presentation on 'Eco criticism' prepared by Avani Jani

1. Prepared by : Avani Jani
M.A Sem: 3
Paper : Paper 204: Contemporary Western
Theories and Film Studies
Roll no: 3
Enrollment no: 4069206420220014
Submitted to: Department of English, MKBU

2. Points to Ponder:
1] Definition
2] History of Zoo
3] Zoo Criticism
4] Prominent Works within the Lens of Zoo Criticism
5]Animal Welfare and Animal Rights
6] Jail without Bars
7] Conclusion

3. ● National Geographic defines Zoo as -
“A zoo is a place where animals live in captivity and are put on display for people to
view. The word “zoo” is short for “zoological park." (Norrix)
● Short form of “zoological park”
History of Zoo:
As mentioned in ‘Hankering for History’...
1.The Period of Kings and Emperors
● During the Pax Romana and Holy Roman Empire, exotic animals were added to the imperial
collection as diplomatic gifts. In the 8th century, Emperor Charlemagne received elephants and other
exotic animals as gifts from African and Asian monarchs.(Suson and Donaldson)
● William the Conqueror had a small collection at Woodstock manor.In the 1100s, Henry I expanded it
with camels, leopards, lions, lynxes, owls, and a porcupine. In the 13th century, diplomatic gifts swelled
the royal menagerie, such as 3 leopards from Emperor Frederick II, a white bear from the ruler of Norway,
and an elephant from the ruler of France.(Suson and Donaldson)
Definition

4. ● William the Conqueror had a small collection at Woodstock manor.In the
1100s, Henry I expanded it with camels, leopards, lions, lynxes, owls, and a
porcupine. In the 13th century, diplomatic gifts swelled the royal menagerie, such
as 3 leopards from Emperor Frederick II, a white bear from the ruler of Norway,
and an elephant from the ruler of France.(Suson and Donaldson)
● France began menageries in the 1600s, for staged fights. Animals were
placed in small, caged enclosures under the amphitheaters, with a small yard
for exercise. In the late 1600s, the menagerie at Versailles was built as a
pleasure garden. Exotic animals were kept in enclosures, which were
arranged in a circle facing a pavilion in which visitors could stay. This
framework was emulated by other European rulers. (Suson and Donaldson)

5. ● In the 16th century, British royal menageries opened to the public
under Elizabeth I. In the 18th century, Emperor Francis I also made
his private menagerie accessible to the public. Zoological gardens
like Central Park and Philadelphia Zoos later embraced a public,
open-to-all design. .(Suson and Donaldson)
3. The Period of the Public Audience:
2.The Period of the Scientists and the History of Zoos
● The first zoo created only for scientific purposes was the London Zoo in
1828, established by the Zoological Society of London. In 1831, the
Dublin Zoo was created for the medical study of animals both alive and
dead. In 1860 the Central Park Zoo was the first built in the United
States, the Philadelphia Zoo following in 1874. (Suson and Donaldson)

6. Zoo Criticism
● Zoo criticism primarily explores the reflection of the human-animal
relationship in literature. However, it's important to emphasize that zoo
criticism goes beyond merely examining animals in literary works.
● As Graham Huggan and Helen Tiffin have said: "…zoo criticism – as
we might term its practice in literary studies – is concerned not just
with animal representation but also with animal rights" (Huggan and Tiffin)
● God's declaration in the first twenty-six verses of the Genesis that-
"Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have
dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over
every living thing that moves upon the earth." (James )
(“Zoos drive animals insane”)

7. ● As remarked by Aarthi Vadde, from the book “Postcolonial Ecocriticism” that - The opening
chapter of Part II, titled "Ivory and Elephants," astutely revisits the foundational text of
postcolonial analysis, Heart of Darkness, to explore the dehumanization of Africans and the
notable absence of elephants in a novella saturated with ivory.(VADDE )
● Huggan and Tiffin place Joseph Conrad's novella alongside colonial hunting accounts, a
welcome maneuver that shows the reader how Europeans used elephant hunting as an
opportunity to display their technological prowess and managerial control over the colonies.
● Aarthi Vadde considers,George Orwell's essay "Shooting an Elephant" as the narrator's
embarrassed reflections on his motivations for shooting a rogue elephant would have made an
excellent counterpoint to the posturing hunting accounts that tie European masculinity and
imperial order to the killing of animals.
● It would seem that zoo criticism's reparative potential in the human sphere lies in
its privileging of the body as a source of knowledge, yet it is unclear how reading
the elephant body should change our reading of the raced and sexed human
body. (VADDE )
Prominent Works within the Lens of Zoo Criticism

8. ● Animal welfare refers to the state of the animal; the treatment that an
animal receives is covered by other terms such as animal care, animal
husbandry, and humane treatment. (“Animal welfare: What is it?”)
● Welfarists consider that animals are harmed by humans only in
those cases in which our treatment of them generates pain or
suffering, or removes opportunities for pleasant or satisfying
experiences. (Monsó )
● As PETA defines Animal rights- Animal rights means that animals are not
ours to use for food, clothing, entertainment, or experimentation. Animal
welfare allows these uses as long as “humane” guidelines are followed.
(“What is the difference between “animal rights” and “animal welfare”?”)
Animal Welfare and Animal Rights

9. Jail without Bars
● Gir National Park
● The Movie ‘Sherni’ A forest officer named Vidya is assigned the challenging task of capturing and containing a
man-eating tigress in a remote village. However, she encounters hostility from various sides as she tries to fulfill
her duty. The local MLA turns it into a political issue and hires a hunter to kill the tigress, hoping to gain political
advantage in the next election. Vidya, on the other hand, is determined to capture the tigress alive. She and her
team track the tigress's pawprints. Although the hunter successfully kills the tigress, he is unable to locate the
cubs. Villagers discover the cubs hiding under a wooden log and discreetly inform Vidya, ultimately saving the
cubs.
(DeshGujaratHD)
(Masurkar)

