Documentary About Whales In Captivity

370 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: The blackfish film essay

In the film “Blackfish”, the documentary about whales in captivity at SeaWorld, they have a lot of references to pathos. The film makers are trying to make people feel bad for the whales and want them out of captivity. Whales are not made for the life in captivity, that is why they have them on so many antibiotics. Whales stay with their family for their whole lives, unless they are taken from their families and are put in places like SeaWorld. Which is sad to take them away from their parents. SeaWorld trainers talk about their experiences with the whales and why they love SeaWorld, some stories go way back to when they were children. Whales have a larger emotional part of the brain; they have more emotions than humans. In the film, they

Show More
Related

  • Seaworld Research Paper

    610 Words  | 2 Pages

    Seaworld is a giant marine life theme park. The greatest attraction to these many theme park would be those killer whales. In fact, these killer whales are the face of the park. As gigant as these mammals are, seaworld is keeping them in some pretty tight quarters. Mr. Jett and Mr.Ventre says “Wild killer whales can swim a hundred miles daily as they socialize, forage, communicate, and breed. In stark contrast, with little horizontal or vertical space in their enclosures, captive orcas swim only limited distances, with most spending many hours surface resting.” The animals don't have the freedom they need. Also when taking the whales out of their natural habit the whales tend to be depressed and not as heath in that situation. They need their freedom in the big ocean blue. Bring them into the small living units, breeding whales in captivity all for the entertainment of humans. At young ages the calves are taken away from their mothers on to a new seaworld park. Mothers of the calves have even been seen denying their offspring.

    Read More

  • Sea World Rhetorical Analysis

    1408 Words  | 3 Pages

    Since whales are normally peaceful in the wild and they only seem to attack while in captivity, the argument is that captivity is wrong and dangerous for killer whales. This argument is supported by detailed facts about how the whales are tortured and agitated by other whales with no outlet. Both female and male whales are confined to a swimming pool where they are in a way being forced to try and mate. The female whales tend to abuse the male whales, which leads the whales to become mentally and physically unhealthy resulting in attacks on trainer. In the interviews with Corinne Cowell and Nadine Kallen, they mentioned that when they visited Sealand of the Pacific that three whales were confined to a “dingy pool”. Another appeal to pathos is when a neurologist that has studied killer whales mentions how the animals are very intelligent and are well-aware of what is going on around them. (SeaWorld) Killer whales have similar brains to humans, but have a bigger part of their brain where emotions are processed. With this, whales are more aware of their emotions and the bonds they make with humans and other animals. (SeaWorld) With the huge amount of raw footage, first-hand accounts, and true information, the film is able to grasp the attention of the viewers with the amount of emotion that is shown from the former trainers and the whales themselves. With these tactics, the film effectively appeals to the

    Read More

  • Blackfish Essay

    942 Words  | 2 Pages

    SeaWorld also claims that the whales being kept there are treated humanely and are in no way unhappy. Although Cowperthwaite’s film clearly explains that that is a far cry from the truth with many trainers saying that the whales were often bullied by others which left them with painful rake marks that are created by teeth scraping against the whales skin. If whales did not perform a trick properly they would not be given food which left the whales hungry and extremely agitated. Behind the scenes footages shows whales being attacked by others with one whale even breaking its own jaw which led to an artery becoming severed and the bled out and died shortly after.

    Read More

  • Movie Review: The Blackfish Effect

    1308 Words  | 3 Pages

    The captivity of large, wild animals is accepted for theme parks all around the world. Tickets are sold for people to come and watch these animals live and even preform in an exhibit that almost resembles their natural environment. It is impossible for parks and zoos that use animals as attractions to provide the same resources and space they would have in the habitat they are usually found in. They can, however, help injured or ill animals that cannot survive in the wild. This is where I believe they should draw the line for keeping animals in captivity. SeaWorld has gotten a lot of attention in the last few years, especially since the Netflix documentary, Blackfish, was released. This film targets the company for the mistreatment of their orca whales. In particular, it told the story of one named Tilikum and shows the problems he and the other orca whales face while living under the care of SeaWorld. Gabriela Cowperthwaite, the director

