Animal or Human?

[Rickson]

Why is it humans feel the need to seperate themselves from the world of animals when we are animals ourselves?

In my new neck piece 'Feral' hair and resin thorns grow from bone and a spinal like tail runs down my back. As a human I feel my body is vulnerable and would prefer to have more bodily defences than I am born with.

How do you feel about your human body? Would you rather be built more like an animal?
Do you feel a tension between your animal and human side?
Why do you think people want to seperate themselves from animals?

Any thoughts are welcome about the subject or my work!

Thank you for your participation.

[Rickson]

wow I feel like you reached into my mind and pulled out my thoughts! I couldn't agree more with your ideas on awareness and territoriality. I have become increasingly aware of how much people express their territory with subtle (often obvious actually) motions and comments. I try really hard to only say what I mean, because I see others expressing subconscious desires with sarcastic comments and it can be very confusing, since they are not aware of it. Do you respond to the sarcasm, or what you think is being expressed I want people to feel comfortable with who or what they really are, and we are animals. But I was also thinking the other day about 'savages' and pictured early human's fighting in the forrest and just being totally carnal and killing each other. I was thinking that people don't act that way anymore and I can understand why it would be looked down on. But then I think of guns, and jail and torture and war...which I think are civilized versions of just fighting with your bare hands and killing someone.

SO basically I don't think humans will ever stop being animals, even though we try. I like to be aware of myself though, which is what I really like about your comment on awareness. I don't mind if people are real and animalistic as long as they are aware of it, and the same for being civilized. I am coming to understand that my family is a 'victim' of civility because they don't seem to realize how much of their behaviour is based on being 'civilized'. But I like civility, there is nothing wrong with it, but I think it's dangerous to believe that we are 'naturally' like this . That's why I like what you said about people having to train themselves to be uncivil. Very true.

Good for you and your efforts with your dog. My first cat was put to sleep and I will never agree with the process. But my view point is animals and humans should die when they are ready, and maybe my cat was ready, but I didn't make the decision because I was little. Now I don't want to own pets, I like being friends with animals outside and think houses are a human invention for humans. Now building a shelter specifically for an animal/pet. That would be cool!

I really like your early buds work. Such a nice concept to glorify the beauty of buds, rather than flowers. I like looking at all stages of life and seeing the beauty in it, not just the climax of life. You create really nice work.

Wow thanks so much, you've helped me further some of my thoughts and explore new ones. Thanks!

[2Roses]

Interesting discussion of our "animal" nature and "civility". When a person "owns" an animal usually the first thing they do is impose some level of domesticated civility on it. This takes the form of training the animal to conform to human requirements of where (and when) to defecate, when and what to eat and a host of other behaviors that, in essence, prohibit the animal from acting on its natural animal tendencies. This is essentially what societies impose on individuals, whether it be a tribe, city or nation. If you would like to see wild animals in their natural state you need only to visit a zoo or prison.

[Rickson]

Oh, I couldn't agree more. Though your comment on zoo or prison had me let out a sigh/wimper.

The term 'natural' is so strange. Because I agree with everything you said, but I was also really facinated to find out that some ants 'farm' other insects. I can't remember the type, but they actually control their reproduction and farm them like we farm animals (without 'technology').

Information like this causes me to be less cynical about human's 'domesticating' other animals, and ourselves. But I can't get away from the feeling that domesticity is very odd, and when I see dogs with choke chains on, or parents walking their children with leashes, I can't help but cringe.

[John Harris]

I think that ultimately, humans strive to be seperate from animals. In other words, we seperate ourselves in theory to enforce our idealogy of being different. I think inevitably, we need to look at things with relativity:

All animals develop and evolve techniques to ensure their own survival, as well as the long-term survival of the species. This happens over a long, long, LONG period of time and is in no control of the changed species. Humans tend to put their intelligence at the center of our difference from animals, however, our intellect is merely our evolutionary "trick" to better our rate of survival. We don't swim well, climb well, run well, and we aren't very strong. But we don't have to be. We made boats, ladders, cars, and pullies to solve all of those problems. In other words, we developed our brain as our strongest muscle, purely as an adaptation to fill a niche that was not filled: The tool-user.

If we look at it from that analytical, un-biased perspective, then humans are different while not being different. We fill a particular niche, so we are different. However, we only fill that niche out of neccessity. Seriously, had we not started in the desert, we could be fish right now. Lol



To look at your subject specifically, we are born with little physical defense, but we have the ability to manipulate materials in order to form that defense. So I suppose we are born as blank slates, but have the ability to manipulate materials to form whatever defense we could possibly need.


That's just this guy's perspective, though.Lol

[Rickson]

Fabulous! Pulled the thoughts right from my head and articulated them perfectly!

Your thoughts are exactly what I find frustrating about having a human body, especially a female one. My brain and hands are smart, but my body is purely sexual. I can't see any other use for it in popular culture. And of course making babies is a popular theme for female bodies as well. I can imagine men have similar identity issues...always being asked to do manual labour, but not allowed to show agression, or violence unless playing sports or living vicariously through video games. It seems our brains matured faster than our bodies, and now our brains are in control...but always having to control our bodies natural tendancies...where did the gap get created, when did we forget that our brains ARE our bodies...they are one unit...not two.

The body is a fickle element of life isn't it? Like you said we can't 'swim well, run well, climb well and we aren't very strong.'

What bothers me a lot is how we keep animals that CAN do those things better than us, away. Zoos, cages, domestification (word? haha), these things creep me out a little. And I don't think they are bad....I just like those movies that show computers or machines farming us, becuase that's what I picture when I see humans farming animals, I picture them doing it to us and how horrified people would be to see it.

Anyways, I went all over the board there with topic... but thanks so much for your thoughts. Helped me to see my work, and my thoughts more clearly.

haza! :)

Rickson