10. ● As ‘The Wire’ reports ‘Tigress Avni’ case, it claims- According to the National Tiger
Conservation Authority’s guidelines, a tiger can be known as a “man- eating tiger” only if
leaves its own habitat and comes into human territory, lurks to find humans as if they are
its own prey, and habitually feeds on their flesh. Going by the pattern of the killings and
Avni’s behaviour, it appears she cannot be classified as a “man-eater”, something the
state has been trying to claim.(Shantha)
● Reported review of Mridul Vaibhav (an independent wildlife conservationist) by ‘The Wire’-
“There has been an indiscriminate exploitation of forest resources lately. Villagers cross
over to the forest in search of small forest produce. Wild animals which are highly
territorial feel threatened,”
● Power : Maharashtra, unlike other states that pay Rs 4 lakh in compensation, pays Rs 8
lakh to the keen of those killed in a tiger attack. “The state has already spent over 60 lakh
[rupees] in the past two years paying compensation. It clearly is a costly process for the
department to take care of the tigers. The most viable option is to kill them,” Subramaniam
said.

11. 467 hectares of Yavatmal forest land given to Reliance…
● As reported by Sukanya Shantha, Apart from allegations of
mismanagement and general apathy towards wildlife in the state,
activists claim there is an attempt to sell the forest land to industrial
and commercial lobbies. In January this year, around 467 hectares
of forest reserve land were sold to the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group,
which proposed to set up a cement plant in the Zari Jamni Tehsil
only 50 km from Pandharkawada forest and Mukutban, which has a
reported presence of breeding tigers. At least two more such
projects have been planned in and around the forest amidst local
resistance.
● The area around Mukutban and nearby Korpana is rich in limestone and
dolomite reserves. Presence of the minerals and its mining has already
helped some cement plants located in nearby Chandrapur as well as
Adilabad in Telangana across the state border. (Bhagwat)

12. Conclusion:
In summary, zoo criticism highlights ethical and conservation concerns
related to animals in captivity, challenging us to balance conservation efforts
with the welfare and rights of captive animals. It emphasizes the need for
ethical treatment, adequate living conditions, and a focus on preserving
natural habitats. Zoo criticism encourages a reevaluation of our relationship
with animals in captivity and a commitment to ethical practices and
conservation.

13. Refrences Cited
“Animal welfare: What is it?” American Veterinary Medical Association, https://www.avma.org/resources/animal-health-welfare/animal-
welfare-what-it.
Bhagwat, Ramu. “467 hectares of Yavatmal forest land given to Reliance | Nagpur News - Times of India.” The Times of India, 23 January
2018, https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/467-hectares-of-yavatmal-forest-land-given-to-
reliance/articleshow/62610513.cms.
DeshGujaratHD. “Another video of illegal lion show in Gir goes viral.” YouTube, DeshGujratHD, 9 March 2019,
https://youtu.be/BvAkJAuqLn0?si=rLi_8yKpO0Jeb1Xq.
Huggan, Graham, and Helen Tiffin. Postcolonial Ecocriticism: Literature, Animals, Environment. Routledge, 2010.
James, King. The Book of Genesis. Independently Published, 2017.
Masurkar, Amit V., director. Sherni. T-Series Abundantia Entertainment, 18 June 2021.
Monsó, Susana. “Animal Morality: What It Means and Why It Matters.” Springer, no. December 2018, 27 September 2018. Springer,
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10892-018-9275-3#citeas.
Norrix, Loy. “Zoo.” National Geographic Society, 8 August 2023, https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/zoo/.
Shantha, Sukanya. “Activists Suspect Maharashtra's Motives to Kill Tigress Avni.” The Wire, 3 November 2018,
https://thewire.in/environment/maharashtra-prepares-to-kill-alleged-man-eater-activists-and-experts-protest.

14. Suson, Esther Elizabeth, and James Donaldson. “The History of Zoos.” Hankering for History,
https://hankeringforhistory.com/history-of-zoos/.
VADDE, AARTHI. “Cross-Pollination: Ecocriticism, Zoocriticism, Postcolonialism.” Contemporary Literature, vol. 52, no.
3, 2011, pp. 565–73. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41472508.
“What is the difference between “animal rights” and “animal welfare”?” PETA, https://www.peta.org/about-peta/faq/what-
is-the-difference-between-animal-rights-and-animal-welfare/.
“Zoos drive animals insane.” YouTube, Daily Mail, 9 March 2019, https://youtube.com/watch?v=8-
HpJdqiZfU&si=P8uvlnzobSj0TyYf.
Suson, Esther Elizabeth, and James Donaldson. “The History of Zoos.” Hankering for History,
https://hankeringforhistory.com/history-of-zoos/.
VADDE, AARTHI. “Cross-Pollination: Ecocriticism, Zoocriticism, Postcolonialism.” Contemporary
Literature, vol. 52, no. 3, 2011, pp. 565–73. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41472508.
“What is the difference between “animal rights” and “animal welfare”?” PETA, https://www.peta.org/about-
peta/faq/what-is-the-difference-between-animal-rights-and-animal-welfare/.
“Zoos drive animals insane.” YouTube, Daily Mail, 9 March 2019, https://youtube.com/watch?v=8-
HpJdqiZfU&si=P8uvlnzobSj0TyYf.