Sea World Rhetorical Analysis

Among the many things that individuals enjoy doing with their families, visiting amusement parks is at the top of the list. Sea World is a multi-billion dollar chain of marine animal parks, aquariums, and animal theme parks. (Wikipedia) When people are watching the rehearsed performances that the animals and the trainers do, the animals and the trainers seem to be happy. Witnessing the interaction between the animals and the trainers can remind individuals of the beauty of nature and it serves as entertainment.
Although it’s entertaining to watch these animals perform, most people don’t take the time to think about the issues that the companies that are involved in this type of entertainment encounter. The frequently asked questions of how

the animals are treated and whether they should be kept in captivity occurs the most throughout amusement parks that keep and train animals for entertainment. Individuals that visit places like Sea World, Bush Gardens, or the aquarium aren’t there to check on the well-being of the animals, they are there for entertainment. From their perspective, the animals are having fun entertaining them and enjoy being there. The 2013 documentary Blackfish reveals some disturbing concerns about Sea World and the way the animals are treated there. The creation of the film has also brought up the questions of whether it is safe to keep wild animals in captivity with concern to the safety of the animals and the trainers. (Rotten Tomatoes)
Blackfish was created by Gabriela Cowperthwaite and was first shown at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2013. (Wikipedia) The main focus of the film is on the famous Sea World orca, Tilikum, and how being in captivity affects the well-being of wild animals. Tilikum was captured off the coast of Iceland in 1983, and since being held in captivity there has been alleged harassment by other whales. (Wikipedia) Since being captured, Tilikum has also been the cause of three deaths of whale trainers. The most recent death was the death of trainer Dawn Brancheau in 2010. She was drowned by Tilikum after being pulled into the water by her ponytail. During the time, Tilikum’s behavior was blamed on the harassment he endured from the other whales. Some of the trainers stated that he became much more aggressive in captivity than he would have if he were still living in the wild. There have been more disputes as to what really caused this unexpected aggression in Tilikum, but most people blame it on the fact that he was living in a confined space for 25 years with one or two female whales. Another issue is the length of time orca whales live in captivity versus the time they spend in the wild. Sea World states that male orca whales can live up to 30 years and female orca whales can live up to 50 years. Blackfish appeals the pathos, logos, and ethos through the stylistic features the director chose to use. Also, through the use of live footage and former trainer’s testimonies, Blackfish argues the claim that killer whales shouldn’t be help in captivity for their safety and the safety of humans.
The stories told by the colleagues of Dawn Brancheau established ethos because the individuals telling the story were people that witnessed the attack, and the audience could connect to the speakers by experiencing the event through their stories.

The director includes footage of Tilikum and Dawn having a good time and performing together to show that Tilikum didn’t have any animosity towards her. Thomas Tobin explains the attack and mentions that Dawn was scalped and that her arm was missing. The director incorporates actual footage from the attack with eye witness testimonies to give the audience a sense of what actually happened. Although Tilikum was responsible for the death of trainer Dawn Brancheau, another whale at the Canadian park, Sealand of the Pacific was responsible for the tragic death of trainer and competitive swimmer, Keltie Byrne. Keltie Byrne was performing with the whales as she normally did when she suddenly slipped into the pool, as she was trying to pull herself out of the pool, the whale zoomed towards her and grabbed her by her boot. She proceeded to plead for help every chance she was brought back to the surface, but no one could help in time. These two incidents serve as examples that whales shouldn’t be taken out of their natural habitat because it’s unsafe for their mental health and it’s unsafe for the physical health of the

trainers.
The appeal to pathos is directed towards sympathy for the whales.

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

viewer’s pathos.
Since the documentary is attacking a multi-billion dollar business, the information given appeals to logos. The killer whales are confined to small pools which results in constant fighting with each other within the living quarters. The film mentions that the killer whales that are in captivity won’t live nearly as long as the killer whales that remain in the ocean. The whales kept in captivity are sometimes deprived of food if they fail to perform a task properly. This type of treatment causes the whales to become aggressive and psychotic towards the trainers and other whales. In an article that Sea World did as a rebuttal to all the claims made in Blackfish, they believes that the documentary conveys falsehood and manipulate the emotions of the viewers. Sea World says that they were not responsible for the capturing of Tilikum four decades ago and that they do not take part in capturing whales from the wild. They argue saying that being in captivity didn’t cause unexpected aggression and has nothing to do with the deaths of trainers Dawn or Keltie.
This documentary relies heavily on stylistic features. The opening of the film when the audience hears the 911 calls made after trainers were attacked by whales automatically sets the tone for the film. The opening instills a sense of panic in the audience. The choice to exclude a narrative voiceover suggests that the director is allowing the viewers of Blackfish to come to their own conclusion. The director incorporates interviews of former trainers and whale experts to create a narrative driven by disillusion and regret. The director also illustrates juxtaposition in the difference between the Sea World advertisements and the realist footage of the orca whales in the wild. The music playing during the Sea World advertisements enhance the beauty of the human and animal interaction, but when compared to the music that plays while the killer whales are swimming in the wild ocean; the advertisement music seems heavily orchestrated. The advertisements are portraying a falsehood that the animals are at peace all the time while being held in captivity and that’s not the case. Wild animals shouldn’t be taken out of their natural habitat for our personal entertainment. Just as humans wouldn’t want to be forced to live in a unfamiliar environment, Blackfish is showing viewer exactly why it’s important to keep whales in the ocean.