-
Essay / Blackfish: The Cruel Practice of Animal Captivity
Blackfish is a critically acclaimed 2013 documentary by Gabriela Cowperthwait, a film that follows the controversial subject of orca captivity and its perils for humans and whales . The film centers on a killer whale, Tilikum, who attacked several people during his years in captivity. This problem not only affects individuals connected to SeaWorld, but is also a growing concern in many countries due to the continued use of animals as tourist bait, performing for crowds and for their "owners" to gain revenue. money. In this essay, I will explain how Blackfish suggests how morally correct it is for humanity to capture wild animals for the sole purpose of entertaining the public. Say no to plagiarism. Get a Custom Essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay Aquariums and marine mammal theme parks like SeaWorld, Loro Parque's Orca Ocean, and Canada's Marineland are part of a billion dollar industry built on the suffering of intelligent, social beings who are denied everything that is natural and important to them. The issue of wild animal captivity for public entertainment not only challenges the values and standards set by marine parks, but also calls into question the mistreatment of animals in Asian countries like Indonesia . The cruel entertainment known as dancing monkeys or topeng monyet (meaning masked monkey, referring to the doll head masks they are often forced to wear) was not long ago a common sight in Jakarta . Wearing chains around their necks and learning to do silly tricks, they often entertained small children who laughed at their antics. The monkeys are chained, preventing them from exploring the wilderness as they are supposed to. It's really no different from the orcas in marine parks, forced to swim endlessly around their aquariums. Animals, if not raised in captivity, are captured. of the ocean by the aquarium industry. Animals are cruelly taken from their families and friends to endure a terrifying and stressful journey before ending up in a tank. The result is that captive animals are psychologically damaged and extremely aggressive towards trainers and their peers. Tilikum, the orca that attacked and killed SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau and two others, has been in a cramped aquarium for more than 30 years, ever since he was taken from his Icelandic family. Lolita, taken from her family when she was just a baby, has resided in the same aquarium at the Miami Seaquarium for nearly half a century. Lolita is the sole survivor of a horrific capture in 1970 (over 90 orcas were tracked and lured into a net, 7 were sold to marine parks) and has spent almost her entire life in the smallest and oldest America's orca tank, one that doesn't even meet the outdated and inadequate minimum size requirements of the federal Animal Welfare Act and it provides no shelter from the scorching Miami sun. In the wild, orcas spend 90 percent of their time underwater and dive to depths of 1,000 feet, but the tank that confines Lolita is only 20 feet at its deepest point, the same length as her body. She has not had the company of any member of her own species since 1980, when her tank mate, Hugo, died after repeatedly hitting his head against the tank wall. Not only is Lolita deprived of her rights, but she is also directly and.