The first point discussed by our video was different examples of speciesism. As an introduction to the topic, we asked viewers whether they would fish for people, eat their best friend, or tie a friend to a tree. These are three common examples of actions that could be considered acts of speciesism- fishing, hunting, and tying dogs to trees/ treating them differently from humans. Hopefully, the viewers would respond 'no' to all three questions, leading into our next question: Why would they do these things to other animals? Inconsistent application of rights to different species, such as these examples, is discussed briefly in Infinite Nature (on pg. 166) as a possible sign that we may be guilty of speciesism.
The video then went on to offer a definition of speciesism, our next point. Class discussions and text defined speciesism as "the use of arbitrary criteria to defend the rights of humans to exploit animals and other units of nature" and the declaration that "other animals are inferior because they are not human." The text also went on to discuss the use of human characteristics to determine what animals should be granted rights. We decided to use a different definition for our video: "A failure in attitude or practice to afford any nonhuman being equal consideration and respect." While both are correct definitions, we thought that the second would fit better with the message of our video, and that having another definition of speciesism would help the class to better understand this topic.
Next, we discussed speciesism as a form of discrimination. This idea was discussed in class and in the text as well, and speciesism was compared to racism and sexism. Because the class discussion included a good bit of detail on this concept, we only briefly touched on it.
The fourth point discussed was the 'ladder' metaphor, a topic introduced early in class and in the class text. We took a creative spin on the information presented in class and showed different stuffed animals perched on the rungs of a playground ladder, with Lucy placing herself at the top to symbolize the way that humans frequently place themselves above other species. If you look closely, you can see that they are placed on rungs according to the value that is often given to their species- dogs near the top, rodents near the bottom.
Lastly, we introduced the 'bush' metaphor, which was also discussed in class and the text as an alternative way of viewing ecological interactions and importance. Once again, we chose to depict this creatively with a scene showing Kat and the stuffed animals scattered among a large bush. Lucy, our narrator, explained that this metaphor views humans as just another species in the world, or "just another little twig in the bush of life."
In addition to these five points, our video offered suggestions for avoiding speciesism and rethinking the way we treat other animals. The closing scene features Kat, Lucy, and Brett singing their version of a well-known Woody Allen song, and leaving the viewer with the idea that this land was made for people and animals.
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I liked the video you made a good argument in the beginning by asking the viewer if they would treat other people like they sometimes treat animals. It was helpful that you defined sepciesism both contextually and in your own words. The ladder and bush visuals were helpful in understanding each point of view. After viewing I agree that most all of us are guilty of speciesism. You mentioned that the video offered suggestions for avoiding speciesism but they were very general and I would have liked a more specific example for a solution to avoiding speciesism.
ReplyDeleteI think you guys did a good job overall on your video project. I know you said that you didn't want to get to graphic and gross anyone out but sometimes that can be the best way to get you point across to some people. Your video was very funny but I think sometimes the point your trying to make can get lost in the humor. Having said all that I did enjoy watching your video.
ReplyDeleteI think you all did a good job on the video, it was entertaining to watch and I could tell you guys had a lot of fun making the video. The videos main focus was to make people aware and to make them think. The acting comparing what we do to animals to humans was a great way to get your point across for hunting, fishing, and tying a dog to a tree. One question this raised from me is that we tie a dog to a tree most of the time to protect it, like your child, someone could say we do treat our pets like a small child. I think they did a great job showing the difference between the “ladder” metaphor versus the “bush” and making it easy to understand.
ReplyDeleteI think that Group 12 put of a lot of work into their video. It looks like they went to a great deal of places and used a lot of props to make their video, showing the amount of thought that they put into their video. It was a creative way of showing what speciesism is and made me not want to eat any of my friends. However, there was some awkward silences and at times a lack of flow between scenes, making it a little slow and hard to follow. Also, I feel like those that don’t have an idea of what speciesism is may still be slightly unsure after watching the video, so a more concrete example may have been beneficial.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the use of comedy. Comedy can be a very effective tool for pointing out the absurdities in our thought processes. Monty Python did a lot of this sort of social commentary, thus I heartily approve of this video. I was a bit disappointed by all the dead air in the video. I think the video would have had greater impact with the right music taking up the dead space. Other than that though this video was rocking.
