Animals
I just read an amazing article in the NYTimes Magazine titled An Elephant Crackup? The author of the article, Charles Siebert, attempts to understand why attacks by elephants on villages, people and other animals are on the rise. In so doing, he quickly discovers that the fraying of the fabric of pachyderm society is due in large part to humanity.
As he makes this discovery it becomes evident that elephants are as socially progressive as humans. Just as a child who experiences trauma at an early age becomes disillusioned and troubled, so do young elephants - calves. The bad news is that elephants are enduring trauma of all sorts - poaching, circuses, zoos, etc. The good news is that there are programs in place to help elephants recover from this trauma such as The Elephant Sanctuary. The sociological findings are so clear that the Bronx Zoo has vowed to phase out its elephant exhibit once its three current elephant inhabitants die.
Reading an article such as this once again forces me to question my place in this created world. And then, upon answering the question, challenges me to take action.
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As he makes this discovery it becomes evident that elephants are as socially progressive as humans. Just as a child who experiences trauma at an early age becomes disillusioned and troubled, so do young elephants - calves. The bad news is that elephants are enduring trauma of all sorts - poaching, circuses, zoos, etc. The good news is that there are programs in place to help elephants recover from this trauma such as The Elephant Sanctuary. The sociological findings are so clear that the Bronx Zoo has vowed to phase out its elephant exhibit once its three current elephant inhabitants die.
Reading an article such as this once again forces me to question my place in this created world. And then, upon answering the question, challenges me to take action.
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posted by jch at
1:28 PM
1 Comments:
I discovered while doing research on a paper a couple years ago that elephants have been known to return to the site of a mate's death and caress the bones months after. I don't know if elephants grieve, but it certainly indicates some awareness of loss.
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