and experiences and choose not to make a direct opinion on bullfighting. I have never witnessed a bullfight, and I personally choose not to. I find the death of an animal strictly for entertainment, sacrificial, or for tradition to be a waste of life. I can find understanding in the killing of animals for a purpose. Other animals, including ourselves, have killed to feed ourselves. I can understand the sport of hunting, only when use is made of the kill for food and clothing. I have worn and made clothing from animals, only when I have the best understanding that the animal had served a purpose for food… I will get into this discussion at other time. A quote that brings my point home is from “Spilling the Blood of Bulls” when after the bull is killed within tradition “the bull, no longer the center of attention lay motionless in the mud, its bulky head wrenched…” (pg. 711, Spilling the Blood of Bulls) For the animal to die in a brutal fashion, to be cast aside dead is not within my spectrum of reasoning.
A final thought, once again after reading “Death in the Afternoon”, relates to a correlation that Hemingway makes with two types of people. “I believe, after experience and observation, that those people who identify themselves with animals… are capable of greater cruelty to human beings than those who do not identify themselves readily with animals…” (Hemingway pg. 5, Death in the Afternoon) I relate this passage to what I have seen and read of war. History has shown how men reacted in battle when riding in on horseback. It was not difficult for the enemy to take the life of men from the other side, yet it has been recorded that it was much more difficult to take the life of the horse upon which the rider commanded. I hope that my ideas came across this webpage. Had I more space and time I feel that I could have completed these fractured thoughts. As it is in college, time management comes at a cost.
I have always been interested in the story of Alice, as in Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. I saw the Disney version of the story when I was much younger, and the main characters still stick in my mind years later. The caterpillar spelling his words in smoke, the smile of the Cheshire cat, and the humpty dumpty looking twiddle dee and twiddle dum are images still in my mind. The reading selections from the Alice series by Lewis Carroll left me confused, and wanting the whole story. When I have the time, I do plan on straightening out the story by reading it whole. 
This theme of seduction is also found in a poem Alice recites to herself while pondering if she had changed. The poem, though a parody of a popular poem at the time reads: “How cheerfully he seems to grin, how neatly spreads his claws, and welcomes little fishes in, with gently smiling jaws” (467). The crocodile smiles as he seduces his food straight into his mouth.
Carroll plays with themes of seduction in relation to animals seducing other animals to become their food, and the seduction Alice feels as she tries to navigate the strange and erotic world of Wonderland. Throughout the story she is faced with decisions, and the question of “who are you” posed by the caterpillar (479). She was originally seduced with the question of where the rabbit was going when she fell into the rabbit hole.