ReplyDeleteThe video did have a lot of comedic parts to it, but it was not the greatest video of the bunch. There were a lot of silent parts that could have been enhanced if there had been talking/explanation. The idea of speciesism was evident and the ideas the group had for representing them were appropriate. The message was well conveyed, but just not well put together. The video was a little choppy and the voice-overs were not always in sync with what was happening. Also the video was blurry at times and it was difficult to see what was being acted out.
ReplyDeleteAHAHAHAHAHA i love you guys. This was very lucy-esque. I think you definitley made you're point with the examples. The overall video was a little choppy but the points about speciesism were made. You would try to eat your best friend, so why would I want to do that to anything else? We are all guilty of speciesism.
ReplyDeleteI can tell you all had a lot of fun making this video. It was really fun to watch. You demonstrated the main points in a method what was entertaining and easy to understand. It was a little hard to read what was on the chalk board but overall I really enjoyed watching your video.
ReplyDelete-Courtney Beale
This video was extremely creative. I like how you related the concept personally to the viewer "you wouldn't tie your friend to a tree..." Speciesism is explained well here - the only suggestion I have is that maybe you could have related it more to racism and sexism as well! But overall I liked the video and think the point was shared well!
ReplyDeleteYou guys clearly have a good sense of humor and lot of energy (which is always nice), plus your direct approach certainly gets the basics out quickly. The vast philosophical consequences of this issue, however, are hardly touched upon. Why aren’t humans better? Why do you feel the bush metaphor is more accurate? There are tons of arguments, from “evolution down a different path doesn’t equate to superiority” to “varying degrees of sentience shouldn’t warrant varying rights” to “nothing has intrinsic value (rather, value is a construct), thus all things are truly equal and should be treated as such.” There’s a lot to work with here, so where’s the beef?
ReplyDeleteThe volume wasn't consistent and the video was kinda choppy. I did like the bush metaphor and the skits. They were very thought provoking. 99% of the world is speciesist and you showed it. You made your points and did it with some comedy. Good job.
ReplyDelete-Craig Jackson
This video was very entertaining. It did not have too much information, but did make you think. It asked questions in an entertaining manner that made you think deeply about a serious topic. Nice work.
ReplyDeleteI thought you all had good skits to present your points about speciesism. I had never thought about this issue that much until watching your video. The questions that you all asked I think make people look more into this issue and really consider what is going on. Only critiques I have are the volume going in and out here and there, and also I thought there was little bit of a lack of information towards your topic. Overall though, I thought the video was for the most part pretty creative and entertaining, and the questions asked in the skits are very good for people to look more into speciesism.
ReplyDelete-Jacob Evans
The video was entertaining, but somewhat slow. The message was portrayed in a simple enough way that this could be used to get across the message to wide array of age groups. It was good that you brought in the ladder and bush metaphors with illustrations of what that looks like. The use of humans to show what you would and wouldn't do to your friends/humans was a good way to make people make the comparison to see what speciesism really entails.
ReplyDeleteI think that this video brought up some very controversial topics, and I do believe that you communicated the point of the negative aspects of speciesism very well. I don’t think there were any issues with your video, but do have some qualms with some of the comparisons you made. When you contrast hunting and fishing of your friends to that of animals you seem to want us to think that the reason these things are wrong when we do them to other animals is because we should have the same sympathy for them as we do for people. Just because we are hungry and need to eat do we not have the right to find that food however necessary? To say that it is wrong of us to do this is like saying that it is wrong for a shark to eat a person, or for a mountain lion to attack a child because they should feel bad for us. When we enter these creatures habitats they are the dominant ones, but does this make them capable of speciesism?
ReplyDeleteI liked this film because it was very original and there weren’t many digital effects. It wasn’t direct to the point per say, but rather it played out in a comical situation that built up to the topic. It helped to put the topic into perspective so that it was easier to understand and it was very thought provoking, trying to view the situation from a different angle. Overall I think you guys did a good job and I enjoyed watching the film.
ReplyDeleteThis was a very creative video, great job! I’m impressed that the whole video features the group members’ skits. It seems like they had lots of fun with their project. I really enjoyed the bush and playground scene used to illustrate the bush and ladder metaphor. The points of speciesism were demonstrated well by placing friends and fellow humans in the place of pets and game. Nice work!
ReplyDeleteReally good job guys. the video was fun and informative. I could tell that a fair amount of work went into the whole thing. I liked that you didnt take yourselves to seriously, but the flipside of that is some of the randomness (such as the random appearence of batman) was a but distrating. I thought the overall message was very well communicated by the video as a whole. I Especially enjoyed the skits
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