    Read More

  • Seaworld Persuasive Speech

    1468 Words  | 3 Pages

    Out of the 156 whales they have taken into captivity from the wild, 129 are dead. Including orcas bred within SeaWorld, at least 165 have died in their facilities (Schelling). Another falsehood SeaWorld claims is that collapsed dorsal fins are completely normal and common of all male orcas. It is actually quite rare to find in the wild, while every single one of their male whales has a collapsed dorsal fin (“8 Shocking Facts…”). SeaWorld also guarantees that they never separate a calf from its mother and even have posted a picture of a baby and its mother as proof. What they didn’t tell the public was that soon after that picture was posted they shipped the calf off to Spain alone to a different park. A past trainer even said that there had been at least 19 separations of mother and calf that he knew of at his location. All of these factors previously stated added up have a large influence on the whales mentally. Many whales are afflicted by psychosis and anxiety and in turn are given drugs such as Valium to keep them performing in shows. There have been various occasions, often swept under the rug by SeaWorld and away from the public eye, where the drugs didn’t work enough (Schelling). There

    Read More

  • Ethos In Blackfish

    699 Words  | 2 Pages

    It also persuades people to take the side of the whales due to the suffering and misery shown. Ethos in a sense of a backup route to help support the persuasive idea of the film. One incident is where both ethos and pathos were used in the same situation was John Crowe was filmed. John Crowe stated “trying to get the young Orca in the net while the whole damn family is 25 feet away communicating…. I lost it I started crying, but I continued to work I just couldn’t handle it. It was like kidnapping a little kid from its mother.” He also stated the whales that died were gutted and stuffed with rocks. People who view this film are likely to be on the side of the whales. When the trainer Dawn Brancheau died there where many different actuations about how she died. One were stated by Jim Solomons that “Dawn slipped and fell in the whale holding area and drowned.” Another was by Sea World executive Thad Lacinak. He reported to the media that it was Dawn’s fault that she got attacked. He stated “if dawn was standing here now she could tell you it was her fault… he grabbed her pony-tail and pulled her that’s as simply as it gets. To me that a bad why to remember one of their great and loved whale trainer. Well what does that matter they’re only worried about the replacement of Dawn, and the start of the money flow from the tourist attraction of Sea World back on

    Read More

  • Blackfish Analysis

    1600 Words  | 4 Pages

    Millions of people come from across the world to visit Seaworld every day without thinking about the lives of the animals behind the scenes. Why would they have concerns? From Seaworld’s commercials to the website, they convince the general public that Seaworld is the place to go to see the happy sea animals perform. If Seaworld is such an ecstatic place, what excuse does Tilikum, their greatest well known orca whale, have for the three attacks on trainers? The documentary “Blackfish” was created by the director Gabriela Cowperthwaite because she questioned herself after realizing Tilikum's odd behavior over time in captivity, and if there was any indisputable parts to animal captivity?

    Read More

  • Film Techniques In Blackfish

    1315 Words  | 3 Pages

    John Crowe, one of the hunters, is interviewed and tells the story of “the worst thing he’s ever done”. He appeals to the appalled emotions of the audience by admitting to the inhumane way they captured the baby whales. He uses an analogy when discussing the capturing, claiming it was like “kidnapping a kid from its mother”, which pulls at the heartstrings of any parent watching the film, establishing a sense of relatability. The film uses juxtaposition by examining how Crowe, a tough looking man, can be brought to tears by this horrific act. Blackfish then moves to discussing the reason behind Tilikum’s outburst by running a montage of news reports ambushing SeaWorld on the inhumane treatment of whales. The use of the rhetorical question “If you were in a bathtub for 25 years don’t you think you’d get a little irritated, aggravated, maybe a little psychotic?”, grabs the audience’s attention by creating a scenario they can understand. These events create an accusing tone that convinces the audience that SeaWorld is the antagonist of the film. Along with accusations from reporters, SeaWorld has fought many lawsuits against OSHA- the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, due to the way SeaWorld treats their animals. A court hearing is held regarding Tilikum’s behaviour due to pulled video footage of Tilikum lunging towards one of the trainers

    Read More

  • Ethical Issues In Blackfish

    681 Words  | 2 Pages

    There is a myriad of other films, some produced by groups like PETA and ASPCA, where the intent is solely to inspire sympathy by parading superfluous images of abused animals in front of the viewer. Blackfish could have taken that route, it certainly would have been simple for the film-makers; however, they opted for a sensible and logical fact-based structure to support their message. Gabriela Cowperthwaite, the film’s director, succeeded in providing viewers like myself -- viewers who value facts over feelings, an excellent and well-documented look at the physical and mental treatment of these captured animals. The filmmakers provided enough evidence to support their claims which asked the viewer to question the killer whale’s aggressive behavior when in captivity and then allowed the viewer the make their own judgments based on the facts being

    Read More

  • Commercial Whaling: The Ethical and Political Debate

    1447 Words  | 3 Pages

    The quest to gain international agreement on ethical and legal norms for regulation of whaling has had a long and troubled history. The modern phase of global concern over whaling ethics and conservationist management originated in 1946, when the International Convention on Regulation of Whaling was signed. Thus the International Whaling Commission was created. The International Whaling Commission was designed to control and mandate the whaling industry. From it’s beginning as simply a whalers club with scientific guidance, to the current day conservationist body; the IWC has undergone many revisions and transformations since the start. In 1982 the IWC voted to implement a “pause” on commercial whaling (which is still in effect today). Which major whaling nations, Japan, Norway, Peru, and the Soviet Union (later replaced by Russia) lodged formal objections, due to the fact that the moratorium was not based on advice from the Scientific Committee. One major disappointment of this regulation was due the fact that the moratorium only applies to commercial whaling. Thus, whaling under scientific-research and aboriginal-subsistence is still allowed. Japan and other countries have continued their hunt in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary under the “scientific research” loophole. However, environmental activist groups openly dispute the claims and continue their rally to end the whaling industry for good.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Orcas

    673 Words  | 2 Pages

    And even a six year old wasn’t blind to that fact. The issue of keeping Orcas in captivity and under the care of man has been a controversial practice ever since the first dolphins and whales were taken into aquariums for the amusement of humans. In more recent times, the documentary Blackfish (which has been recently broadcast on popular TV stations such as CNN) that focuses on Tilikum, an orca held by SeaWorld, has brought to light the controversy over captive killer whales. Orcas are majestic, beautiful, and intelligent creatures that should not be kept in captivity for our entertainment because of the harm they cause. SeaWorld, a leader in the captivity and use of killer whales for entertainment, has counterattacked the points made by the documentary Blackfish, which brought many points to light.

    Read More

  • Killer Whales Should Not Be Allowed In Captivity Essay

    1977 Words  | 4 Pages

    Kirby, David. Death at SeaWorld: Shamu and the Dark Side of Killer Whales in Captivity. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2012. Print.

    Read More

  • Animal Cruelty at Sea World

    788 Words  | 2 Pages

    It’s a very common practice in todays society for people to go to Sea World and see the famous shamu show while on vacation or out for a day of fun. Many people don’t fully understand how these animals feel while in captivity. Light has been shed on having these killer whales in captivity when a trainer was killed at Sea World recently. At one of the early parks called Sea Land one of the male killer whales Tilicum killed one of his trainers. After this incident Sea Land closed its doors. This meant that Tilicum was up for sale, Sea World jumped at the chance to buy him at a good price. Sea World was not fully aware that Tilicum was the actual cause of his trainers death. This was a death sentence for one of Sea Worlds female trainers. Sea World and companies like it are only in it to make money, these large animals should not be kept in captivity by any means.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of The Emotional Lives Of Animals

    1048 Words  | 3 Pages

    The short film ,”Humpback Whale Shows AMAZING Appreciation After Being Freed From Nets,” shows 3 men, and a woman are in a small boat, cutting away the net that inprisons the whale. This is a fine example of the value of human emotions enhancing the survival of the whale, that otherwise would more than likely die. After being freed the whale danced a happy dance of sorts, and showed it 's appreciation for valuing it 's life enough to risk their own safety to save it ("Humpback Whale Shows AMAZING

    Read More

  • Should Animals Be Kept in Captivity

    1615 Words  | 4 Pages

    Just take into consideration what happens when you are stuck in the same room with someone for a long period of time, especially at the end of a bad day. Who’s to say that they don’t feel the same way, but as long as Sea World is making money, then who cares, right? Sea World has ten captive Orcas, seven of which were born in captivity and it is said that they wouldn’t survive in the open ocean. This wouldn’t be a problem if you wouldn’t have taken their parents out of the ocean and left them to do things on their own in the first place. Sea World claims that they “couldn’t love their animals any more”.

    Read More

More about Documentary About Whales In Captivity

Open Document